A Guide to Free Torrent Downloading

BitTorrents are a type of peer-to-peer (P2P) file transfer that allows file sharers to receive and distribute songs, films, books, and software. Basically, torrents function by simultaneously downloading and uploading small 'bits' of data from various sources across the Internet. If you are downloading a torrent, for instance, and five other users have it, then you will receive tiny bits from each user until the file transaction is complete. Once complete, other users can then stream data from your copy of the torrent until their transaction is complete. The cycle continues on and on.

Torrent use is defined by two categories: seeding and leeching. If you seed a torrent, that means you have a full copy of the torrent and are distributing it to other users. If you leech a torrent, that means you are 'leeching' the torrent from a seed. BitTorrent use is based on the assumption that a leech will eventually become a seed. After you complete a transaction, you are expected to seed your torrent for other users to leech. The more seeds that are available, the faster leeching becomes. If 20 users are seeding a torrent, for instance, it will be much faster for another user to leech it compared to just 1 user seeding it.

Generally, torrents are available for free download. If you were looking for the latest copy of the movie 'From Dusk Til Dawn', for example, you would search for 'from dusk til dawn torrent' on a search engine like Google. This file is about 800 MB, or .8 Gigs. You may notice that there are several different versions of the same torrent available. Realize that each torrent is a separate instance of the movie.

If you choose to download Torrent A of 'From Dusk Til Dawn', for instance, you will only be connected with users who are seeding Torrent A. If no users are currently seeing Torrent A, then you will have to either wait, or find another torrent to download. (Torrent B, C, D, etc) Any torrent (such as 'Dusk Til Dawn', 'Diablo 2', or 'Dune') usually has anywhere from 5-20 instances of it on the Internet. They key to downloading torrents is to find the best version available. The best version is the one that has the most seeds.

Depending on a torrent's size, the number of seeds, and the speed of your Internet connection, downloading a torrent can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 7 days. If you are downloading a torrent that is 20 Gigs, for instance, it may take an entire week to complete the transaction. But if your connection is slow and not that many other people are seeding it, the transaction could potentially take a month.

To send and receive bittorrents, you need specialized bittorrent software like BitTorrent or uTorrent. Regular P2P software like Napster, Limewire, Morpheus or Azureus can also be used to download bittorrents. So long as your bittorrent software is on (you are logged on), you will be actively seeding any torrents that you have. Personally, I recommend BitTorrent. I prefer not to use non-specialized bittorrent software (e.g. Morpheus) because they aren't as well equipped to handle torrent transactions.

If you decide to enter the exciting world of torrent transactions, make sure not to be stingy. Torrent servers track the way in which users send and receive files. If you have a tendency to leech a file and not seed it, the server will take note of this and punish you by drastically reducing your download speed. When in comes to bittorrent downloads and uploads, sharers prosper and the stingy don't.