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Napster Alternatives Coming Strong
viking099 writes "File swapping programs such as Morpheus, Grokster, and Kazaa (all based on the same software from FastTrak) have grown over 480% in the past 4 months, and are set to break the 1.57 million concurrent connection record that Napster set." So who exactly is surprised by this?
...they're all getting sued. By whom? Guess who.
"All mankind is at the mercy of a handful of neurotics". - Norman Douglas
GNUTella still kicks ass... better than Napster ever was at least. You can get faster more reliable downloads with the Xolox , which uses multi-source segmented downloading among other advanced file transfer features that make using the GNUTella network highly effective! The client basically downloads the same file concurrently from multiple sources, giving you greater overall transfer rates. The only problem with Xolox is that it currently only has a MS Windows port.
GNUtella is open, free, and it works great! Forget about these commercial closed networks.
The RIAA doesn't realize that every time they go after someone, it just increases the visibility of file sharing and gets more people involved. Napster climbed in popularity after people found out they were being sued (thanks to American media). Now it's happening again.
As has been said before, the RIAA is going to have to realize that what they're doing is simply feeding the very beast they're trying to defeat. They must adapt or be tossed aside as obsolete. So far, the RIAA has shown no desire to adapt and as such are being boycotted and otherwise damaged by the very customers who fund their legal pursuits.
Electronic Frontier Foundation for online civil rights information
eDonkey is fantastic...it instantly shares any part of the file you've downloaded etc. It actually forces people to share some(there's also an enforced min upload; at least 10KB/sec, or you can only download at a limited rate.)
http://www.edonkey2000.com
Be patient trying to get a server to connect to, and when searching, you should click "extend" to extend the search to another server on your list(it only searches your primary server first, so it may not find a hit.) Don't do stupid searches like "mp3" or "movie" or "porn", and try to pick the category you're looking for so searches go faster.
eDonkey is a "set and forget" program...downloads may take a while, but it'll succeed where others fail, particularly with very large files. It will download even the smallest part from another user if it comes available, and will stream from multiple sources.
NONE of these programs will work if people don't share what they download.
Don't run a server unless you can support at least 500-1000 users and can keep it running; 100-200 user servers are pointless. The linux server is supposed to be able to handle more users for equal ram/processor specs than the windows versions, and it's easier to background etc.
You saw that Kazaa released a Linux client, right? Yes, it's buggy, but clearly they intend to pursue the idea...
My second favorite way is to go over to a friend's house and push files at his Hotline server over 100Mbit Ethernet.
--
"Open source is good." - Steve Jobs
"Open source is evil." - Microsoft
No.. the record companies should realize that their years of gouging customers are coming to an end. They've already been smacked by the FCC for price fixing. That has been going on for years. THEY ARE THIEVES every bit as much as people who download music and don't pay for it. All of their hysterics really seem like the pot calling the kettle black. They don't give a damn about artists, except how much money they can make off of them. That they tell us otherwise is just another indicator of their hypocrisy.
You are correct in saying that people download music to avoid paying for it, but you don't go far enough with the explanation. Why do they want to avoid paying for it? Maybe because retail prices on CDs are outrageous? Maybe because they know that artists get only a tiny tiny piece, if anything of that money? Maybe because they know that they are being screwed by a cartel of record companies that are set on gouging consumers? Maybe because copyright laws have been so distorted by money from the entertainment industry that there is no longer any public interest in them now?
It's not enough to bash in heads, you've got to bash in minds. - Captain Hammer