Re: VMs: Re: 1st Impressions and baby steps

[Barbara Barrett <barbarabarrett@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

> Barbara Blithered;
> 
> Worse would be if the user didn't work from the VMS directly but from
> notes of plaintext extracted from the VMS via a "key", then those
> worknotes not only defeated the purpose of the VMS but were dangerous
> documents in themselves.
> 
> So in therefore the only "safe" senario I can envision is if the "key"
> to the VMS is simple enough to be kept in one's head, simple enough that
> the VMS may be "read off" in a single pass, and the nessesity for
> written of physical keys, and the need for worknotes etc, is eliminated.


> Jeff Jotted;
> Or the key itself is written in the document and just looks like any other
> part of the text. :-)

Barbara babbles;
Hmmmm.....
And to read such a hidden key it too would have to be simple.
A "true key" (IE a plaintext explanation of how the system works) would
defeat the object of the exercise (and obviously dosn't exist otherwise
the VMS would've been cracked long agao) so any "key" in the text would
of necessity be no more than a simple mnemonic: but how to read that
mnemonic if you've forgotten the letter values and change values? A
whole key couldn't be written in the alphabet/system that couldn't be
read without the key to its decipherment: ooooh circular logic makes my
head swim. Pass the ibuprophen please.

But, but, BUT!

It isn't always possible to recall every letter's values (or rules for
value change) off the top of one's head. A two part key would satisfy my
theory. EG gutarists recall the notes of their strings with the phrase
"Every Average Dog Gets Bloody Exausted" (EADGBE from lowest (open note)
to highest (open note) string). So all our author would have to do is
devise a nonsense phrase of poem - each word or more probably line,
begining with a unique value - in the text we could have a column of
voynich letters, digraphs, and value pairs formed from where the first
letter of each line, or paragraph, begins with the phonetic value of the
first phoneme of the first word of each line of the poem/phrase. 

Thanks Jeff, you've given me and idea that can be tested against the VMS
- well it'd only find one part of the key - and only if the idea has
merit that is, but there's a way to test if such a half-key exists, and
a half key (even if it couldn't be read) could assist the abstract
assigning of values.

If an in-text key exists then it has to be something that is as simple
as that (or something else equally simple) because as I say, any
algorithim complex enough to need working out on seperate worknotes is a
grave security risk.

Barbara
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