BitComet
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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 Screenshot from BitComet |
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| Maintainer: | The BitComet Team |
| Stable release: | 0.70 (2006-06-24) [+/-] |
| Preview release: | 0.79 (2006-11-30) [+/-] |
| OS: | Microsoft Windows |
| Use: | BitTorrent client |
| License: | Freeware/Adware |
| Website: | www.bitcomet.com |
BitComet is a BitTorrent client written in C++ for Microsoft Windows. It has been translated into 43 different languages, with support in English, Spanish, and French.
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[edit] Overview
BitComet is a P2P file-sharing program. It is fully compatible with the BitTorrent protocol, one of the most popular P2P protocols designed for high-speed distribution of large files. BitComet supports simultaneous downloads, download queuing, selected downloads inside a torrent package, fast-resume, Mainline DHT, protocol encryption, chatting, disk cache, speed limits, port mapping, peer exchange (PEX), UDP NAT traversal, proxy, and IP filtering. The newest releases of the client (after 0.70) have added new features like an FTP/HTTP downloader, a download scheduler, and virus scanner for downloaded torrents. New BitComet clients come out every 2 weeks or so, but there has not been a "stable" client since the release of 0.70. BitComet also provides an embedded Internet Explorer window designed to allow users to search for torrents within the client. A default list of torrent index sites are included which users can modify or remove.
[edit] Adware
Despite the official BitComet website claiming BitComet is, "Clean and free, without any adware or spyware," [1] versions 0.62 to the current stable release, version 0.70, all show advertisements when using the video preview functionality. [2]Although the advertisements are removable, BitComet is still considered adware because of it automatically displaying the ads without the consent of the user.
[edit] Controversy
[edit] DHT Problems
During version 0.60, BitComet received bad publicity because of an incomplete implementation of the DHT feature, which was new at the time. BitComet was found by members of "private trackers" to be sharing “private” torrents on the DHT network. [3] BitComet's implementation of DHT did not respect the 'private' flag of a torrent. This in turn allowed users that hadn't signed up to avoid download and upload ratio restrictions, which are common on private trackers. Two of the major DHT bugs were fixed with the release of BitComet 0.61. These were editing the .xml file of the active .torrent to allow not only DHT but PEX to run as well, the other was caused by pasting "DHT Network" into the tracker list in the properties section of a .torrent. Although the DHT problem was fixed in the 0.61 release, many private trackers have continued to ban all versions of BitComet. [4]
[edit] Downloading Techniques
Bitcomet has been criticized of using several unfair tactics to improve its user download speed while minimizing upload, such as disconnecting and reconnecting soon after receiving an entire "chunk" from the torrent [5], disconnecting and reconnecting repeatedly to trackers and peers[6], not reporting the actual chunks the BitComet user has, reporting false numbers about what was downloaded and ratio to the tracker and peers[7], abusing superseeds by faking several connections, and other problems considered harmful to torrents. [8]
[edit] Features
The following are the features of BitComet, according to the official website:
- Support preview of video file which is being downloaded.
- Support DHT Network, download trackerless torrent!
- Completely new core written in C++, stable and fast, very low CPU usage.
- Ability to limit the upload speed as well as download speed.
- Clean and free, without any adware or spyware.
- Multiple simultaneous downloads, ability to select download files in one torrent and set file priority.)
- 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 differect 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 downloaders (disabled by default)
- Compatible with Windows XP SP2 TCP/IP restriction
- ZIP package is also provided, which runs without installation.
- Uses only one TCP listening port.
- Support Multi-tracker, and UTF-8 extension, UDP tracker Protocol v2.
- Support automatically power off with conditions.
[edit] Trivia
- First public release was v 0.28.
- Originally named SimpleBT client in from versions 0.11 to 0.37.
[edit] References
- ^ BitComet Team (2006). Official Website. Retrieved on 2006-12-11.
- ^ BitComet Tech Support (2006). Forum post of Tech Support acknowledging ads in BitComet. Retrieved on 2006-12-11.
- ^ Thomas Mennecke (2006). BitComet .62 and You. Retrieved on 2006-12-03.
- ^ Zeropaid.com (2006). Bitcomet Downloads & News. Retrieved on 2006-12-11.
- ^ Super Seeding - AzureusWiki (2006). Retrieved on 2006-12-14.
- ^ TorrentLeach.org FAQ (2006). Retrieved on 2006-12-14.
- ^ BitComet Bug Report (2006). Retrieved on 2006-12-14.
- ^ Discussion about BitComet behaviour.
