.net magazines top 10 file sharing programs rated

[ONEMANBANNED]

bearshare: a deceptively clever gnutella client with slow searches and downloads.
file types:
music/video/images/docs/software.
network: gnutella.
available for: windows only

adverts: fastclick and optional components (new.net, etc.)
chances of surviving: **** * .nets rating =4/5 stars

blubster: incredibly fast for music files only
file types: mp3
network: blubster
available for: windows onlyadverts: pop ups (unknown system)chances of surviving: * **** .nets rating=4/5 stars

direct connect: powerful alternative to irc but the interface is likely to scare pc beginners
file types: any
network: direct connect hubs
adverts: banner advert in main window
chances of surviving: *****
.nets rateing=2/5 stars

edonkey 2000: has some interesting features but it`s not very user friendly
file types: audio/video/images/docs/software
network: edonkey
available for: windowsmac os x linux
adverts: cydoor (ad-free version available)
chances of surviving: ***** .nets rating=3/5 stars

grokster: decent enough program spoiled by very intrusive advertising.
file types: audio/video/images/docs/software.
network: fasttrack
available for : windows only
adverts: gator plus lots of optional offers
chances of surviving: *** ** .net rating=2/5 stars

imesh: nice looking program that`s outgunned by the rest of the p2p pack

file types: audio/video/images/docs/software.
network: imesh
available for: windows only
adverts: cydoor plus variousoptional components (new.net)
chance of surviving: ** ***
.net rating=1/5 stars

kazaa media desktop: decent p2p client but are all those ads necessary?
file types: audiovideo/images/software/docs.
network: fasttrack
available for: windows only
adverts: cydoor plus various optional components (brilliant digital,new.net)
chance of surviving **** * .net rating=3/5

limewire: highly recommended for mac and linux users
file types: audio/video/images/docs/software.
network: gnutella
available for: windows only
adverts:cydoor, limeshop chance of survival: **** * .net rating=4/5 stars

morpheus: unfortunately the cons out weigh the pros
file types: audio/video/images/docs/software
network: gnutella,fasttrack
available for: windows only
adverts: wurldmedia
chance of surviving: ** *** .net rating=1/5

winmx: our favourite p2p application although it`s not likely to stick around
file types: audio/video/images/html/text
network: winmx opennap
available for : windows only
adverts: none
chance of survival: * **** .net rating=5/5

cool magazine , i picked up a copy of it for the first time came with a cd inside

[Malk-a-mite]

They gave bearshare 4 out of 5?

Maybe I haven't seen it lately but last time I had it installed it was a piece of garbage.

Anyone still using it?

[pod]

hmm, they don't seem too keen on winmx...

[Philanthropy]

Bearshare is far and away the best gnutella client IMO, but of course that's not saying much. I was a bit disappointed to see the fast track clients getting such low scores. They are the only programs that are truly useable at present.
Winmx is full of leeches, and the few people that do share have month long queues. How it got such a good score truly boggles the mind.

[Fantom]

Kazaa Lite or Diet would probably get 4.5/5 - Fastrack rocks without all the crap that comes with KMD.

Haven't tried Blubster yet, sounds like it's worth a look.

Soulseek should be in there, it's brilliant for full albums.

Bearshare has always sucked IMO, especially since the spyware was sneaked in. Gnucleus is pretty cool though (for a gnutella client).

[napho]

The Gnutella network is practically on it's deathbed so rating Limewire and Bearshare that highly is ridiculous. Bearshare is a good client though. And they rate FastTrack clients pretty low considering the # of users and the lack of queues. iMesh is hardly a 1/5 imho

[JackSpratts]

all the fasttrack clients are excellent devices for swapping all types of files. they are truly today’s workhorses in the p2p world. since the vast majority of users aren't even aware of the insiders’ tempest surrounding spyware issues, let alone concerned by the problem when finally informed, i'm surprised to see such low scores myself. add the fact that with the smallest amount of effort one can find cleaned and enhanced versions of these clients, the scores should be much higher. winmxs’ high score is less surprising since it really does have it's fans. it's so subjective because many people simply stay on a few select boutique servers all day long and have come to find those opennaps indispensable. what is surprising is the pessimistic attitude displayed by the comment that winnys days are numbered. it's as strong today as it’s ever been and shows no signs of slowing down. i'm with him (her, they?) on blubster - with caveats – yes it’s fast but it's still buggy and error prone, and except for the soft spot i hold in my heart for gnutella and the open source movement it represents, he missed the mark on that one completely. file sharing has moved beyond it.

finally there’s soulseek. don’t know why he left it out. one of the best clients today - it should be high on anyone’s list with a fondness for the music it delivers.

