Nuke (warez)

This article refers to nukes for individual warez releases. For "topsite" nukes, see Topsite (warez)#Credit system.

In the warez scene, nuke refers to labeling content as "bad", for reasons which might include unusable software, bad video/audio quality, virus-infected content, deceptively labeled (fake) content or not following the rules. Also duplicates and stolen releases from other pirates that do not attribute the other pirates will be nuked.[1][2][3][4] When a scene release is "nuked", a message is attached to its listing informing other sceners of its "nuked" status, as well as the specific nature of the problem.[5]

Contrary to what the term implies, a nuke does not actually destroy offending content or prevent anyone from downloading it. A nuke merely serves as a cautionary flag to potential users. The person that uploaded the nuked content to a site will lose credits.[2]

Issuing and removing nukes

Global nukes

Titles can only be officially labeled as "nuked" by people who have special access to a listing database, often referred to as "nukers". The nuke is issued by a nuke command in a nuke channel.[6] For example:

!nuke release reason [source]             (nukes a release)
!unnuke release reason [source]           (unnukes a release)
!renuke release reason [source]           (renukes a release)
!modnuke release reason [source]          (modifies a nuke reason)
!snuke release reason [source]            (a silent nuke: not announced in announce channels)
!oldnuke release reason [source]          (for old releases, also a silent nuke)

Erroneous nukes are usually "un-nuked" easily, by the same people who have access to issue nukes, that nukes and unnukes happen on IRC. These nuke networks have their own guidelines on how to nuke a release.[7] In 2008, twelve of those nuke networks created a coalition to work together "to ensure nukers bias, nukewars and many other problems that plague the nuke scene become a thing of the past."[8]

Local nukes

Local nukes or site nukes can be issued by a topsite administrator and are only applicable to that site. Each individual site has rules for which kind of releases that are allowed. e.g. no VCD releases. Hence a locally nuked release can still be valid.

For more details on this topic, see Topsite (warez) § Credit system.

Nukewars

A release that gets nuked or unnuked more than four times, is called a nukewar.[5][8]

Example[9] of a nukewar. The first two columns represent the time when the release was pred or when a nuke was issued. The next column is the category of the release.[5][10] In this example two releases were released at almost the same time.

2007-03-08 04:15:26    Tv       Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-NoTV
2007-03-08 04:15:32    Tv       Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-XOR
2007-03-08 04:16:16    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-NoTV  NUKED   dupe.XOR.same.day
2007-03-08 04:20:21    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-XOR   NUKED   lost.race.to.NoTV
2007-03-08 04:21:59    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-NoTV  NUKED   dupe.XOR.03-07-2007
2007-03-08 04:22:46    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-NoTV  UNNUKE  fix
2007-03-08 04:23:12    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-NoTV  NUKED   dupe.XOR.2007-03-07
2007-03-08 04:23:46    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-NoTV  UNNUKE  NoTV.pred.first
2007-03-08 04:24:47    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-XOR   NUKED   dupe.NoTV.2007-03-08
2007-03-08 04:38:41    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-XOR   UNNUKE  is.fine
2007-03-08 04:39:23    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-NoTV  NUKED   dupe.XOR.2007-03-08
2007-03-08 05:18:23    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-NoTV  UNNUKE  won.race
2007-03-08 05:18:50    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-XOR   NUKED   dupe.NoTV.2007-08-03
2007-03-08 05:20:22    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-XOR   UNNUKE  fixing
2007-03-08 05:24:03    NUKES    Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-XOR   UNNUKE  fix_won.race.against.NoTV

Another source shows different timestamps.[11] The clock of a computer is not always accurate. This and the difference in timezone partially explain the time difference.[3] This shows why this nukewar was started.

2007-03-08 03:14:07    TV-XVID  Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-XOR
2007-03-08 03:14:14    TV-XVID  Crossing.Jordan.S06E07.HDTV.XviD-NoTV

ZoNeNET, EthNet and oneNET confirmed the precedent to leave both releases unnuked when groups pre within the same second.

