Newsgroup 'leeching' software

[markjewiss]

Thanks for all this info on Newsgroups, I would have appreciated it a little while ago... I've heard that they can be blazing fast for information, but I never got into it. Probably because I don't want to fork over money every month.

I think i'll just stick to bittorrent, it seems to get the job done although it can be slow sometimes.

My thanks as well. I've tried it out as suggested - and it is much quicker download speeds than using torrents. I've got a free trial with giganews at the moment, and downloaded 10 tv shows today - but only three of them work, the rest won't uncompress due to errors in the file 🙁 😡

Found the same shows as torrents, and downloading them now, unless anyone has any more advice, I think I'll be sticking with what I know.

M.

 

[cell-gfx]

My thanks as well. I've tried it out as suggested - and it is much quicker download speeds than using torrents. I've got a free trial with giganews at the moment, and downloaded 10 tv shows today - but only three of them work, the rest won't uncompress due to errors in the file 🙁 😡

Found the same shows as torrents, and downloading them now, unless anyone has any more advice, I think I'll be sticking with what I know.

M.

What program are you using to download? Have you used PAR2 parity files to repair the downloads? BTW, you'll also find that Giganews and some of the free/cheaper providers have very poor completion. This means that downloads are frequently corrupted and will need repairing with PARs.

Let me know if you need advice on anything!

 

[markjewiss]

Let me know if you need advice on anything!

Thanks for the offer, yes please! I actually went back to Giganews after seeing how long those particular torrents would take to download (ok, it was a friday night when they are typically slower, but still!), redownloaded from Giganews and after a try or two got everything working. I haven't *watched* the files yet, just previewed them and they seem ok.

You mention the par2 files - I'm using NZBDrop, and the default settings on that excludes the par2 files. What are those, and how could I use them? Any good web sites you know of that detail all of this sort of thing...

Mark.

 

[Trepex]

Sorry!

Answers like this irritate me. Just because a protocol has the ability to be used for downloading pirated software, movies, music, whatever, doesnt mean that it is in any way illegal or bad.

Fair enough. To all those whom I offended, I apologize. I am equally annoyed by people who always seem to hop on to the latest Pirate Bandwagon, and start running around begging people to tell them how they can get in on the good stuff. I saw it with torrents and being one of the first legitimate users of bittorrent, I was really ticked when it got a bad rep and ISPs started throttling its use.

I shouldn't have jumped to the conclusion that I did, however, and I wasn't trying to stir things up.

Friends? 🙂

 

[cell-gfx]

Thanks for the offer, yes please! I actually went back to Giganews after seeing how long those particular torrents would take to download (ok, it was a friday night when they are typically slower, but still!), redownloaded from Giganews and after a try or two got everything working. I haven't *watched* the files yet, just previewed them and they seem ok.

You mention the par2 files - I'm using NZBDrop, and the default settings on that excludes the par2 files. What are those, and how could I use them? Any good web sites you know of that detail all of this sort of thing...

Mark.

Hey Mark. I'd suggest reading the newsgroups guide at Slyck, as this gives you a great overview of how binary newsgroups works, as well as PAR files, etc.

Again, if you need any clarification, let me know.

Cheers,
cell

 

[minton]

Out of interest, why are you guys using a usenet reader as opposed to Torrents? I'm downloading TV shows that are not in the UK yet (or at all) and find Torrents to be fine - am I missing out on anything, or is it just down to personal preferrences?

BT is simultaneous upload / download. It's the upload part that leaves you legally liable. I got a letter from NBC/Universal (forwarded by my ISP) demanding that I remove a certain file from my upload directory. They really aren't going after end users, but people have had their internet service turned off. This is especially something to keep in mind if your ISP is owned by someone like Time Warner or Comcast who have a vested interest in enforcing their distribution channels. Usenet is download only. Plus it's faster.