HackerTube.dev

How a Laser-Shot Disk Defeats Hackers & Pirates (Coding Secrets)

GameHut · 132.5K views · 2018-01-18 · 5:01

Open on YouTube ↗

If playback is restricted in your region, try opening the original video. Use Mark watched to add it to your marked videos.

Overview

An episode of Coding Secrets by Jon Burton on retro copy protection, in particular physically damaging a disk with a laser so copies fail. It explains how this defeated hackers and pirates.

On Hacker News

Cited in anti-piracy discussions as a clear explanation of clever retro copy-protection tricks, though one commenter disputes a claim about Leander.

Recommended by 2 HN people across 2 months · HN mentions 2018–2024

Topics

Search by tags

What people said

LaserDiscMan · 2021-10 · Recommendation

For those who don't know, Burton explains this in depth here: [LINK] Another one of my favorite ones describes copy protection via intentionally destroyed floppy sectors: [VIDEO]

Read the original HN comment ↗
ZenoArrow · 2018-02 · Recommendation

I thought the two methods described in this video were both good: [VIDEO] Also, the method described here, even though it didn't result in a financially successful game, was pretty clever (pirating the game meant your game company would be defeated by pirates): [LINK]

Read the original HN comment ↗
amiga386 · 2024-05 · Criticism

I can give you an example of someone claiming there were holes in the disk, Jon Burton, but they're a goddamn liar : [VIDEO] I have the original release of Leander. There are no holes in the disks. The code on the disk doesn't write anything besides hiscores. There is a protection routine exactly where he says there is, however what it does is check for a long track . It waits for the index pin, reads lots of data from the track, then looks to find two sync marks in the data it read, and they're at least a certain distance away from each other. No lasers, no holes, no writing. Standard long track protection. Here's the whole routine: [LINK] Here's a page that more accurately describes floppy disk protection methods (and also explains what a long track is): [LINK]

Read the original HN comment ↗

Sources

Video by GameHut, played through YouTube.

Data and selection notes

HN summaries and labels may contain AI errors. HN dates refer to discussions, not video publication.

HN Library: HackerTube export (2026-10-31) and open-index/hacker-news. Upstream summaries and classifications may contain AI errors.

Views, duration and playback status refresh separately from the published catalog. When an update fails, existing data remains visible.

Selection checks
  • SaaS & AI candidates: Topic keywords do not match
  • Editor-approved picks: Editorial review is required

Rule matches identify candidates. They do not guarantee video quality or financial results.

About the library and its sources