00_0137135599_FM.pdf01_0137135599_ch01.qxd.PDF02_0137135599_ch02.pdf03_0137135599_ch03.pdf04_0137135599_ch04.qxd.PDF05_0137135599_ch05.qxd.PDF06_0137135599_ch06.pdf07_0137135599_ch07.qxd.PDF08_0137135599_ch08.qxd.PDF09_0137135599_Conclusion.qxd.PDF10_0137135599_AppA.qxd.PDF11_0137135599_endnotes.pdf12_0137135599_index.pdfBlown to BitsYour Life, Liberty,and Happiness Afterthe Digital ExplosionHal AbelsonKen LedeenHarry LewisUpper Saddle River, NJ • Boston • Indianapolis • San FranciscoNew York • Toronto • Montreal • London • Munich • Paris • MadridCape Town • Sydney • Tokyo • Singapore • Mexico City00_0137135599_FM.qxd 4/14/08 3:59 PM Page iiiMany of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products areclaimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and the publisher wasaware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed with initial capital letters or inall capitals.The authors and publisher have taken care in the preparation of this book, but make noexpressed or implied warranty of any kind and assume no responsibility for errors or omissions.No liability is assumed for incidental or consequential damages in connection with or arisingout of the use of the information or programs contained herein.The publisher offers excellent discounts on this book when ordered in quantity for bulkpurchases or special sales, which may include electronic versions and/or custom covers andcontent particular to your business, training goals, marketing focus, and branding interests. Formore information, please contact:U.S. Corporate and Government Sales(800) [email protected] sales outside the United States, please contact:International [email protected] us on the Web: www.informit.com/awLibrary of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:Abelson, Harold.Blown to bits : your life, liberty, and happiness after the digital explosion / Hal Abelson,Ken Ledeen, Harry Lewis.p. cm.ISBN 0-13-713559-9 (hardback : alk. paper) 1. Computers and civilization. 2. Informationtechnology—Technological innovations. 3. Digital media. I. Ledeen, Ken, 1946- II. Lewis,Harry R. III. Title. QA76.9.C66A245 2008303.48’33—dc222008005910Copyright © 2008 Hal Abelson, Ken Ledeen, and Harry LewisAll rights reserved. An electronic version of this book will be released under a CreativeCommons license. For detailed information about availability for the Creative Commonsversion, consult the book web site at http://bitsbook.com.For information regarding permissions, write to:Pearson Education, Inc.Rights and Contracts Department501 Boylston Street, Suite 900Boston, MA 02116Fax (617) 671 344700_0137135599_FM.qxd 4/14/08 3:59 PM Page ivISBN-13: 978-0-13-713559-2ISBN-10: 0-13-713559-9Text printed in the United States on recycled paper at FILL IN TEXT PRINTER NAME ANDLOCATION [EXAMPLE: Courier in Westford, Massachusetts].First printing June 2008This Book Is Safari EnabledThe Safari®Enabled icon on the cover of your favorite technology book means the book isavailable through Safari Bookshelf. When you buy this book, you get free access to the onlineedition for 45 days.Safari Bookshelf is an electronic reference library that lets you easily search thousands oftechnical books, find code samples, download chapters, and access technical informationwhenever and wherever you need it.To gain 45-day Safari Enabled access to this book:• Go to http://www.informit.com/onlineedition• Complete the brief registration form• Enter the coupon code 9SD6-IQLD-ZDNI-AGEC-AG6LIf you have difficulty registering on Safari Bookshelf or accessing the online edition, pleasee-mail [email protected] in ChiefMark TaubAcquisitions EditorGreg DoenchDevelopment EditorMichael ThurstonManaging EditorGina KanouseSenior Project EditorKristy HartCopy EditorWater Crest Publishing, Inc.IndexerErika MillenProofreaderWilliams Woods Publishing ServicesPublishing CoordinatorMichelle HousleyInterior Designer and CompositionNonie RatcliffCover DesignerChuti Prasertsith00_0137135599_FM.qxd 4/14/08 3:59 PM Page vContentsPreface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiiiChapter 1 Digital ExplosionWhy Is It Happening, and What Is at Stake? . . . . . . . . . 1The Explosion of Bits, and Everything Else . . . . . . . . . . 2The Koans of Bits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Good and Ill, Promise and Peril . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Chapter 2 Naked in the SunlightPrivacy Lost, Privacy Abandoned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191984 Is Here, and We Like It . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Footprints and Fingerprints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Why We Lost Our Privacy, or Gave It Away . . . . . . . . . 36Little Brother Is Watching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42Big Brother, Abroad and in the U.S. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48Technology Change and Lifestyle Change . . . . . . . . . . 55Beyond Privacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61Chapter 3 Ghosts in the MachineSecrets and Surprises of Electronic Documents . . . . . . 73What You See Is Not What the Computer Knows . . . . 73Representation, Reality, and Illusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80Hiding Information in Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94The Scary Secrets of Old Disks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9900_0137135599_FM.qxd 4/14/08 3:59 PM Page ixChapter 4 Needles in the HaystackGoogle and Other Brokers in the Bits Bazaar . . . . . . . 109Found After Seventy Years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109The Library and the Bazaar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110The Fall of Hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117It Matters How It Works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120Who Pays, and for What? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138Search Is Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145You Searched for WHAT? Tracking Searches . . . . . . . 156Regulating or Replacing the Brokers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158Chapter 5 Secret BitsHow Codes Became Unbreakable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161Encryption in the Hands of Terrorists, andEveryone Else . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161Historical Cryptography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165Lessons for the