The.Game.S06E18.HDTV.x264-ASAP 
  NUKE   dupe.EVOLVE.2013-08-21/ZoNeNET
  UNNUKE fine_pred.same.second.so.both.rls.are.fine/ZoNeNET
The.Walking.Dead.S04E12.PROPER.HDTV.x264-2HD
  NUKE   dupe.KILLERS.2014-03-03/ZoNeNET
  UNNUKE fine_both.pred.within.one.second.of.each.other_basis.has.been.to.leave.both.alone_
         see.zonenets.unnuke.on.The.Game.S06E18.HDTV.x264-ASAP/EthNet
  NUKE   dupe.KILLERS.2014-03-03_KILLERS.won.the.proper/ZoNeNET
  UNNUKE fine_groups.pred.within.the.same.second_precedent.is.to.leave.both.unnuked/oneNET

Another example is the nukewar about the TDRS2K10 ruleset.[12][13] The name between the square brackets is the nuke network where the nuke originates from. Each of those networks in this example was also a council member network.[8]

Nuked on 2009-11-14 15:15:09 [LocalNet]
    crap_signing.grps.are.crap_for.small.changes.create.a.adendum
Unnuked on 2009-11-14 15:20:56 [oneNET]
    this.ruleset.is.real.and.legit.leave.it.alone
Nuked on 2009-11-14 20:51:10 [Nuclear]
    signing.grps.are.crap_for.small.changes.create.an.adendum.or.rebuttal.to.tdrs2k9_invalid.ruleset
Unnuked on 2009-11-14 20:52:23 [LocalNet]
    invalid.nuke_nukenets.do.not.have.the.authority.to.invalidate.rulesets_such.things.are.left.to.section.groups.and.leaders
Nuked on 2009-11-14 20:52:25 [Nuclear]
    signing.grps.are.crap_for.small.changes.create.an.adendum.or.rebuttal.to.tdrs2k9_invalid.ruleset
Unnuked on 2009-11-14 20:52:26 [LocalNet]
    invalid.nuke_nukenets.do.not.have.the.authority.to.invalidate.rulesets_such.things.are.left.to.section.groups.and.leaders
Nuked on 2009-11-14 21:23:31 [Nuclear]
    no.leading.groups.signed_valid.nuke_2k5.was.rewritten.with.2k9.inserts_release.a.rebuttal.or.addendum
Unnuked on 2009-11-14 21:55:04 [LocalNet]
    invalid.nuke_nukenets.do.not.have.the.authority.to.invalidate.rulesets_such.things.are.left.to.section.groups.and.leaders
    _it.is.not.your.duty.to.decide.which.groups.are.good.enough

Examples

Examples of content that could be "nuked" include non-working software, non-working cracks, videos with out-of-sync audio, watermarked videos, or music recordings with excessive "skips". The reason for a nuke is based on violations of the standards that must be followed.

Pre network

Pre network (aka Nukenet) is a collection of databases which share information about releases among the members of the network. There are approximately 20 different pre networks.[14][15] Peers can be linked to more than one network. Linking to other network provides information which isn't available on peers local pre network. Such information can be .sfv, .m3u, .jpg, .diz or .nfo files.[16]

Pre database

Each release that gets released will result as a record in a pre-database.[17] This record will at least contain the time the release was released and the release name (the name of the folder that contains the files of the release).[18] The size and nature of the release are often provided too.[19] Nukes are linked with their release in these databases when a nuke is issued. To check if a release is nuked, a scener uses an IRC channel to query the database by typing commands. These IRC channels are called pre channels and are often not accessible for the general public.[20] The database is updated automatically through spidering topsites or by catching pre-release announcements from site channels.[18] The purpose of these different worldwide and mirrored pre databases is to check for fakes and that for example a music album or movie isn't pred more than once and thus reducing traffic.[19]

List of public predb websites

There are now several public websites and IRC channels that list the contents of pre-databases. Most of them are regularly updated and show nuke reasons next to their release. Some of these are regularly down or very slow when searching. Some of them show the server time.

Pre channel

A pre channel is an IRC channel in which a prebot announces new warez (pre) releases in real time. Pre channels are generally provided as a convenience to members of the scene, often in conjunction with a topsite. Pre channels are typically private.

Advantages:

Disadvantages:

