Re: Waiting for Mac version [was Re: Full strength Email Clients]

["Timothy N. Hill" <tnh@ACM.ORG>]

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At 02:19 -0500 97-02-07, Steve Schear wrote:
>>... PGPMail 4.5 ...
>
>Its too bad there isn't a Mac version contemplated.  They appear to think
>that existing PGP versions, paired with Eudora, are sufficient.  I think a
>better integrated approach for the Mac would be appreciated as the
>available AppleScripts are buggy and awkward.

I agree completely about the need.  PGP, Inc., does claim to be working on
a Mac version, but their promises are beginning to sound a little hollow.
They now promise a "1997 release of PGPmail for the Macintosh" and "more
specific information on when PGPmail will be available on the Macintosh"
"during the second half of February."

I bought ViaCrypt PGP for Macintosh 2.7.1 in October.  (2.7.1 is nearly
identical to the free 2.6.2, with the same abysmal user interface that
earned a rare one-star rating from Macworld
<http://www.macworld.com/pages/star/starratings.Utilities.html>, but 2.7.1
is licensed for commercial use.)  At the time, PGP Inc. promised a free
upgrade to version 4.0 for Mac, which was already considerably overdue.
(According to <http://www.pgp.com/products/viacrypt-tbr.cgi>, 4.0 is still
"To Be Released Soon.")

When PGP, Inc., announced PGPmail 4.5 in December
<http://www.pgp.com/newsroom/prel8.cgi>, they wrote "PGPmail 4.5 ...
supports ... Mac OS."  I called and asked if this implied they were
bypassing 4.0 for Mac and when 4.5 would be available for Mac.  The support
person didn't know, said she'd find out and call me back, and never called
back.

A few days ago, I received this via US mail:

>PRETTY GOOD PRIVACY, INC.
>
>Wednesday, January 22, 1997
>
>Dear Valued Customer:
>
>Thank you for being patient regarding your order for an updated version
>of PGP for the Macintosh. The last year has involved many changes for
>our company. As a customer, we know the changes have caused delays in
>the product you expected sooner. I would like to explain recent events
>and extend a special offer in appreciation of your business.
>
>First, an explanation of recent events. As you may already know, Pretty
>Good Privacy, Inc. purchased Lemcom Systems and its wholly owned
>subsidiary, ViaCrypt, last year. ViaCrypt had previously announced
>ViaCrypt PGP 4.0 for the Macintosh. Pretty Good Privacy is fully
>committed to the Macintosh platform, and we have plans to release a
>rich set of products for the Macintosh in 1997. We have already doubled
>the size of our Macintosh group with engineers who have extensive Apple
>experience.
>
>We are currently working on a new version of PGPmail designed
>specifically for the Macintosh, adding new features and revising the
>graphical user interface, making it significantly easier to use.
>
>After much serious consideration, we decided to dedicate the Macintosh
>PGPmail team to deliver this new product as quickly as possible, and to
>cancel the port of ViaCrypt PGP 4.0 to the Macintosh. We apologize for
>any inconvenience this delay may have caused, but we believe that you
>will agree that the new version of PGPmail designed specifically for
>the Macintosh will meet your needs better than a port from the Windows
>platform.
>
>In recognition of the delay, we would like to offer you the forthcoming
>1997 release of PGPmail for the Macintosh free of charge. We hope you
>will take advantage of this special offer. When ordering, please
>indicate the following code #0811 to process your order, so please
>retain this letter. Please check the PGPmail section of our website at
>http://www.pgp.com/products/PGPmail-faq.cgi during the second half of
>February with more specific information on when PGPmail will be
>available on the Macintosh.
>
>Please accept our sincere apologies for the delay. If you have any
>questions, please contact us at fyi@pgp.com.
>
>Sincerely,
>
>Tom Steding
>President & CEO
>Pretty Good Privacy, Inc.

We shall see.

Meanwhile, a beta version of "Pretty Safe Mail"
<http://www.highware.com/highware/PSM/safemail.htm> is available from
Highware in Belgium.  It's PGP compatible, and its user interface is a
great leap forward from any Mac PGP front end I've seen.  But, it still has
some deficiencies, it's very slow (25 seconds to sign this message on a 25
MHz 68040 vs. 4 seconds for ViaCrypt PGP 2.7.1), and (as was recently
discussed on a couple of these lists) its source code hasn't been published
or externally audited.

 - Tim

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Timothy N. Hill <tnh@acm.org>                "We all love to instruct,
Wellesley, Massachusetts                      though we can teach only
<http://www.ma.ultranet.com/~tnh/>         what is not worth knowing."
PGP F058F75D 99C5122F 21C5BEF5 620C1D3C             - Elizabeth Bennet