Random Numbers Boxes and Cypher Processers

[hugh@domingo.teracons.com (Hugh Daniel)]

  Folks had been talking about doing some crypto things in custom
hardware about the size of a Telebit.  Telebits are just computers
with ROM's in them and since Telebits are falling behind the tide of
telecommunications I thought it might be nice to reporgram them as
remote processers.  The DSP's are quite fast and might give us very
nice random numbers, the box has buffers and a CPU that can do flat
out UUCP 'g' with compression so is likely more processer then most of
the Fido systems out there currently.
  All around a nice box sitting there wasting, waiting to do something
usefull.

  So, maybe hook up the modem with a shielded cable, cut/add something
on the phone side so one of the phone line DSP can get random garbage
(it might be much easyer then that once someone looks at the design of
the things), reporgram the ROMS to add random noise software and maybe
even do some number crunching for you (lets see a T2500 has three
DSP's in it?) for encryption/decryption.
  This is all a bit far feched, but as time goes on there will be lots
of discarded Telebits (can't do V.32bis, V.fast, FAX, Voice, DSU/CSU,
etc.).  XyZel also has a smart modem that one can blast ROM's for.
  Just something to think about on rainey days...

		||ugh