Ultimate Beginner Guide to Torrents!

Alright, this is my first attempt at a guide so please bear with me. Before I begin, I'd just like to say - if you think I am hinting at something, I probably am. Now, while most people associate .torrent files with a method of downloading copyright protected music, movies, applications, or games, it can also be used as a more efficient method of downloading legal stuff, like free trials and whatnot, because it can yield faster download times.

I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT YOU DO WITH THIS GUIDE. IF YOU USE THIS GUIDE FOR ILLEGAL PURPOSES, I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE. It is illegal, under ANY circumstances, to download copyright protected music, movies, games, or applications that cost money that you do not own. However, it is PERFECTLY legal to download music, movies, and games for the purposes of creating a BACKUP to that which you own.

What is a torrent? Meh, for our intents and purposes - it doesn't really matter. All you have to know is that a .torrent file is basically a protocol that is interpreted by your tracker and it sends data to you in return for you sending data back out. In a nutshell. Just wiki it if you care. Very rarely, but sometimes, people fake the seeds and even files that look good are embedded with viruses. However, you can't get the virus from just using the torrent client. Before running anything you download, always scan the folder for viruses.

~~~~~
Prerequisites:

1. You can download torrents on any OS, but I am writing this guide for Windows XP.
2. A steady, relatively reliable internet connection.
3. A BitTorrent Client. For beginners, I recommend BitLord as it is extremely easy to use. http://www.bitlord.com/BitLord_1.01.exe.
4. For protection, PeerGuardian 2: http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/peerguardian/pg2-050918-nt.exe?download
5. WinRAR (in some cases - extracting files from .rar collections): http://www.rarlab.com/rar/wrar380.exe
6. Videora iPod Converter (converting movies into .mp4 format for iPods): http://www.redkawa.com/blog/post.php?t=40807
7. Daemon Tools Lite for mounting games (.iso)

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Let's begin!

-->Basically, Steps 1 and 2 are just about installing BitLord/PeerGuardian with blocklists, so if you know how to do that, skip these steps<--
STEP 1: INSTALLING THE BITTORRENT TRACKER.
No screenshots are included, as this seems so self explanatory that I didn't feel they were necessary.

1. After downloading BitLord, run the BitLord_1.01.exe file. You should be prompted to select a language. This guide will be done in English.
2. Let the MSI Installer do the work for you; hit "Next" then "I Agree" until you are at the "Choose Components" window. You can check whichever boxes you desire, but it will be easiest if you just leave them all checked. Hit next.
3. Choose whichever download location you desire by hitting Browse, then hit "Install"
4. When the installer finishes, hit "Launch BitLord After Completion." You should see a popup that's titled "BitLord Installation" --> DO NOT select to include the IE TorrentMan Toolbar/FireFox TorrentMan Toolbar unless you want to...
5. Voila! You've just installed BitLord. That wasn't too hard, was it?

~An optional note, if you are happy with BitLord downloading all downloaded files into its default folder (ProgramFiles/BitLord/Downloads), don't bother changing it. If you want to, you can go to Options --> Preferences. On the left panel, you should see "Task" so click that. Then, click Default Download Path and browse for the folder you want the downloads to go to. As this is is a beginner guide, we will not modify any other settings as they should all work fine.

STEP 2: INSTALLING PEERGUARDIAN 2
Why would you want PeerGuardian? You're not doing anything illegal...while this [may or may not be] is true, you still don't want your IP Address and some of your computer information (such as ISP, etc.) being sent out over the Internet to godknowswho [including the government, hint, hint]. So, you can download PeerGuardian 2. I'll guide you through that.

1. Click http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/peerguardian/pg2-050918-nt.exe?download. If the URL doesn't work, meh just Google it. PeerGuardian 2.
2. Open the downloaded .exe file. Basically, keep hitting next unless you want to change the install directory or create desktop shortcuts...Choose to Launch PeerGuardian 2.
   
   The next section of this guide was NOT written by me, but rather by Vectrosecurity.com. It teaches you how to implement custom blocklists and suggests blocklists for use.
   

Now that you've got BitLord and PeerGuardian 2 setup, you're ready for the fun stuff! Let's get downloading!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
That was basically just background information. You didn't even have to read that. This is where the guide is really what you came here for. How do I download music? [you mean to backup your CD's in a different format, I'm assuming? HINT HINT NOT].

STEP 3: DOWNLOADING THE STUFF!

Alright, first things first - I'll give you an example of downloading a game, a video, and a music CD. I rarely use BitLord to legally download applications anyways [HINT, HINT].

For all of these downloads, you need to get a .torrent library. I prefer to use IsoHunt, as it seems to have the best selection overall IMO.

