[peel] Re: An idiot asks...........

[apoplexia]

Well, I personally think that torrents are one of the safest forms of
peer-to-peer filesharing, because you only share specific files, so there's
no danger of accidentally leaving access open to your entire hard drive. So
yes, people can access your computer, but they can't get to anything that
you're not explicitly sharing.

The danger involved viz trojans and viruses is the same as downloading any
file from a non-reputable source. People do mislabel and upload malware,
it's true, but the comments on sites like the piratebay general indicate
this fairly quickly. If your virus software's up-to-date and you've backed
up all your important data (which, let's face it, is something all of us
should probably be doing more often), you're fairly safe. The danger tends
to come from downloading cracked versions of software, which often include
.bat or .exe files which puport to provide serial numbers, but which could
do anything once you double-click on them.

Ultimately all I can say is that I've never had a problem with anything I've
downloaded through torrents, but I wouldn't want to claim that my experience
was necessarily typical. I guess, don't do anything you're not comfortable
with, but if you feel the benefits outweigh the risks, then give it a go.

Rich

2009/5/21 johnners1900 <johnners1900@...>

>
>
> Ah, I see thanks very much.
>
> I've wondered about the dvd torrent as well. I'm a bit dubious about using
> it - I've asked people before and the idea I got was that people could
> access my computer? I've got virus software, but I don't think I'm prepared
> for if my computer got infected. Am I being a bit over cautious?
>
>
> --- In peel@yahoogroups.com <peel%40yahoogroups.com>, apoplexia
> <apoplexia@...> wrote:
> >
> > I think it's because this show is only available as part of the giant
> Peel
> > compilation (17DVDs worth) that was uploaded to torrent sites a while
> back,
> > i.e. no-one has uploaded it separately. It's still active at the
> notorious
> > Piratebay:
> >
> >
> http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/3902856/John_Peel_Torrent_Compilation_11_of_17
> >
> > If you just want this single show, use a torrent program (such as
> utorrent)
> > that lets you pick which files you want to download (rather than having
> to
> > download all 4GB of it, not that that wouldn't be worthwhile in itself.
> >
> > If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.
> >
> > Rich
> >
> > 2009/5/21 Mr Johnners <johnners1900@...>
> >
> > >
> > >
> > > Be gentle with me, how do I download this show?
> > >
> > > http://peel.wikia.com/wiki/07_March_2002
> > >
> > > If I click on where it says the file is available (
> > > http://peel.wikia.com/wiki/John_Peel_Torrent_Compilation_11_of_17_
> (2001-2002<
> http://peel.wikia.com/wiki/John_Peel_Torrent_Compilation_11_of_17_%282001-2002
> >))
> > > it sends me to a listing page which I click on and then go back to the
> > > start.
> > >
> > > I'm probably missing something really obvious like "click here" but I
> don't
> > > get it.
> > >
> > > I've managed to download a couple of shows before, but this has me
> stumped.
> > >
> > > Thanks in advance Pete
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
>
>  
>