It’s always useful to download valuable material in a fast and convenient way but are you sure you are not violating any rules? And what about your privacy?
Torrents are an amazing tool that gives you the opportunity to download large files in a really fast and convenient way. Using torrent software, you can download music, applications, games, videos, and images. You can easily connect with other people and communities and present your own material to the world.
We are all familiar with torrents but in general, only a few people know how they really work. Torrent software such as BitTorrent is based on peer to peer protocol meaning there is no need for a central computer and other members just swarm each other on the network. In other words, members upload and download the same torrent between each other.
When you upload a torrent file into a BitTorrent client, you are automatically joining a swarm of other computers that uploaded the same file. That means that a tracker will share your IP address with other computers on the BitTorrent client. Maybe uploading a torrent is not as complex as to build a website from scratch but there is a lot of processing happening in the back end that needs to be acknowledged.
There are many debates around torrenting and violation of legal rules. Here are the pros and cons of using torrents.
Pros of using torrents
- Peer to peer protocol provides better and secure downloading as you are not relying only on the main central server. If one source is not active, then you can rely on other sources to complete the download process.
- If there are interruptions with your internet connection or your computer suddenly shuts down, there is no need to start from scratch. Once you are back online, you will continue the process.
- You can easily find and download torrent files. There are a lot of online sources and sites that provide a huge library of quality torrent content.
- Even if you have a slow connection, you can still download a torrent file very fast, compared to the traditional downloading methods.
Cons of using torrents
- Seeds are crucial for downloading torrent files. If a torrent file doesn’t have seeds you won’t be able to continue the process.
- There is no way to review the file before download. You will be able to see what the file contains but you won’t be able to see the quality. The only way you can do a quality check is to trust the online feedback from other people.
- With BitTorrent clients, you are uploading and downloading files at the same time. This process can significantly affect the speed of your internet connection. Sometimes, you won’t be able to perform simple tasks such as opening a website.
- You are exposing your IP address to many people in the swarm. If you want to protect your privacy, you have to use VPN.
There are many discussions on the internet about the ethical side of using torrents. However, in the era of internet and social media, it is really hard to keep your work protected and safe from duplicating.
Torrent clients are just a tool for faster and more convenient downloading of valuable online material. We don’t have to put all the blame for illegal distribution on the clients.
Now you know the pros and cons of using a torrent client and how you can protect your privacy. Use these benefits wisely. There is really good and publicly available content that you can download online. At the end of the day, torrent clients should be only used for fast download and usage the quality content for good cause.