Re: Brute Force attack on VMS

[mskala@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

On Fri, 1 Sep 2000, John Grove wrote:
> a word, etc.  However, if a language is written in its natural state without
> vowels - and is enciphered with a simple substitution with the VMS odd
> character set, one doesn't have to 'add' vowels per se - unless you're a
> foreigner and want to pronounce the words with some degree of accuracy. Now,

I actually wrote, and then deleted because I thought it could be
confusing, a paragraph saying that "if the vowels could be added by a
purely mechanical process, it's less of a problem".  Just as you say, some
languages may be naturally written without vowels.  In that case, the
"missing" vowels can be added unambiguously - there's only one sensible
way to do it.

If the vowels can be added unambiguously, then by adding the vowels one
isn't adding information.  Information is by definition surprise.  If the
vowels are determined by the consonents, and you know the consonents, then
finding out what the vowels are isn't any sort of surprise.  There's no
information there.  My criterion of "minimal added information" is still
applicable.

Matthew Skala
mskala@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx              I'm recording the boycott industry!
http://www.islandnet.com/~mskala/