Azureus
BitTornado
TurboTorrent
BT Plugin for eDonkey
Shareaza
BitComet
ABC
burst!
BitLord
uTorrent - New! (and pretty damned good!)
Bits on Wheels (MAC)
Transmission (MAC)
Tomato Torrent (MAC)
There are many different clients out there, some of them good, some of them not so good. Some have lots of features and gizmo's, others are bare-bones solutions with little more than a download status. If you ask which one is best, you will get a different answer every time, as each person has their own individual favourite and for different reasons.
That's why I'm not going to try and preach over which one is best and which one you should use! My only advice is to try some and see which ones you do and don't get on with.
This list is current as of March 2006.
This is the original BitTorrent client, created by Bram Cohen, the author of the BitTorrent protocol itself. I doubt he thought his work would extend as far as it has! Why not do your karma some good and donate him $$.
Azureus offers multiple torrent downloads, queuing/priority systems (on torrents and files), start/stop seeding options and instant access to numerous pieces of information about your torrents. Azureus now features an embedded tracker easily set up and ready to use. You can also make torrents with Azureus.
There is also a Mac OSX version available for download.
Azureus implements the BitTorrent protocol using java language and comes bundled with many invaluable features for both beginners and advanced users:
- Multiple torrent downloads
- Upload and download speed limiting, both globally and per torrent
- Advanced seeding rules
- Adjustable disk cache
- Only uses one port for all the torrents
- UPnP sets the forward on your router
- Can use a proxy, for both tracker and peer communications
- Fast resume
- Can set a default download dir and move completed files
- Can import torrents automatically from a set dir
- Highly customizable interface
- IRC plugin included for quick help
- Embedded tracker, host your own torrents, automate your shares (periodic scanning of a dir)...
- Distributed Hash Table: host on it a completely decentralised torrent and/or benefit from it when the tracker is offline
Essentially, there is nothing to stop the copyright owners of the file you are downloading from downloading it themselves. If they do this, they can see all of the other IP addresses in the swarm (not good....). The plugin imports a list of known 'bad' IP addresses, and blocks them from connecting to you. If this sort of thing really bothers you, you might want to try Protowall which offers more advanced protection. Read more here.
An awesome BT client, with many features, it is based upon the original BitTorrent. It comes from "The SHADOW's experimental BitTorrent client". BitTornado is a re-branding of that client, by "The Shadow", the developer. This is a popular rival to Azureus and is by rights one of the most widely used clients available, I used it before Azureus.
Turbo Torrent is a P2P file-sharing freeware fully compatible with BitTorrent, which is one of the most popular P2P protocol designed for high-speed distribution of large files (i.e., 100MB or GB sized files).
Turbo Torrent is a powerful, clean, fast, and easy-to-use BitTorrent client. It supports simultaneous downloads, download queue, selected downloads in torrent package, fast-resume, chatting, disk cache, speed limits, port mapping, proxy, ip-filter and more.
Turbo Torrent is also the most visually appealing as well as feature rich BitTorrent client. It aims to provide a gross amount of statistical and network data in a visually empowered format.
Turbo Torrent is the only BitTorrent client that comes complete with a built-in Web based Torrent Search Engine, so you can search for files without the need to rummage around countless forums and Web sites.
Turbo Torrent is not advertising supported, nor does it require registration, and no information is collected from or about product users. It is very small and easy to use and comes complete with full install and uninstall wizard.
http://forum.edonkey.com/viewtopic.php?t=67789
This is the release of the BitTorrent Plugin v0.06. Unlike the previous versions v0.01-v0.03 (which were alpha versions) this is a beta version. Which means its not a testers-only version anymore.
For quick answers look here:
BitTorrent Plugin FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Added features:
This is the latest version of a Phase-2 BT Plugin.
There have been some important changes to v0.04/v0.05:
- Option to keep torrents seeding until stopped manually (default turned on)
- Transfer missing ed2k gaps one more time when synced torrent is completed
- There have been many changes to v0.03 (already implemented in v0.04/v0.05): Taking .torrent-links
- BT-uploadspeed controlled by and visible in eD
- New BT temp-dir structure.
- Converting 0.01-0.03 temps to new temp structure.
- Auto-detect eDonkey temp and incoming dirs.
- Moving completed BT-only files to eD incoming dir.
- Auto-restarting and auto-removal of (synced) torrents.
- "Remove torrent" feature.
- Choice between different matching BT-files.