~~~~~MUSIC~~~~~
First things first. You need to decide what you want. You can generally back up almost all of the CD's you want, as long as they're completely unknown. Some [legal] uses for downloading music is backing up CD's and downloading songs in different formats from your CD's (such as .mp3 for the iPod). Let's say I want to back up my Basshunter CD called "Now You're Gone". I'd go to Isohunt.com, and search something like "Now You're Gone" or "Basshunter." For fastest download times, you want to sort your results by "seeders" - reference the diagram.

The first one that looks attractive given what I want is highlighted in the previous screenshot. To download it, click on it and you shall see what I have in the next screen:

Now, I have circled the three things to pay attention to. First, you want to always read the comments. While they are not always helpful, they generally guide you to the right direction - they will at least warn you that the folder MAY contain a virus. Generally, the nubs who post virus are lying, especially if there are 200+ seeds, and just 1 comment...The next thing I have circled is the files list. Make sure the files are in the right format - I try to stay away from .rar CD's because they're just a hassle. This is perfect for my needs. Finally, you should see in orange the highlighted "Download". Click that, and run the .torrent file. If you installed BitLord correctly, it should automatically detect it. If not, meh just open BitLord and select Open Torrent and find the torrent file. This should pop-up:


Here, you can choose which files you want (I'm assuming you want the whole CD ) and the download destination. Don't bother hitting the advanced tab, and make your settings |Download||Start Now| if they aren't, and hit Default if you changed those settings. Press OK, and you're on your way! You have to wait a while, and you'll see BitLord's super-convenient interface working. When the dot near the file-name turns green, that means your file is done downloading. You can stop "seeding" by hitting the STOP button in BitLord. Voila! All your .mp3 files are complete and ready to use! Please keep in mind - if you OWN the music, you can download all you want. If you don't, it is unlawful to do so. If you OWN the music, you can place it on any MP3 player or CD you want. However, you can NOT give ANYBODY else the songs. Legally, of course.

~~~~~MOVIES~~~~~
Downloading movies via IsoHunt is one of the most simple things to do. The purpose of this is quite obvious; DVD's are extremely large, and converting them to fit on the computer is quite difficult. Therefore, naturally, people have already done it for you If you own a movie, it is legal to download it as a means to change its format and place it on an iPod. However, it's illegal to distribute these videos. It's also (in theory) illegal to download videos you don't legally own. *cough* PeerGuardian 2 comes in handy here *cough*

Movies are really where you are likely to get a virus if you are not careful. There are many respected video-encoders, and good videos usually have many seeders and many good comments. Videos encoded by Axxo are probably the best. So anyways, downloading movies is almost identical to downloading songs. I prefer to stay away from .rar movies, and just download either .avi or .mp4. If I want to place .avi movies on my iPod, I use Videora iPod Converter (http://www.redkawa.com/blog/post.php?t=40807) and download the one that suits you. This is about downloading Torrents, not viewing them on your iPod so...yeah, that basically sums up movies. Be careful, read the comments, and be sure to do a virus scan BEFORE opening the video to make sure you do not get a virus. You can download TV Shows (and seasons of TV Shows) the same way, and the same legal rules apply.

EDIT: When downloading a movie, you don't need to bother searching for the ones that are huge file sizes, as they are just slightly better than the professional DVD-converters. Axxo is known for having 700MB movies, and there is a new encoding that allows videos to be like around 400MB without losing significant quality from the DVD's! It's completely nuts, to be fully honest. So basically, don't bother downloading if they're over 1GB if you can find something smaller; it's just not necessary.

