Sometimes, when you are chatting with friends or colleagues you will highlight the fact that you saw an awesome film on DVD the other day or heard a really cool album that you downloaded via iTunes, only for them to reply: “Yeah, well I heard/saw that ages ago, I downloaded it the day it came out”. The conversation then turns to how they did this and how can you do the same but your request is met with a reply that simply implies it’s too difficult for you to fathom and might include the suggestion to look into something called Bittorrent.

Bittorrent, put simply is a way of downloading large collections of files without the need for complicated software packages, it uses one protocol that can be accessed many different ways. Many people are used to peer-to-peer programs such as Limewire, Gnutella and Napster and associate this with the downloading of Bittorrent files.

So, completely forget about firing up a software program and searching away for the file of your choice. Bittorrent is much a much simpler but altogether different  way of downloading files but today we want to explain the basics so you can harness the power of Bittorrent without any of the confusing jargon and related technical rubbish.

Let’s get one thing straight, it is illegal to download copyrighted works via the internet, WillINeedIt doesn’t condone any sharing of this nature. Bittorrent can be used to serve legal data also, with this article serving as a guide to using the protocol so users can decide what they wish to download, from wherever they wish.

Bittorrent Basics

I guess the first thing to explain is how Bittorrent works and how it differs from the Limewire’s of this world.

The Bittorrent protocol works in a way that it allows hundreds possibly thousands of users to download the same file, from each other. Think of the file you are downloading as a jigsaw puzzle depicting a boat on a lake, it has say a thousand constituent pieces. When you connect to download the file, you download a specific set of jigsaw pieces. As you finish downloading this specific part, you are then able to share these pieces with someone else wanting to download the file. Whilst you are sharing your pieces with someone else, they are sharing the parts they downloaded previously with you.

HowStuffWorks have provided a very easy to understand graphic of how Bittorrent operates:

When you are downloading part of the file, you are known as a Peer, you will download from other peers as they download parts of a file. You will also download parts from people who have already completed the full download of the file, these people are known as Seeders.

You maybe wondering how all of these downloader’s are managing to download from each other without any interaction on their part. This is all down to the Tracker, a small intelligent system that correlates all download information and connects the people who want to download the file.

When you download a file, you will need to find the .torrent file that holds all of the file information and location. This is not the actual file, just the information that tells the client where it’s located and what it comprises of.

To download a file, you need to grab a small piece of software for your computer. Don’t worry, this is nothing like Limewire, it’s a small application that uses all of the information we have highlighted above to help you get the file from the depths of the internet to your computer.

The most popular Bittorrent clients for each operating system are as follows:

• Windows – uTorrent
• Mac OS X – Transmission
• Linux – KTorrent

Download the client best suited to your computer and then it’s time to start configuring the application so you can download trouble free.

Configuring Your Bittorrent Client

The most important thing to configure when starting to download via Bittorrent is making sure that the correct ports are open on your router. By opening a port on your router, you are telling your router to allow any information downloaded via Bittorrent and not constrict or impede the transfer in any way.

uTorrent for Windows does come with the option to open ports using uPNP, I can’t talk for either kTorrent or Transmission.

A universal way to configure your router is to head over to Port Forward where you can specify the program you wish to open the ports for and the router you wish to configure. Here you need to take note of what port number your client uses and feed it into the wizard presented on the site.

If this is all too much for you, try this guide and see if it can help shed some light on things.

Downloading A Torrent

So you have got a small idea of how Bittorrent works and you have configured the client and your router. The next step is to physically find the torrent you wish to download.

There are lots of different Bittorrent sites to download torrent files from, we will list a few of the more well known sites so you can be sure there are high numbers of seeders to download whatever you wish. Luckily for us, just last week TorrentFreak compiled a list of ten Bittorrent websites to keep an eye out for after the demise of Mininova, one of the world’s biggest collections of torrents:

1. Torrentzap

2. Fenopy

3. ExtraTorrent

4. KickassTorrents

5. BTjunkie

5. Monova

7. isoHunt

8. yourBitTorrent

9. The Pirate Bay

10. ShareReactor

Visit each of these websites and see which one works for you. Some have huge collections that are pulled in from hundreds of other sites, some cater for specific niches.

So lets say you have found the file you want, in this example we will use a legal torrent of the Linux distribution Ubuntu:

I used the The Pirate Bay to find this file but it will be available on most sites you choose to visit.

Here, you will need to take note of the amount of Seeders and Leechers, this will basically instruct you whether people are downloading the file you wish to download. You need to have at least one seeder to grab a copy of the file, this is normally not a problem unless you are after a very specific torrent that isn’t massively popular anymore.

If the site you use has a comments section for the file you are downloading, make sure you use it. This will give you a very reliable insight into whether the torrent is infact genuine and not a virus masquerading as something else. For media files it will help you work out whether the file is of a decent quality as many commenter’s will leave a note saying something like:

A: 10 / V: 10

This basically lets you know that the audio and video quality of the file is ten out of ten, giving you a real idea of whether a file is worth downloading or not.

Clicking to download a torrent file will ask you to open the file with a specific program, simply choose the client you downloaded above. This will open your Bittorrent client and allow you to specify within the options where you wish to download the file.

Torrent Tips and Tricks

Don’t get me wrong, downloading via Bittorrent can be confusing at times, especially as the nature of files evolve on the torrent sites. Here are some suggestions to make sure you download the right files and keep yourself safe in the process:

1. Download From A Trusted User

On your Bittorrent travels you will become familiar with different release groups who add the torrents to the Bittorrent sites. One tip is to be loyal, if you know a certain group release good quality files, stick with them. Many people use this tip for releases by a movie pirate by the name of aXXo. aXXo has become synonymous with good quality DVD quality movie releases and built a huge following over Bittorrent.

Downloading from a trusted user can also bring danger with many people piggybacking the name of releases and implanting malware and viruses into files. In this case, it’s always a good idea to virus scan the files you download and also open the files with programs you trust. Never pay for a download.

2. Protect Yourself With PeerBlock

PeerBlock is a software tool that monitors your internet connection and makes sure you don’t share traffic with anyone who could try to either compromise your computer or use information against you when downloading files.

The software updates itself automatially and runs in the background without needing any interaction.

3. Enable Encryption On Your Bittorrent Client

By enabling encryption of your Bittorrent client, you are allowing the traffic sent from the application to be masked and therefore minimizing the chances of having your bandwidth restricted when downloading. It can allow you to circumvent the restrictions placed on your connection by your ISP and enhance your download speeds.

4. Seed Your Downloads

The Bittorrent community thrives because people are prepared to share the files you are wanting to download. Once you have finished downloading a file you should always seed the file back so other users can download as smoothly as you did.

Private trackers will enforce a sharing ratio where you need to upload as much as you download, this helps the Bittorrent community get consistently high download rates.

5. Don’t Think You Can’t Be Punished For Downloading Copyrighted Material

Bittorrent is by far the most open protocol for sharing files, all of your computers identifiable information will be sent to people so they can download from you. Software such as PeerBlock can minimise the risk but your ISP is required to keep a log of all the information you download, so if you are caught downloading you will be asked to pay very high fines to stop legal action.

Conclusion

We do hope that this guide gives you a brief insight into how to download files and make the most of the Bittorrent protocol. If you feel that there is anything we have missed or you have tried to use our guide and aren’t able to get a specific part working, please leave a comment  and we will do our best to get you back on the right track!

Remember that authorities are cracking down on illegal filesharing and successfully convicting filesharers. Be aware before you download!