- js.

[ONEMANBANNED]

I molested the article from the october 2002 issue.

[pod]

Yeah, I'd like to know what the Chances of Survival rating is based on. I think that anything with any commercial interest is destined to disappear, just because I can't get through all the lawsuits that surely are upcoming.

As for WinMX, I don't use the opennap component at all, and I hardly ever have any trouble getting the music I'm looking for. It most definitely does have its fans.

I don't know about Soulseek, personally. Everyone tells me it's so great, but I have yet to download a single byte after uploading well over 2 gigs. <shrug> I'm sure it's a fine client for whatever people who use it use it for.

[RIAAEnemy#1]

currently I use kazaa for downloading massive amounts of mp3s(over night), Shareaza for normal use(www.shareaza.com) and MIRC for rare songs

Of all the p2p progs I've tried Shareaza is the best
and Kazaa v. 2 is second

[SA_Dave]

That article is seriously flawed IMO. Limewire highly recommended for Linux & Mac, yet it's available only for windows? iMesh connects only to the iMesh net, not FastTrack as well? Blubster no longer shares ogg vorbis files (unless they were referring to 1.2.3 of course)? Morpheus connects to Gnutella AND FastTrack? They wish. WinMX easier to shut down than FastTrack? Please! I'd say they're on a par.

[Kris404]

I would also like to know on what criteria the survival is rated.. With reagard to WinMX, do they mean WPNP or OpenNAP? It doesn't stand a chance? Cmon now..

Soulseek should've been in there.. it's one of the best around, especially it's 'Download Containing Folder' and the cool 'Wishlist' feature. I've no idea how scalable the network is and strongly suspect it could be shutdown easily as you are not allowed to run your own servers(for the time being) and their system of 'Download Privileges' for a payment.. read their FAQ

[pod]

Originally posted by SA_Dave
Limewire highly recommended for Linux & Mac, yet it's available only for windows?

Limewire is written in Java, and from what I gather, runs just fine under Linux.

[assorted]

Originally posted by Kris404
Soulseek should've been in there..

i would say it's for the best that soulseek NOT be in there. One figures with that proggie that the less press it gets the better. If it's centralized it's fucked if it gets press. If it's gone decentralized it's fucked if users flood it. so either way no news is good news with soulseek.

[ONEMANBANNED]

glad there was some debate on this thread , most of you know that I have`nt a clue what i`m talking about(Napho, back me up on this ok?) in this thread , but if you want to read the whole article, the mag is called .NET and the article is on pg. 42

I re read the article and there is no real reference to what the "chance of survival" deals with

[SA_Dave]

Originally posted by pod
Limewire is written in Java, and from what I gather, runs just fine under Linux.

I'm aware of that thanks. I should have mentioned that it's only available for windows according to the article quoted above. Sorry for being unclear.

[RIAAEnemy#1]

I would say soulseek is the best, Shareaza is a amazingly great program but you can't find any files on it.

[Haole]

Originally posted by assorted


i would say it's for the best that soulseek NOT be in there. One figures with that proggie that the less press it gets the better. If it's centralized it's fucked if it gets press. If it's gone decentralized it's fucked if users flood it. so either way no news is good news with soulseek.

Agreed! The variety of music is not as wide as Kazaa, but the depth of its offerings are far greater than any existing p2p, and the relative ease of use and lack of eternal queues make it a must.

I think that the Soulseek user is more discriminating, as far as music is concerned, and it keeps away alot of the leechers.

Keep Soulseek on the downlow.

[zombywoof]

Originally posted by JackSpratts

finally there’s soulseek. don’t know why he left it out. one of the best clients today - it should be high on anyone’s list with a fondness for the music it delivers.

- js.

maybe in the grand scheme of things, that may not be such a bad thing.

[spstn]

Forget about SoleShriek. Misspell it. Bury it. Hide it and never let it see the sunlight again.

Notoriety is the "Padrino kiss". Il bacio della morte, OMERTA style.

I'm JUST starting to get over AG passing.

GOOD men deserve at least ONE break in a lifetime.

Now I'm gonna put my black hat on again, and go back to nurture my 64 folders, 684 queued files and 25 active downloads.

Yer killing me, guys.

Close one.

Fiuuh!!!