<p>A torrent is not a site, it is a file type. Torrent files are very small and store a set of information about a larger file that people want to download or share. In order to use a torrent file, you need a client, or a piece of software. The original software used was called BitTorrent, which refers to the way that this particular method of transferring files works. Basically, what a torrent file does is analyze a large file and “chop it up” into many tiny pieces so that, instead of downloading or uploading the entire file at once, you can download or upload little pieces of it, at any time, in any order. That way, one person can download ten different pieces of a file from ten different people, and in the end they have the entire file.</p>
<p>Think of it this way: 100 people own a particular book, and you want a copy of your own. Instead of one person printing a copy of the entire book, each person makes photocopies of just two or three pages of the book they have, so that every person copies different pages, and they send you all these pages. Now you have the entire book, and you can copy individual pages and send them out as well. The client software basically is what keeps track of who is sending which pages, and how they fit together when you download them in the wrong order. It does this in the background so that once you have all the pieces, the file is already assembled and ready to use.</p>
<p>Torrents are good for certain things. They are good for very large files that can’t be downloaded or uploaded in one sitting, because you get more bits every time you run the client program, until you have the whole file. They are good for distributing files freely when you don’t have a web server where you can store the files, because once you have “seeded” enough data (which means uploading bits and pieces to other people), other people can also start seeding and your computer doesn’t have to be on for someone to get your file. They are good for relatively slow or unreliable internet connections, because you can start and stop at any time, and you can download and upload in small pieces.</p>
<p>But of course, there are some down-sides. Torrenting software is a very popular way for people to download stolen software, music and videos. Because it’s so popular, it attracts a lot of people who distribute malware and viruses. People go onto sketchy torrent search web sites, they get malware on the website, they download a torrent that they think is a bootleg of the latest Harry Potter movie, and it doesn’t play or it gives them a virus. People start downloading a bunch of stuff but as soon as they get the file, they “stop” it in the torrent client so they don’t upload enough bits to other people, and then they get banned from trackers for being a leech (someone who downloads but doesn’t upload).</p>
<p>The great thing about torrents is that it makes it easy to share your own music, videos and software for free. I shared a video of a live music event some years back by creating a torrent from the very large file instead of having to pay for online hosting. Some people look for digital copies of CDs and DVDs they already own, to use as backups - but this sort of thing is at best a legal grey area, and the MPAA/RIAA almost definitely take the position that it is still copyright infringement. A fair number of open-source software developers offer the option of torrent files in addition to direct download of their products, and there are a number of game companies that use a similar process to distribute their game files (it saves them money, even if it is usually slower and less convenient for their players).</p>
<p>If you decide to look into torrents, I recommend uTorrent for your client (fast, doesn’t hog your computer resources, lots of features) and isohunt.com for your search engine (been around a long time, good search database, plus comments and ratings sometimes help identify bad files). However, because of all the illegal activity that used torrents as a vehicle, you may find that the networks at UCD have blocked most or all torrent activity. Unfortunately this is pretty common, because for every person who is using torrents legally and respectfully, there are ten or twenty who are using it to distribute malware, download porn, or steal music, video and software without paying for it. And if you are one of that last group, be aware that your computer activity can easily be monitored by the college and by others when you use this sort of software.</p>