passport/res/readme.txt

----------------Passport---------------
A 4am hack                   2016-12-30
---------------------------------------

Passport is a cracker's tool that can
remove several forms of copy protection
from Apple II 5.25-inch floppy disks.

Minimum system requirements:
- Apple //e, //c, IIgs, or ][+ with 64K
- Two 5.25-inch disk drives(*)

(*) fully compatible with floppy drive
emulators like CFFA3000 and FloppyEMU.

Some fun facts about copy protection:

1. Many companies, especially smaller
   ones, outsourced their copy
   protection. I have seen byte-for
   byte identical copy protection on
   disks from 7 different companies!

2. Even companies that wrote their own
   copy protection would try to re-use
   it on multiple disks to get the most
   "bang for the buck."

3. Not everything has been cracked!
   Because there was so much piracy in
   the 1980s, some people assume that
   everything ever published has been
   cracked and ultimately preserved in
   an emulator-friendly format. In
   reality, there are hundreds of disks
   that have never been cracked. Thirty
   years later, these programs are
   still trapped on physical media,
   literally rotting away.

                   ~

Using Passport is simple. After running
the program, put an original disk in
slot 6, drive 1 and a blank formatted
disk in any other drive. If necessary,
press "S" to cycle through your drives.
Then press "C" to start the cracking.

If all goes well, Passport will read
your original disk and write a copy in
a standard format, then remove any
protection checks from the copy. The
copy will boot and run just as well as
the original disk, but it will be
copyable with COPYA or any full-disk
copy program.

If all does not go well, Passport will
tell you where it all went wrong.

In any case, Passport will NEVER write
to or alter your original disk in any
way. And neither should you! Don't
reduce the number of original disks in
the world; they aren't making any more
of them.

                   ~

Passport targets common protection
schemes that were reused by multiple
companies. These types of protection
were common on educational software,
not blockbuster arcade games.

Here is a sampling of companies whose
disks Passport may be able to crack:

- Apple "Special Delivery"
  e.g. Ernie's Quiz, Instant Zoo

- MECC
  e.g. Word Munchers, Clock Works

- Sunburst Communications
  e.g. M-ss-ng L-nks, The Incredible
  Laboratory

- The Learning Company
  e.g. Bumble Games, Gertrude's Secrets

- Scholastic
  e.g. Math Shop, Microzine

- Edu-Ware
  e.g. Decimals, Algebra 2

- Hartley Courseware
  e.g. Chariots, Cougars, and Kings;
  Tim and the Cat and the Big Red Hat

- Hayden
  e.g. SAT Score Improvement System
  (series)

- Developmental Learning Materials
  e.g. Curious George in Outer Space,
  Alien Addition

- DesignWare
  e.g. Spellicopter, Crypto Cube

- Mindscape
  e.g. The Halley Project, Paperboy

- Focus Media
  e.g. The Time Tunnel (series),
  Travels with Za-Zoom

- MindPlay
  e.g. Fraction-oids, Dyno-Quest

- Spinnaker Software (limited)
  e.g. Snooper Troops (series),
  KidWriter

- Springboard Software (limited)
  e.g. Early Games for Young Children,
  Puzzle Master, Mask Parade

- Reader's Digest
  e.g. Key Lingo, Cogito

- McCarthy-McCormack
  e.g. Vowel Corral, Library Magic

- Troll Associates
  e.g. Dino Dig, Make A Face

- Abracadata
  e.g. Design Your Own Home (series)

- Methods & Solutions
  e.g. Fantasy Land, Behind The Wheel

- Mindplay
  e.g. Math Magic, Ace Detective

- Quest Learning Systems
  e.g. Bingo Bugglebee Presents Home
  Alone, Outdoor Safety

- HRM Software
  e.g. Gene Machine, Heredity Dog

- Pelican Software
  e.g. Dino Days, Graphics Converter

- Unicorn Software
  e.g. Magical Myths, Ten Little
  Robots

- Grolier Publishing
  e.g. NoteCard Maker, EduCalc

- Random House
  e.g. Snoopy to the Rescue, Charlie
  Brown's ABCs

- Josten Learning Systems
  e.g. Building Reading Skills,
  Explorations in Science

- Heartsoft
  e.g. Electric Chalkboard, Tommy the
  Time-Telling Turtle

- Ellen Nelson Learning Library