4 Answers

• Reputation: 348 Q&A: 10 0 1 132 4 0 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Expert: 1 topic Geek Week Moderator Nick Nelson is a moderator on Questionland Seattle Follow Following 0 Nick Nelson

  4 0 Torrenting works like this: you download a .torrent file, which is essentially a reference to the file you're actually trying to download. When you open the .torrent with a BitTorrent client (like uTorrent, Transmission, or the standard BitTorrent client), the client connects to a tracker (the server that coordinates the downloads), and starts to download the file in pieces, distributed between everyone else who has the file. So instead of downloading something from one person, you're downloading it in pieces from many. Once you've downloaded it, the BitTorrent client will let other people download from you. When you're uploading the file to other people, this is called Seeding. When you're downloading a file without uploading anything, this is called Leeching. When you go to a website that hosts .torrent files, it'll usually list the number of seeders and the number of leechers. The speed of the download highly depends on how many people are seeding it vs. how many people are leeching. As for where to download music, that's illegal, so you'll have to find out on your own. Note that BitTorrent isn't anonymous, so there are the same risks as downloading from anywhere else. Also, be careful what you download, as files may contain trojans or other malware, so it's wise to read the comments on things you're downloading, if the site you're getting the torrent from has any. Nick Nelson answered in Geek Week 10 months ago | Report 1 comment by RacerX… 0 1 Illegal? Hmff. I miss Kazaa RacerX commented 10 months ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question New comments are not being accepted at this time.

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• Reputation: 70 Q&A: 0 0 2 33 3 0 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Follow Following 0

  1 0 You will need to start off with a torrent manager. The best one I know of for PC is uTorrent. In regards to finding music, since the whole process is against the law in most countries, anything you find in the public domain is going to be shady at best. Of all of the public trackers, Demonoid.me is the least likely to infect your computer with some sort of virus, but all of the content is user created, so anything you get from anywhere can include a virus. Your safest bet is to find a friend that has membership in a private tracking community. These are usually limited to genre, and are hard if not impossible to gain access to without an in. These sites are heavily moderated and policed to protect the users, and kept small as to reduce the chances of getting caught. Joh Alwood answered in Geek Week 10 months ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question New comments are not being accepted at this time.

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• Reputation: 474 Q&A: 9 0 7 165 13 0 Classifieds: 2 0 what's this? Expert: 2 topics Geek Week Questionland Redesign Moderator Anthony Hecht is a moderator on Questionland Seattle Follow Following 0

  0 0 It should be noted that there's nothing inherently illegal about BitTorrent, or about downloading music. It's illegal to download stuff you don't own (or have a license for, blergh), but there are many legitimate uses for BitTorrent, and the technology shouldn't be confused with it's sometimes being used for illegal things. Anthony Hecht answered in Geek Week 10 months ago | Report 2 comments by Black Beetles in Amber and Anthony Hecht… 0 0 "It's illegal to download stuff you don't own" Seeing as you don't necessarily "own" the media anymore, that could probably be phrased better. Sometimes dumbing the topic down leads to more misinformation due to the "leasing" that you do for music and movies and software these days :( Black Beetles in Amber commented 10 months ago | Report 0 0 Yeah, which is why I said "own or have a license to." Anthony Hecht commented 10 months ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question New comments are not being accepted at this time.

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• Reputation: 105 Q&A: 2 0 1 55 10 0 Classifieds: 0 0 what's this? Expert: 1 topic Geek Week Follow Following 0 Brian Geoghagan

  0 0 I've never done it myself because it is most likely illegal, ahem, but from what I've heard, it's pretty easy to do. For a very simple explanation, when someone uploads a torrent, they are creating and sharing a file that links back to a location on their computer with the shared data. Once other people have downloaded it, they also share that data with other people accessing the file. The more people who download/share, the faster the download speed. If you were to connect after 10 people downloaded the torrent, you would be getting parts of the whole share (bits) from different sources. There are better, more technical explanations for how it works online if you are interested. The best software for OS X, from what these shady people tell me, is Transmission. Download your Torrent client of choice, then google for what you want to download. Include 'torrent' in your search. It won't be hard to find. If you're lucky enough to know someone who is a member of a specific torrent site, ask for an invite. There are loads of great sites that cater to all different interests. There's one whole site dedicated to Smiths bootlegs and another just for Joy Division/New Order bootlegs. Sites for UK TV shows and some general interest/random sites too. It won't be hard to find. Download a torrent file and then simply drag & drop on the application or doubleclick. On a Mac you may need to get info on the file and select Transmission to open all torrent files. It may be necessary to designate a specific location where you want the files to live on your computer. For example, you could create a folder inside your Music/Media folder called Torrents and set that in the preferences of the application as the default location. Good luck and use your new powers for good, not evil! Brian Geoghagan answered in Geek Week 10 months ago | Report Comment on this answer Enter your comment or ask a new question New comments are not being accepted at this time.

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