OurTunes

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The correct title of this article is ourTunes. The initial letter is shown capitalized due to technical restrictions.

ourTunes

ourTunes 1.3.3
Developer:	David Blackman
Latest release:	1.3.3
OS:	Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows with Java Runtime Environment
Use:	File sharing
License:	Open source
Website:	http://ourtunes.sourceforge.net/

ourTunes is an open source cross-platform Java-based file sharing client which allows users to connect to iTunes and share MP3 and AAC music files over a local area subnetwork. ourTunes has been downloaded almost 350,000 times.^[1]

The current version of ourTunes, v1.3.3, works with all versions of iTunes prior to iTunes 7, in either Mac OS X or Microsoft Windows operating systems.

1 History
2 Features
3 Use
4 References
5 Notes
6 External links

[edit] History

ourTunes was developed by David Blackman, a Stanford University student. It originally started as One2OhMyGod, a Swing-based client designed for iTunes's version 4.1 authorization, which was made obsolete by Apple's release of version 4.5. After Australian student David Hammerton cracked the new encryption and authentication system used by iTunes [1], One2OhMyGod was forked into a program called AppleRecords. ourTunes was developed further from AppleRecords, including the conceptual design of programs such as MyTunes, designed by Trinity College (Connecticut) student Bill Zeller, although these programs lacked ourTunes's searchability features.^[2]

Apple took steps to disable MyTunes in April 2004, but has not taken action against ourTunes or other programs like GetTunes.^[3] By October 2004, ourTunes had been downloaded over 150,000 times.^[4] As of 2006, it has been downloaded almost 350,000 times; however, OurTunes does not work with iTunes 7 or later, and no further development has taken place since the 1.3.3 release. A grass roots effort to "Save OurTunes" has started with one person looking for donations to pay a programmer to develop a new app, dubbed "Our2unes," to work with the latest version of iTunes.^[5]

An unofficial .app build (for use on Mac OS X) was released here. Built solely with Jar Bundler it has two advantages over the Swing application from 2004: It spots a custom icon and it can be directly invoked from program launchers such as Quicksilver (Quicksilver lacks native support for .jar files). The change is purely cosmetic, under the hood it's still the same old and respected 1.3.3 release.

[edit] Features

Unlike the iTunes music sharing feature, which allows a maximum of five users every 24 hours to connect and listen to the music of another user who has enabled sharing on a given subnetwork, ourTunes allows users to download music files to their own computer and provides the functionality to search through the songs from all connected hosts. ourTunes cannot download music purchased from the iTunes Music Store. Unlike peer-to-peer programs like Kazaa and Napster, ourTunes cannot search for or download music from users who do not share a subnetwork. ourTunes is technically not a peer-to-peer program because it does not offer its users the opportunity to share files. ourTunes offers the ability to both download and stream music off the available shares.