~~~~~GAMES~~~~~

This is the really tricky part for most beginners...downloading COMPUTER games. Note; Computer. If you want to backup Xbox 360, PS3, or any other console games, you can do it with the help of .torrents, but it also involves hardware modding, and I really don't want to get into that. This is only for PC games. Basically, it's the same download principle as movies and songs. Except this time, instead of .mp3 or .avi or .mp4 or some other extension you probably recognize, you end up with .iso files. Those are "virtual disc" images that, when burned onto a CD, function identically to a CD-rom. So yes, you can burn the downloaded game onto a CD-rom with the proper technology (you need to get pretty expensive software, though, not to mention the right hardware -- you can google around for .iso burning software). What I'm here to do is teach you to play the games on the computer. Hopefully, most of the time you will end up with a straight torrent for a .iso file. If this is the case, skip the next portion of the guide; continue where it says "So, after downloading the .iso file, you need to download" ...

Sometimes, however, they don't make it that simple - when you look at the files through IsoHunt, you will see a list of like 50 different .rar files. When you extract them all together, you end up with a .iso file - this is what you need to end up with. Please keep in mind that you need to leave about an extra 1GB on your hard drive RELATIVE TO THE TORRENT .rar GAME to be able to install the game properly. So, if your .torrent file is downloading you a 7GB .iso file (or collection of .rar files), you should probably have 15GB on the hard drive prior to beginning the torrent download. So, to go from .rar to .iso, all you do is follow these simple steps!

So, after downloading the .iso file, you need to download Daemon Tools or any other virtual drive. My favorite freeware is by far Daemon Tools Lite, though. Install Daemon Tools (it's really, really simple). Only downside is you have to reboot, but that's okay. The next portion of the guide was not written by me, but by digital-digest.com, as they are basically saying exactly what I would.

Now that you've mounted the game, if it's the first time you're running it, you know that you have to install the game. Generally, if the game requires either a serial key (or sometimes a crack) to work, there will be a .nfo file that came with the torrent download. To read the .nfo file, you need to right click it and select "Open With ->" and choose Notepad (or your .txt file viewer. Don't chose MS Word). The .nfo generally gives you installing directions. Sometimes, the .nfo will be inside the .iso file, so you want to use Daemon Tools Light to view the file. To do this, with the .iso mounted, you want to go to My Computer, right click on the virtual drive, and select "Explore." If the file is not there, see the next step.

If the .nfo file does not exist with the download package, you need to look at comments from the torrent tracker [you should have already done this ]. They generally have good instructions. Sometimes, they tell you where to find a crack for the game (this basically overwrites the .exe file the game looks at, so you can install it without a serial or play without doing the typical installation process). Sometimes, you will need both a serial number and a crack, basically just read the .nfo and comments, and if worst comes to worst, if you are still having trouble, please post/PM me a link of the torrent game you tried to install, and I'll try my best to help you

CONCLUSION

I hope my guide helped you in your understanding of how to download music, videos, and even computer games. You can also download many other things, such as applications or e-books through BitTorrent trackers. Be sure to explore other torrent libraries, such as Thepiratebay.org, etc. Experiment!

Please comment!!

 

good gide, thanks man

 

Very detailed guide. I liked how you split it up into parts. 10/10

 

Nice guide, very detailed and helps alot. Good layout, splitted into different sections. All pretty smart.

Thanks and once again, nice guide.

