Torrents

[sammyyummy]

Hi.
im not a tech savvy person but i heard my friends talk about torrents.
what is a torrent?
how does it work?
and is it safe?

thanks

 

[gdude30]

Uhm. I might not be the right person to explain it but I'll try.

I think torrents are basically when you take a file or files, (generally large ones) and convert them into a torrent. And then you seed that to others and others do have to download the torrent. But downloading torrents are fairly easy because they are small. However what's in the torrent varies. And when you leech from the torrent using a client then you are taking the data from the torrent to the torrent to get whatever file.

And depending on how many people are seeding it can go fast or slow. And once it reaches 100% the torrent is done and you can open the file and close the client or seed it so others can get it as well.

Alot of people use torrents instead of programs like limwire. You can still get viruses though depending what's in the torrent. You always need to be careful what you download.

But a client I recommend is Bitcomet. It works very well. Just google it.

Or if you use a mac "Transmission" is really good too.

You can also leech more then one torrents.

But always remember to be curtious and seed for others.

 

[Corny]

A torrent file is a file which contains informations about a file (or many parts of different or larger files). Among other things there is the information about so called trackers servers which you can contact to ask for other internet users who happen to have the file on their harddrive and are offering you to download it from. So if you feed this torrent file to a BitTorrent client it will contact the server and get a list of the other users. your client then will start downloading the file in many little pieces from the other people. afterwards it combines them back together so that you can use the file(s).
in general the technique is safe. the files that you download however might not be. the risk is somewhat lower compared to classical p2p networks though. that is due to the fact that you get most .torrent files from other websites where people check the downloads and infected stuff etc is often removed. often - not always. and torrents are not anonymous, so if you use it to download illegal stuff - the feds still can get you.

 

[DesperateHouseHusband]

Speaking of torrents, Demonoid has opened registration (previously you had to know someone who already had an existing account on the site who would generate an invite code for you before you could sign up) -- I'm guessing for a short time. Register for a user name while you can!

 

[Corny]

They always do that from time to time for a short period.

 

[HOT4MEN]

I torrent all the time...... I just now downloaded a CD.

 

[getoverit]

As stated previously you can get caught and get into serious trouble illegally downloading things from online. A lot of the internet providers (Comcast, Verizon, Time Warner, U-verse, etc) all track who is downloading. They will usually start with slowing your internet connection. They will send you emails and letters to your house as well. There have been times when they have reported the activity to the feds.

There is going to be people that say they download ALL THE TIME. Keep in mind not everyone gets caught.

So keep in mind its all a gamble.

 

[cgymike]

With streaming sources torrents are becoming less popular. Who wants to store a lot of files they will probably only watch once. It's all a very disposable experience nowadays. VPN's can provide some anonymity but you generally have to pay for ones that have sufficient bandwidth.
Netflix isn't expensive and you can get almost anything streamed through that and it's totally legal.
Compared to your monthly living expenses the cost is almost zero.
The mania over getting stuff free is not only dampened by legal considerations but also the fact many files contain malware.

 

[m1thousand]

I've received a notice from my internet server, Telus . . . (8/21/2010)

Notice Of Copyright Complaint - --------, Mark - 207.--.--.132

We are writing to inform you that TELUS has received a complaint that alleges that your TELUS Internet Service account has been involved in copyright infringement. This complaint was traced back to your account based on the IP address used at the time of this activity.

Please note that TELUS has not provided any of your personal account information to the complainant. It is TELUS' policy to disclose such information to a complainant only if ordered to do so by a court of law, which has not happened to date.

We do, however, want you to be aware that this complaint was received by us and offer you the following information that may be of help to you:

If you are unaware of this type of activity originating from your account, you may wish to inquire with others who have access to your account.

If you are using a dial-up account, change the account password to ensure that only authorized users have access to it.

You may also want to check your system for viruses, which may explain why this sort of activity is originating from your account.

If the ADSL modem is connected to a wireless router, please make sure that only your authorized computers can connect to it and access the internet. For help in securing the wireless router, please contact the router vendor.

If you are not aware of our Acceptable Use Policy, which strictly prohibits use of our Service to infringe the copyrights of others, you may review at http://www.mytelus.com/internet/-------/display.do. Please be aware that violation of this policy could result in disconnection of your Service.

Below is an excerpt from the complaint that we received regarding your account. We include it in this notice in an effort to help you identify the activity that is in question.

Sincerely,

B------
------------ Team Member
Consumer Customer Operations
TELUS Communications
Email: -------@telus.com

 

[albaboy]

i have it too

 

[shiningstar]

to put a file up say a vid clip, you have to put it in a certain folder and then
use say U torrent or Bitlord or something ... to make a torrent...
you browse and hit on the file you have put in the folder .

From what I can figure, that torrent is a kind of address to pin point your file on the web
so dont move the vid clip, dont rename it or anything.

people can then click on your vid clip, get the torrent and they will soon be downloading your file
bit by bit.

Its a great way of sharing stuff... stuff that can be searched for by name, tag etc.

Of course, when making your torrent you have to paste in a few.... trackers....
its getting hold of workable trackers that I find difficult,
why cant they post them somewhere and make things a bit easier ?

Or better still, why doesnt the software automatically put the latest trackers onto the
torrent you have made from your vid clip ?




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