Bittorrent
From Open Clip Art Library Wiki
OpenClipart should use bittorrent to distribute files efficiently.
"You can download the tarball directly, or join the Torrent by downloading the equivalent .torrent file"
What is Bittorrent?
BitTorrent is a protocol designed for transferring files. It is peer-to-peer in nature, as users connect to each other directly to send and receive portions of the file.
The key philosophy of BitTorrent is that users should upload (transmit outbound) at the same time they are downloading (receiving inbound.) In this manner, network bandwidth is utilized as efficiently as possible. BitTorrent is designed to work better as the number of people interested in a certain file increases, in contrast to other file transfer protocols.
How to share a file using BitTorrent?
To share a file using BitTorrent, a user creates a .torrent file, a small "pointer" file that contains:
- the filename, size, and the hash of each block in the file (which allows users to make sure they are downloading the real thing)
- the address of a "tracker" server (which is discussed below)
- and some other data (like client instructions).
The torrent file is then distributed to users, often via email or placed on a website. The BitTorrent client is started as a "seed node", allowing other users to connect and begin downloading. When other users finish downloading the entire file, they can optionally "reseed" it--becoming an additional source for the file.
In May 2005, on the same day the tracker website elitetorrents.org was shut down, Bram Cohen released a new beta version of BitTorrent that eliminated the need for Web site hosting of centralized servers known as "trackers". It is now possible to have a torrent up in minutes, with a file, a website, and no understanding of how it works.