- And these were the main changes to v0.02 (already implemented in v0.03): Simultaneous downloading with BT and eDonkey into the same file.
- Synchronization of BT and eDonkey downloads.
- New and much more practical GUI (easy multi-torrent handling).
- Simple search-assistant.
- Total-torrent-size can now be larger than 2GB.
After almost a year of development, Shareaza version 2.2 has been released.
This release is a huge upgrade from 2.1, and has multiple fixes on all supported networks, providing vastly improved multi-network peer-to-peer file sharing capabilities.
There are also several new features, including a scheduler, a review viewer, enhanced translations and improved metadata support. Help facilities and documentation have been improved to make the application easier to use, while a variety of options to improve performance on low end computers have been added.
Beware: BitComet is banned on some trackers because of the way that it behaves. For more information see this article on slyck.com
BitComet is a p2p file-sharing freeware fully compatible with BitTorrent, which is one of the most popular p2p protocol designed for high-speed distribution of 100MB or GB sized files. BitComet is a powerful, clean, fast, and easy-to-use BitTorrent client.
It supports simultaneous downloads, download queue, selected downloads in torrent package, fast-resume, chatting, disk cache, speed limits, port mapping, proxy, ip-filter, etc.
- Clean and free, without any adware or spyware. ( Please note: Spybot may misreport "Comet Cursor" )
- Completely new core written in C++, stable and fast, very low CPU usage.
- Multiple simultaneous downloads, ability to select download files in one torrent and set file priority.
- Ability to limit the upload speed as well as download speed.
- Support preview video file during downloading.
- Support DHT Network, download trackerless torrent!
- Intelligent Connection Optimize, Auto Optimization for different connections, runs well using all default settings.
- Intelligent Rate Control, optimize the upload distribution in order to get the max download rate.
- Intelligent Disk Cache, decrease the potential damage to the hard disk when high-speed downloading (>500KB/s) by decrease the read / write frequency, extra memory usage is the cost.
- Intelligent Disk Allocating, no long-time disk allocation, also decrease the disk fragment to almost zero.
- Intelligent Hash Scan, no time-consuming scanning when seeding / resume.
- Firewall and NAT Traversal, users behind different NAT can now connect to each other
- Auto config ICF (Internet Connection Firewall) and ICS (Internet Connection Sharing) in Windows XP
- Auto config port mapping in router (UPnP support is required in router, Windows XP is required).
- Ability to block IP temporarily or permanently, compatible with eMule ipfilter.dat.
- Ability to chat with other downloader's ( disabled by default )
- Compatible with Windows XP SP2 TCP/IP restriction
- ZIP package is also provided, which runs without installation.
- Using only one TCP listening port.
- Support Multi-tracker, and utf-8 extension, UDP tracker Protocol v2.
[Please Note]: It is reported that Zone Alarm 5.0 conflict with BitComet (and other p2p maybe). (discussion here)
burst! is port of BitTorrent's console btdownloadheadless.py to Win32, with a GUI front-end.
- Multiple downloads in a single window
- Queuing system with priority
- Ability to customize the information ABC displays
- Supporting pause, stop, resume, queue, remove operations
- Minimize to taskbar (and/or system tray)
- Displaying torrent details
- Supporting global setting such as upload and download limiting
- Supporting local setting for each torrent as well
- Supporting advanced settings from BitTornado
- Supporting BitTornado's super-seed mode
- Choosable upload options when download is done [unlimited, timer, sharesize]
Torrent won't be blocked in queue, ABC will reduce torrent's priority and force it to queue which user can set timer for these conditions
- if torrent can't connect tracker
- if torrent can't get any byte from other peers
- if seeding torrent has no one download
- Choosable number of simultaneous download
- Choosable between download to the specific folder or always ask for the folder
- Supporting manual adding torrent from both file and url
- Supporting automatic adding torrent from url (when you click on .torrent file
- Including make torrent file program
- Displaying number of real peer, seed on tracker (for tracker that supports scrape data)
- Supporting add, delete, queue, pause, stop, resume and query current torrent status via Web Interface
- etc .. -_-"
A powerful C++ BitTorrent Client
Beware: There some debate over this client. It is seen as a direct copy of BitComet but with the addition of advertisments. BitComet is known for its bad behaviour which has led to some trackers banning the client. These same trackers may also be banning the use of BitLord.
