How to Use BitTorrent

Guide Note

BitTorrent is one of the most popular ways of file sharing and downloading large files on the Internet. How to Use BitTorrent will show you how you too, can use it.

Table of Contents

How to Use BitTorrent Tips

  1. The higher the number of seeders and leechers, the faster your download will go.
  2. If there isn’t even a single seeder, you will not be able to download the complete file.
  3. Make sure to download a program like Peer Guardian, which will act as a firewall.
  4. Follow the law. Don’t download for commercial purposes, and only under fair use.

Disclaimer

The content in this page is for legal sharing of files under fair use. Do not use the information in this guide for any kind of illegal distribution of copyrighted material or for commercial use.

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Introduction

  • But beyond the hype, BitTorrent is a very efficient and effective way of sharing big files among several users. In this article, we’ll show you how BitTorrent works and how you can use it to download movies, music, and much more.

Step 1: Understand BitTorrents

  • Before we show you how to use BitTorrents, let’s take a look at what it actually is and how it can work for you.

What is it?

  • Trackers? Leechers? Familiarize yourself with the basics before you learn more. (Creative Commons photo by Dan Lurie)
    Trackers? Leechers? Familiarize yourself with the basics before you learn more. (Creative Commons photo by Dan Lurie)
    Traditionally, when you downloaded a file, you connected to a server, got the whole bits and bytes, and the whole thing came from that central computer to yours.
  • That’s not how BitTorrent works.
  • Instead, BitTorrent is a technology by which several people are sharing parts of that file with each other. So when you download a torrent, you’ll be taking a part of it from user 1, another part from user 2, yet another part from user 3, and so on. When you get a part, some other user, say user 4, may take that part from you.1
  • So while you’re taking parts from users 1, 2, and 3, you’ll simultaneously be giving parts to users 4, 5, and 6. Once you have all the parts, your download will finish.

How does it work?

  • This makes using this technology fast, convenient, and very efficient. The download speeds will vary however, because you’re not downloading from one single server, but from a number of different users.3

What do all these words mean?

  • The terminology of BitTorrent can get a bit confusing. Here’s a short primer before we begin.
  1. Torrent: That’s the tiny metadata file that you’ll download from a website in order to start your download. This file contains information about your download, not the download data itself.4
  2. Peer: Generally used to refer to another computer on the Internet that you can connect to and share data with.4
  3. Seeder: These are people who have the entire file and are now uploading the file to those who don’t.1
  4. Leechers: These are the people who’re downloading the file. They will be uploading too, but they don’t have a full copy of the file, only a part of it. When you’re downloading, you’re a leecher.1
  5. Trackers: These are websites that list and host .torrent files for download.

Step 2: Download a BitTorrent Client

  • The first step in using BitTorrent is to download and install a BitTorrent client. This is the program that will manage your downloads.
Plenty of reliable BitTorrent clients are freely available. (Creative Commons photo by Clive Darr)
Plenty of reliable BitTorrent clients are freely available. (Creative Commons photo by Clive Darr)
  • You have several programs to choose from, because unlike many traditional peer-to-peer applications, the BitTorrent clients are open source, which means they’re free to use, and programmers can modify their code to create new and better versions.
  • Some of the most popular BitTorrent clients are:
  1. uTorrent (Windows)
  2. Transmission (Mac)
  3. BitTorrent (all platforms, including Linux)
    • Works with almost all operating systems.

Step 3: Find, Download, and Open a Torrent

  • Once you’ve downloaded a BitTorrent client, you’re ready to start downloading actual files. This is how.

Find a Torrent

  • There are several websites where you can find torrents to download. What you download will actually be a very small file, which you’ll then open in the BitTorrent client to start the actual download.
  • Here are some websites to get you started:
  1. Mininova: Find almost anything on this website.
  2. The Pirate Bay: One of the most popular websites for downloading torrents.
  3. Public Domain Torrents: Here you’ll find dozens of movies in the public domain.
  4. Game Updates: Free video games.
  5. eTree: This is a good site for finding live concert recordings.
  • You could also search on Google for the name of the file you’re looking for, followed by the word “torrent.”1

Download the Torrent

  • In order to download the torrent,
  1. Log on to one of the websites mentioned above.
  2. In the search box, write the name of the movie/music file/program that you’re looking for.2
  3. Look at the details of the files that come up. You’ll see numbers of seeders and leechers on each. You want to download files with the maximum number of seeders.2
  4. Download the torrent file to your computer. It will have a .torrent file extension.

Open the Torrent File

  • The next step is to open the torrent file in your BitTorrent client so that you can start the actual download.
  1. Either double-click on the file so that it opens automatically in the BitTorrent client or start up the client and click on the “Open” option.
  2. Either way, a window will open up, asking you where you want to save the movie/music/program file. You can set up default locations if you want.2
  3. Wait for the completion of download.

Step 4: How to Create a Torrent

  • So that’s if you want to download a file. What if you want to upload one? Here’s how to do that.
  1. Put together what you want to share. It could be a large single file, or a directory of many files. If you have more than one files, there is no need to create a .zip archive. Simply put the files in a directory and create a torrent of the directory.4
  2. Open your BitTorrent client and select File-> Create Torrent. Then select the files or directories.3
  3. While settings differ from client to client, the next step is almost always to use a tracker. You can use public trackers, such as:3
    • http://open.tracker.thepiratebay.org/announce

    • http://www.torrent-downloads.to:2710/announce

    • http://www.sumotracker.com/announce
  4. When given a choice, don’t check the private torrent box.
  5. Save the torrent and send it to people to download.3

Step 5: Important Things to Remember

  • File sharing has many benefits, but there are some things you might want to keep in mind to make it more efficient, and to stay out of trouble. These include:
    Remember to stay out of legal trouble when rocking your torrents. (Creative Commons photo by Michael Whitney)
    Remember to stay out of legal trouble when rocking your torrents. (Creative Commons photo by Michael Whitney)
  1. Typically, when downloading, find a file that has a high number of seeders and a low number of leechers. This will result in a faster download.4
  2. In order to reach completion, a file must have at least one seed. When there isn’t a single seeder, it’s likely that the complete file may not exist.1
  3. To avoid being labeled a leecher, upload as much as you download. Most BitTorrent clients will keep track of your upload to download ratios. Aim for a ratio of 1 for every file that you download.2
  4. Downloading copyrighted material is illegal. Make sure the content you’re downloading falls under fair use and is used for non-commercial purposes. The creators of the BitTorrent network will also soon be offering movie downloads for a fee.5
  5. Even though it might be tempting, don’t lower your upload speed. This could result in you being banned from some torrent sites.2

Conclusion

  • BitTorrent is a wonderful way to download and share popular files. It’s quick, easy, and once you get the hang of it, perfectly painless.

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References for How To Use BitTorrent

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Tucows: Solutions - How to Use BitTorrent
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Lifehacker: UltraNewb: A beginner's guide to BitTorrent>
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 TorrentFreak.com How to Use BitTorrent
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Brian's FAQ: BitTorrent FAQ and Guide
  5. ↑ BBC News: BitTorrent download portal debuts


How to Use BitTorrent Questions

So if you've downloaded a file its ok to use even though your still uploading? (3 answers)

View All: How to Use BitTorrent Questions | How To Questions

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