What is a torrent (computer)?

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

I want to be able to download whole TV show episodes on my laptop and found them in torrents. Unfortunately, I do not have the software to do so. I was wondering which source is good for this software (for free) and if there are downsides to it. Are you required to share your data with others or can it just be like a normal download? I would appreciate any feedback you have on this as it is new to me and I want to use the most efficient, least intrusive method possible. Thanks!

 

[axisg]

google: AZUREUS VUZE

great source for full albums, movies, TV shows. It's peer to peer so be careful what you download and what ports to use. I had to have a geek freind of mine come in to set it up

 

[ryanwitski]

from what i can gather it's limewire but a web page not a program.

 

[Derision]

A torrent is a method of transferring a file via a peer-to-peer network. Unlike Limewire, in which files are routed from the host's computer through a central network, BitTorrent uses individual computers around the world, and enlists each computer to send a specific part of the file to the downloader (you). While downloading, your computer will also be enlisted to transfer the portion of the file that you have.

It can be slower than regular peer-to-peer at first, but it rapidly picks up.

There is an official download client (free) at www.bittorrent.com. Lots of people also swear by Azureus, available from azureus.sourceforge.net.

The .torrent file that you downloaded is just the file that is opened in the download client, which points it in the correct direction for downloading hosts.

Hope that helps.

 

[ryanwitski]

but i'm pretty sure that leaves you open to people to screw with you. That's why i went to wireless, a physical firewall. Kept getting crap.

 

[Derision]

but i'm pretty sure that leaves you open to people to screw with you. That's why i went to wireless, a physical firewall. Kept getting crap.

Torrents are actually very different from normal P2P networks like Gnutella (Limewire/Cabos/Kazaa). On the big file sharing networks, you are open to being attacked rather frequently. I can't tell you how many files I've seen on Gnutella are viruses or fake.

Generally speaking, if you're downloading a TV episode or a movie, look for files ending in .AVI or .MPG. Avoid all files ending in .ZIP or .GZ or .BZ or any kind of compression. Also look for files in the range of several hundred megs to 1GB in size -- I've seen tons of files that seemingly have the correct suffix and file type, only to be 100k or so. That's a sure sign that it's malicious.

I haven't heard of an instance of someone using BitTorrent to attack another computer. Using a firewall is always a good idea, of course... I'm not saying it's not possible. Another good way to protect yourself is with a network traffic monitor. I'm on a Mac, so I use Little Snitch to monitor all my throughput. I'm sure there are similar applications for Windows.