BitLord is a p2p file-sharing freeware fully compatible with BitTorrent, which is one of the most popular p2p protocol designed for high-speed distribution of 100MB or GB sized files. BitLord is a powerful, clean, fast, and easy-to-use BitTorrent client. It supports simultaneous downloads, download queue, selected downloads in torrent package, fast-resume, chatting, disk cache, speed limits, port mapping, proxy, ip-filter, etc.
Click here to check the forums for more info
µTorrent is an efficient and feature rich BitTorrent client for Windows sporting a very small footprint. It was designed to use as little cpu, memory and space as possible while offering all the functionality expected from advanced clients.
With BitTorrent, you can download files faster and contribute by sharing files and bandwidth.
- Multiple simultaneous downloads
- Smart bandwidth usage
- File level priorities
- Configurable bandwidth scheduling
- Global and per-torrent speed limiting
- Quickly resumes interrupted transfers
- UPnP support (WinXP only)
- Supports popular protocol extensions
- Localized to different languages
- Typical memory use less than 4 MB
- Incredibly small
Bits on Wheels is the first 100% Native BitTorrent client for the Macintosh. It is completely written in Objective-C and Cocoa.
Bits on Wheels is currently a Freeware. It is not opensource nor public domain.
19/11/2005 Version 1.0.6
New :
- You can now click and rotate/move/zoom the 3D Swarm view ! Use the command/option/control keys while dragging to move/zoom/rotate the view.
- new 3D Swarm representation : Vertical Race ! Peers start at the bottom and raise up as they complete a torrent.
- new 3D tools palette lets you rotate and zoom the 3D view. 3D Options have been moved there.
- Peers can now be sorted by the amount they have available.
- IP addresses can now be selected and copied to the clipboard, inside the Peers view.
Fixes :
- endgame was so-so in 105 and seems to be real nice now.
- when rechecking hash, the available pieces weren't re-sorted resulting in 0 piece being downloaded.
- crash when updating the validated graph.
- removed a couple deadlocks.
- crash in race condition.
- visual artefacts while checking hash in 3D swarm view.
- tidying up multi-threading.
- Memory leak when stopping torrents. Another leak with outgoing connexions.
- Better Peer handshaking when peer has 0 piece available.
- Most Panther crashes.
- Many fixes here and there.
Mods :
- modified the pieces ring in the 3d view to be more accurate.
- changed the amount of requested pieces to avoid stalling.
Known Problems :
- Panther only : BoW seems to be incompatible with some APE modules.
- Only uses one port for all torrents
- Rewritten choking algorithm
- Remembers download and upload sizes from one launch to another
- New GTK+ interface
- New BeOS interface
- OS X: Dock badging
- OS X: Shows the file icon in the list
- OS X: Shows ratio once download is completed
- OS X: Automatic check for update
- OS X: Fixes a display bug on Intel Macs
2005/12/04: GTK interface ready for testing
Josh is looking for testers for the GTK frontend, which is functional already (screenshot). Linux and *BSD users, we need you!
On the BeOS side, Bryan is also making good progress on his interface, although it isn't available in the public CVS yet.
2005/11/18: Transmission 0.4 released
- Uses less CPU downloading torrents with many pieces
- The UI could freeze when the hard drive was having a hard time - fixed
- Fixes for difficult trackers, which require a 'key' parameter or a User Agent field
- OS X: Cleaner look, unified toolbar
- OS X: Added a document icon for torrent files
- OS X: Added a Pause/Resume button for each torrent, and a "Reveal in Finder" button
- OS X: Added a contextual menu
- OS X: Sometimes torrents kept "Stopping..." forever - fixed
- OS X: Several minor improvements or fixes: allows column reordering, fixed resizing on Panther, remember the position of the window, fixed display of Unicode filenames, added menubar items and keyboard shortcuts, made the simple progress bar switch to green when seeding
The main goal of this project was to separate the BitTorrent code from the Macintosh code, so that either can be updated without having to modify the other.
I got 80% of the download window’s current functionality implemented within 3 days of starting the project. Then I decided to finish “just a bit more,” and the project just kept getting bigger and bigger.
Features
- Built on BitTorrent 4.2
- Remembers recent downloads and where you’ve saved them to, making resumes quick and easy
- Auto-stop torrents when they’ve seeded a set amount
- Set an upload rate for torrents that start seeding
- User interface for torrent generation allows you to specify torrent comments
- User interface for starting a torrent tracker on your Mac
- Most BitTorrent options are fully customizable
- Supports AppleScript
Changes
1.5 beta 1 is the latest beta release, and it features BitTorrent 4.2.0 and preferences for seeding limits.
