] Until last week, it appeared that Apple Computer Inc.'s
] iTunes Music Store had solved the problem of how to sell
] music over the Internet with just enough digital security
] to satisfy nervous record labels but not so much as to
] deter consumers from using it.
]
]
] But a few enterprising Mac hackers figured out how to get
] more mileage from one of the built-in features of iTunes
] 4, streaming music between Macs on a local network (such
] as a home network).
]
]
] Within a week of iTunes 4's introduction, Web sites such
] as ShareiTunes.com and Spymac were offering lists of song
] collections that could be streamed from the hard drives
] of dozens of online Mac users who made their collections
] available.
]
]
] Streaming, it should be noted, is distinct from
] downloading. When you stream a file, it's like listening
] to the radio; no file is transferred to your hard drive.
] Many Mac users doing this believed that since they were
] just listening and not downloading, the activity was
] legal.
]
]
] Before anyone could start debating the legality of
] streaming, however, other clever hackers devised a way to
] use the sharing function to download songs from one
] another's drives.