Hymn (software)
Encyclopedia
Hymn which stands for Hear Your Music aNywhere is a piece of computer software
, and the successor to the PlayFair program. The purpose of Hymn, according to its author (who is currently anonymous for fear of legal proceedings), is to allow people to exercise their fair use
rights under United States copyright law
.
The program allows the user to remove the FairPlay
DRM
restrictions of music bought from the iTunes Store
.
Most DRM removal programs rely on re-compressing the media that is captured after it is output by iTunes. This causes some loss in quality. However, Hymn can remove DRM with no reduction in sound quality, since it captures the raw AAC
stream generated by iTunes as it opens each song, and saves this data using a compression structure identical to that of the original file, preserving both the quality and the small file size. The resultant files can then be played outside of the iTunes environment, including operating system
s not supported by iTunes. It works (with a plugged-in iPod
) on Mac OS X
, on many Unix
variants, and also on Windows
(with or without an iPod).
The Mac OS X version includes a drag-and-drop graphical user interface
. All other platforms have only a command-line interface
at this time. Prebuilt binaries are available for both Mac OS X and Windows, and the source code is available for all platforms. There is also a Java
-based GUI
version of the program called JHymn
.
The program and its source code
are available under the GNU General Public License
.
JHymn
superseded Hymn as the official software of The Hymn Project.
The Hymn website has announced that, because users can no longer purchase music using iTunes 5 or older
, removal of iTunes DRM for now is best accomplished with the use of MyFairTunes6 or QTFairUse6. These programs currently work with the latest version of iTunes (7.5.0 as of December 2007).
As of february 20, 2008, the site host received a C&D letter demanding that all downloads be removed from the site. The moderator said that "Until further notice, no links are to be posted anywhere on the site to programs that can strip DRM from any of Apple's music or videos. Any user who does so will get the link removed and a warning from us. Any further infraction will get you banned permanently.". The FAQ of the forum now says: "Anyone who posts a link to a DRM removal program will be banned. No exceptions. If you have a question about this, PM a mod.". Therefore, the program will no longer be available for download on the official website.
Computer software
Computer software, or just software, is a collection of computer programs and related data that provide the instructions for telling a computer what to do and how to do it....
, and the successor to the PlayFair program. The purpose of Hymn, according to its author (who is currently anonymous for fear of legal proceedings), is to allow people to exercise their fair use
Fair use
Fair use is a limitation and exception to the exclusive right granted by copyright law to the author of a creative work. In United States copyright law, fair use is a doctrine that permits limited use of copyrighted material without acquiring permission from the rights holders...
rights under United States copyright law
United States copyright law
The copyright law of the United States governs the legally enforceable rights of creative and artistic works under the laws of the United States.Copyright law in the United States is part of federal law, and is authorized by the U.S. Constitution...
.
The program allows the user to remove the FairPlay
FairPlay
FairPlay is a digital rights management technology created by Apple Inc., based on technology created by the company Veridisc. FairPlay is built into the QuickTime multimedia software and used by the iPhone, iPod, iPad, Apple TV, iTunes, and iTunes Store and the App Store. Formerly, all songs in...
DRM
Digital rights management
Digital rights management is a class of access control technologies that are used by hardware manufacturers, publishers, copyright holders and individuals with the intent to limit the use of digital content and devices after sale. DRM is any technology that inhibits uses of digital content that...
restrictions of music bought from the iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
.
Most DRM removal programs rely on re-compressing the media that is captured after it is output by iTunes. This causes some loss in quality. However, Hymn can remove DRM with no reduction in sound quality, since it captures the raw AAC
Advanced Audio Coding
Advanced Audio Coding is a standardized, lossy compression and encoding scheme for digital audio. Designed to be the successor of the MP3 format, AAC generally achieves better sound quality than MP3 at similar bit rates....
stream generated by iTunes as it opens each song, and saves this data using a compression structure identical to that of the original file, preserving both the quality and the small file size. The resultant files can then be played outside of the iTunes environment, including operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
s not supported by iTunes. It works (with a plugged-in iPod
IPod
iPod is a line of portable media players created and marketed by Apple Inc. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle...
) on Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
, on many Unix
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
variants, and also on Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
(with or without an iPod).
The Mac OS X version includes a drag-and-drop graphical user interface
Graphical user interface
In computing, a graphical user interface is a type of user interface that allows users to interact with electronic devices with images rather than text commands. GUIs can be used in computers, hand-held devices such as MP3 players, portable media players or gaming devices, household appliances and...
. All other platforms have only a command-line interface
Command-line interface
A command-line interface is a mechanism for interacting with a computer operating system or software by typing commands to perform specific tasks...
at this time. Prebuilt binaries are available for both Mac OS X and Windows, and the source code is available for all platforms. There is also a Java
Java (programming language)
Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
-based GUI
Gui
Gui or guee is a generic term to refer to grilled dishes in Korean cuisine. These most commonly have meat or fish as their primary ingredient, but may in some cases also comprise grilled vegetables or other vegetarian ingredients. The term derives from the verb, "gupda" in Korean, which literally...
version of the program called JHymn
JHymn
JHymn is computer software which provides a graphical user interfacefor the hymn program. JHymn is written in Java. It extends hymn with additional functionality including the ability to add, delete, and update MPEG-4 atoms in file types of M4A, M4B, M4P, and MP4. The program and its source code...
.
The program and its source code
Source code
In computer science, source code is text written using the format and syntax of the programming language that it is being written in. Such a language is specially designed to facilitate the work of computer programmers, who specify the actions to be performed by a computer mostly by writing source...
are available under the GNU General Public License
GNU General Public License
The GNU General Public License is the most widely used free software license, originally written by Richard Stallman for the GNU Project....
.
JHymn
JHymn
JHymn is computer software which provides a graphical user interfacefor the hymn program. JHymn is written in Java. It extends hymn with additional functionality including the ability to add, delete, and update MPEG-4 atoms in file types of M4A, M4B, M4P, and MP4. The program and its source code...
superseded Hymn as the official software of The Hymn Project.
The Hymn website has announced that, because users can no longer purchase music using iTunes 5 or older
ITunes version history
The version history of iTunes spans from 2001 to the present and covers the application's evolution and refinement from a simple music player to a control center for many types of media. Support for the iPod and iTunes Store were added in the subsequent versions...
, removal of iTunes DRM for now is best accomplished with the use of MyFairTunes6 or QTFairUse6. These programs currently work with the latest version of iTunes (7.5.0 as of December 2007).
As of february 20, 2008, the site host received a C&D letter demanding that all downloads be removed from the site. The moderator said that "Until further notice, no links are to be posted anywhere on the site to programs that can strip DRM from any of Apple's music or videos. Any user who does so will get the link removed and a warning from us. Any further infraction will get you banned permanently.". The FAQ of the forum now says: "Anyone who posts a link to a DRM removal program will be banned. No exceptions. If you have a question about this, PM a mod.". Therefore, the program will no longer be available for download on the official website.
External links
Hymn project homepage Forum of Hymn project Hymn page at DarwinPorts Hymn page at FinkFink
The Fink project is an effort to port and package open-source Unix programs to Mac OS X. Fink uses dpkg and APT , as well as its own frontend program, fink ....