Download and Open Torrent Files

Torrents are small files that track many different types of files and programs listed on websites. Your computer uses this tracking info to connect to sources for the files and programs desired. The computer needs a special BitTorrent client application to "read" these instructions and permit downloading of the file or program to your computer. Utorrent and Azureus are popular client choices; download any client that works for you, and you should be ready to get started.

Steps

  1. Install a good torrent client program. Utorrent (or µTorrent - it's the same program, but is called by different names) will work well for anybody who uses a Windows or Mac operating system. Google or use your favorite search engine to search "bit torrent client" for a list of additional program choices. Install as per instructions included with the client.
  2. Search for sites that track torrents. You can see many of them via a web search for "torrent tracker." Search for the websites that list many of the most popular torrent trackers for movies, eBooks and music.
  3. Look for torrents with a high seed : leach ratio for fastest downloads. The more seeds per leech, the better. Torrents with few seeds - regardless the of seeds : leech ratio - will take longer to download. It may take longer if you have a slow internet connection, if this is the case, you might want to consider upgrading to your ISP's higher speed option since torrent transfers generate a lot of network traffic.
    • Torrent files work in a "peer to peer" (P2P) fashion rather then a server to client (S2C) fashion. This means you will not download the desired file(s) from a server, but rather from a number of other people who are "hosting" parts of the file needed. These hosts are called seeds. If a torrent has "0" seeds, it means no one has the file or program and you shouldn't bother attempting to download it.
  4. Check the format of the torrent. Look for torrents with file types that you are more familiar with. If you are not familiar with any of them, spend a few minutes reviewing file types such as MKV, RAR, SHN, ZIP etc. in order to figure out how to open and extract them. Download video formats compatible with your display ie: 480 or SD types will display on standard definition TVs and those that are 720, 1080 or HD will require an HD display or computer monitor.
  5. Download a torrent. Once the client of choice is installed and properly configured, simply double clicking a torrent file listed on a website should download the torrent file, which will then start the client program automatically. Once the client program has started, it should begin to download the program or file desired after it connects to the hosts that have the parts of the file needed (may take up to a minute or so).
  6. Check speed settings. Your upload speed can reduce your download speed. If set too high, you might want to experiment with different upload rates to find the speed that does not adversely affect download speed. Similarly, setting your upload speed to "0" will cause download speeds to slow to a crawl and eventually stop completely. Choose a speed that does not reduce download speed.
  7. Keep seeding. After the download is finished, moving the file will cause the upload to other people to fail so if you wish to seed (which is strongly encouraged but not mandatory), you shouldn't move the file. You can, however, open or use it. Remember, you can only download the file because of other people seeding. So give back to the community!
  8. Regarding extracting the files from torrent, as suggested before, the extension of file can determine its method of extraction. Some files - will be playable / watchable directly, while others will need to be unpacked / unzipped etc. Some file types found and their ways of extraction are:
    • ZIP, RAR: you can extract with the help of WinRAR
    • ISO: these files are extracted using daemon tool which can be downloaded easily by searching through Google.
    • These are the main type of files.



Tips

  • The number of peers or leeches are the amount of people downloading the file.
  • Once a file has been downloaded, you can choose to keep seeding the file so other people can download it, or just be a leech and stop hosting the file. It is usually encouraged to at least get a seeding ratio of 1. which means you upload as much as you download. The longer, faster and more frequently you upload, the faster people who are trying to download the file will be able to download it. If nobody seeded, torrents would die out.
  • PeerBlock can be used to increase your privacy while downloading and uploading data.

Warnings

  • Torrents are always uploaded by other people, so there is always a chance the file will not work on your computer. Again, read the comments before downloading.
  • Anti-Virus software is a must. Torrents may contain viruses and other malicious software. Read the comments of the torrent before downloading it. Things aren't always what they appear to be. Even if everybody says the torrent is okay, note that there still may be malicious things hidden that can't even be seen by the trained eye. Always be wary of what you download.
  • Torrents are often (but not always) used to distribute commercial software, movies and other copyright-licensed products. Be aware that downloading/uploading copyrighted content is illegal in most countries and can often be traced to your Internet connection.
  • Carefully read the installation prompts as uTorrent might install an unwanted additional software. Do not install such software if you're not sure whether you need it or want to support the developers.

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