List of public IRC pre channels

Prebot

A prebot is commonly known as an automated script in IRC channels that announces new releases and can let users query its database to view past warez release dates and nukes, among other things.[25] Another kind of prebot was adopted in 2000 due to the increased competition among release groups. This prebot automatically distributed new releases to affiliated topsites of a group to release faster and more efficiently. This solved geographical and time zone related issues.[26]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "TV release rules v1.5". 2002-11-16. A release is considered as a NUKE, if: It's a DUPE. It has technical issues. Wrong or no source/cap information is specified in the .nfo.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Craig, Paul; Ron, Mark (April 2005). "Chapter 5: The Release". In Burnett, Mark. Software Piracy Exposed - Secrets from the Dark Side Revealed. Publisher: Andrew Williams, Page Layout and Art: Patricia Lupien, Acquisitions Editor: Jaime Quigley, Copy Editor: Judy Eby, Technical Editor: Mark Burnett, Indexer: Nara Wood, Cover Designer: Michael Kavish. United States of America: Syngress Publishing. pp. 96–102. doi:10.1016/B978-193226698-6/50030-1. ISBN 1-932266-98-4. Lay summary. Ironically, pirates who steal from other pirates will have their own releases nuked. Honor among thieves; pirates do not steal from other pirates.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1
  4. ↑ Basamanowicz, J.; Bouchard, M. (2011). "Overcoming the Warez Paradox: Online Piracy Groups and Situational Crime Prevention". Policy & Internet 3 (2): 79. doi:10.2202/1944-2866.1125. "When a group releases content which is defective, improperly cracked, or which does not conform to scene specifications, it will be deleted from the scene in a process referred to as being "nuked" (TGSC Editor 2010). This entails removal from one or all sites in the scene: site operators will have their time and space wasted, couriers who uploaded the content will lose site credits and valuable time, and end users who downloaded the content will have wasted their download credits and time on useless content. Groups that release content that is continually nuked may be banned from uploading content to particular sites. To avoid this, groups test their releases rigorously to ensure quality (McCandless 1997)."
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Funniest nuke reasons ever". FileNetworks. 2009-05-12. Archived from the original on 2011-07-08.
  6. ↑ "Basic nuke channel rules". SceneRules. Archived from the original on 2012-05-09.
  7. ↑ "oneNET nuke net rules". 2008-04-18. Archived from the original on 2010-02-25.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 "The.2008.Nuke.Ruleset-NukeCouncil". SceneRules. 2008-11-08.
  9. ↑ Martin (2007-11-01). "Hellgate London: nukewar between ViTALiTY and FLT". RlsLog.net. Archived from the original on 2011-07-21.
  10. ↑ "Crossing Jordan: nukewar between NoTV and XOR". Doopes.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-10.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "OrlyDB.com search result". OrlyDB.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-15. Site name is based on the O RLY? Internet phenomenon.
  12. ↑ "THE.2010.DVDR.RELEASING.STANDARDS-TDRS2K10 nukes".
  13. ↑ "Scene DVDR Releasing Standards 2010 (TDRS2K10)". FileNetworks. Archived from the original on 2011-07-08.
  14. ↑ "Incomplete list of Nukenets". Archived from the original on 2010-09-19.
  15. ↑ "Network statistics". PreDB.in. 2011-09-18. Archived from the original on 2012-11-05.
  16. ↑ "DB stats". Layer13.it.cx.
  17. ↑ enigmax (2007-08-11). "27 Years of Warez Scene Release Info Leaked in Giant Database". Archived from the original on 2010-02-03.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "The scene / topsite system". Archived from the original on 2007-01-22.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "NfoKingz.org: Admins im Interview" [NfoKingz.org: Admins interview]. Gulli.com (in German). 2009-05-15.
  20. ↑ "TRAC3.ME – Public PreDB, Scene Release Index and Torrent Tracer". 2010-02-25. Archived from the original on 2011-07-08. Trace.M3 maintains a pre database that indexes hundreds of scene and p2p releases daily. However, T.ME’s PreDB differs from those run by pure sceners – first of all it’s publicly accessibly by anyone.
  21. ↑ enigmax. "Which Torrent Sites Get Releases The Fastest (and why it’s not a secret)". TorrentFreak. Archived from the original on 2011-01-08. Retrieved 2010-11-06.
  22. ↑ Whitson, Gordon. "Corrupt-Net Shows You Which Torrent Trackers Get New Releases First". LifeHacker. Archived from the original on 2010-11-24. Retrieved 2010-11-07.
  23. ↑ enigmax (2007-05-18). "TorrentFreak - Interview with a scene insider". TorrentFreak. Archived from the original on 2010-07-07. Scener mentions bullshit nukes.
  24. ↑ Martin (2008-08-25). "Public IRC PRE Channel and How to use it". RlsLog.net. Archived from the original on 2010-06-18.
  25. ↑ https://github.com/haaja/prebot
  26. ↑ Huizing, Ard; van der Wal, Jan A. (2014-10-06). "Explaining the rise and fall of the Warez MP3 scene: An empirical account from the inside". First Monday 19 (10). doi:10.5210/fm.v19i10.5546. ISSN 1396-0466.

External links