 

Nice pictures, anyway.. isn't bitcomet more easy for begginers?

 

Thank you

Thanks a lot

Thank you

Thanks

While I have never personally used BitComet, what I do know about it would probably suggest this. However, I like a few of BitLord's additional features, and it's the one I use most (I also use Vuze and µtorrent sometimes) - IDK, BitLord doesn't seem too difficult to use anyways.

 

Nice detail man. Very helpful. Imma torrent some movies soon

 

nice guid i did already know how to download whith torrents but u explained it very well

 

Well explained guide; you have lots of detail with it still being easy enough for a beginner to follow. I like the layout and use of color / pictures. You seem like an intelligent person and I'll be waiting for another good guide. 9/10 Also, I think I may have seen 2 - 3 grammar errors so you may want to go through and scan it again. But I'm just picky like that, lol.

 

I'm not actually sure on this one, can you find a legal document to back yourself up? I know torrenting a CD you own is just like ripping a copy, but the law is quirky.

 

Thanks a lot I'm gonna try to create another guide soon, just having some trouble picking a topic. And yeah, I rushed a bit at the end; I fixed 1 or 2 this morning, but I'm sure there are still some more to fix.

Gracias

Thanks a lot. Movies are great, especially if you can find one of good quality. I forgot to mention; 700MB's for a movie is plenty. You don't need to bother downloading the movies that are like 2GB+ as those are LITERALLY DVD rips, but I don't notice too much quality drop if you download Axxo's 700MB ones, and they fit on CD-R discs.

"...makes a broadcast transmission of a performance of a sound recording in a digital format on a nonsubscription basis, to make no more than one copy or phonorecord of a particular transmission program embodying the performance or display, if &#8212;

(A) the copy or phonorecord is retained and used solely by the transmitting organization that made it, and no further copies or phonorecords are reproduced from it; and

(B) the copy or phonorecord is used solely for the transmitting organization's own transmissions within its local service area, or for purposes of archival preservation or security; and

(C) unless preserved exclusively for archival purposes, the copy or phonorecord is destroyed within six months from the date the transmission program was first transmitted to the public." (http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html#112)

Though I may be misinterpreting the law, which I probably am, I know that the topic of "backing up media" is constantly being debated. This gives permission to radio stations, but nowhere has it been made official that you ARE allowed to make backups, but an amendment is currently being debated after two separate acquittals in cases questioning this. I also know it is 100% legal to back up PROGRAMS that you own, meaning applications. But honestly, if you create backups, you'll be fine. And even if the feds want you, you're still pretty safe with Peer Guardian 2. I'll keep looking into this to see if anything is added giving us rights to backing up more than just music. And there's nothing mentioned about movies :O, but I could've sworn there is. I'm sure you'll be fine; you just can't distribute.

 

10/10



----If anyone needs help installing grand theft auto: san andreas I will help because thats a very very hard game to install
PM me if you need help

 

Thanks for the high rating

I think you've just inspired me to create a tutorial how to install it [and other .rar games with serial protection]

 

Love the guide! Extremely detailed and very, very helpful! The picture editing could be a little neater, though. ;D

9/10


<3 Matt

 

Thank ya very much My name's Matt too btw

I'll definitely keep that in mind for my next guide. What exactly do you mean by picture editing? You mean like the circling/text adding? Or the cropping itself?

 

JUST ADDED A NEW SECTION: How to extract .iso files from games packed as numerous .rar/.r[##] archives

Hope it helps, for anyone interested in DL'ing games!

 

i use to hate torrents but now i love them there so quick and easy

 

Nice, very detailed. 10/10.

I prefer BitLord though.

 

Glad I could help!

Thanks so much for the rate! What do you mean, you prefer BitLord? As opposed to what? [didn't I advertise the use of BitLord?]

 

Hmm, I wonder what other helpful guides I could write...ah well. Any more responses? Constructive criticism never hurts :O