What exactly is BitTorrent?

BitTorrent is a peer-to-peer protocol for sharing data. Files are broken down into small pieces and are downloaded from computers that have them to computers that lack them. While you are downloading the file the pieces of the file you have already downloaded are available for other to download from your computer. Torrents allow large amounts of data to be shared without requiring a high speed central server; once the file is in the cloud people who want it effectively download it from each other. It has the potential to be much faster than other protocols because when you join a torrent you can download pieces simultaneously from multiple nearby computers rather than from a single distant and possibly overloaded server. Once you have the entire file your computer becomes a “seed.” One problem with torrents is that some users immediately remove the file as soon as it finishes downloading rather than allowing it to be downloaded by others. These are called leaches. Some bittorrent trackers attempt to combat this by keeping track of the amount members download vs upload and members who have a poor upload to download ratio may be denied access or have their download bandwidth reduced.

BitTorrent itself isn’t illegal. It is used to distribute lots of legitimate and entirely legal data. Of course if you use BitTorrent to download copyrighted material you do not have a license for than you are breaking the law.

I wrote this How To that explains torrents -> http://www.funadvice.com/howto/find_music_limewire_similar_sites It also has another method of downloading music, which I find more effective, and I’\ve never gotten any viruses or such from either. If you’re having a lot of trouble with it you can funmail me and I can try and explain it better.