BitTorrent - WTF is it?
 

looks like a new edonkey type program.. except you download files off the net, and other users downloading the same file will send to each other

is this the new kazaa?

It's a very clever technology, and was designed by the inventor as a way of distributing large ISO files of linux/freebsd distributions when they come out.

In fact, slashdot now gives out bittorrent links to download ISO's of new releases when they come out.

Essentially, there is one person with the original copy. If people start downloading it, then they have bits of the original. If you are missing some part of it, your client will get it from other people who have your missing parts.

very clever stuff IMHO

Steve

Sort of. It's used to distribute a single file. The inital host offers it, you download it and keep bit torrent running (along with x other people) and everyone who's completed the transfer keeps bit torrent running and the transfer is split up into chunks. This spreads the bandwidth across multiple computers (and networks) so a single host isn't getting pounded from all the users trying to download. I've used it and it works amazingly well. Check out http://bitconjurer.org/BitTorrent/index.html