An Avalanche, Crushing M$

[AgentOrange]

If I where a “software patent” or IP owner like Microsoft I’d be pretty upset about BitTorrent as well. Microsoft has said that piracy was its greatest enemy. Trying desperately to shut down tracker databases and trackers I think is the best option. but thats like trying to pee on a forest fire. With BitTorrent’s new Distributed Hash Table(Supproted by Azrueus and the beta official BT client), it makes stopping bi torrent extreamly diffuclt.

So what does Microsoft do? Try and compete with a p2p application, with a network called Avalanche? Have they gone mad? There is all this talk of Avalanche being so superior to BT:
http://www.theregister.com/2005/06/1...ing_microsoft/

I have to agree with the creator of BT that Avalanche is vapor ware. (http://www.livejournal.com/users/bramcohen/20140.html) But I hope to god I am wrong. Why you ask? I would love for a better file sharing protocol! So what if this is designed for “legal” files. If it is better its just going to get ripped off! Look at Divx, its just a rip of Microsoft’s compressed video format. The exact same thing is going to happen here. (new version 6 of divx is amazing, check it out)

Its not like development on BT has stopped either, new sharing algorithms come out with every release, the release of avalanche is just going to fuel that.

So good old competitive Microsoft trying to crush its adversaries is just going to shoot its self in the foot. You can’t stop p2p. You can try, but the internet conforms to a least common denominator of the legal system (Read: chaos). I mean if china doesn’t have intellectual property rights, then you can host tracker databases there. With networks like Tor, i2p and Freenet you can’t stop the flow of information. I’m not quite sure how trying to improve upon it is going to stop it… you tell me.

[Auggie2k]

All good points. I mean if microsoft are successful with this new network, you just know it WILL be manipulated and used for illegal files! On a side note, legal files are crap, they're never interesting. Remember the gold files or whatever you could get in kazaa?

[crestfallen]

Legal files are not crap. I have a linux box, and I do not consider Linux ISOs to be useless and boring. As well, there is some sweet stuff that is in the public domain and is legal to download.

Why don't you share with us some of these "new sharing algorithms" that come out with every release of the BT client.

[Auggie2k]

Ok, I didn't exlain enough! Here's a clearer, better answer.... illegal files are better that legal files!

[AgentOrange]

Downloading legal stuff like linux ISO's is awesome with BitTorrent. One thing to note is that M$'s new protocol will only run on Windows(I only use linux) and it can not be used to distribute OpenSourceSoftware (OSS). Which was one of the major reasons why BitTorrent was made...

I'm sure Microsoft would like to bully BitTorrent like it has so many others (remember Netscape anyone?) But Microsoft just doesn't get it.

[Afn]

If I where a “software patent” or IP owner like Microsoft I’d be pretty upset about BitTorrent as well. Microsoft has said that piracy was its greatest enemy. Trying desperately to shut down tracker databases and trackers I think is the best option. but thats like trying to pee on a forest fire. With BitTorrent’s new Distributed Hash Table(Supproted by Azrueus and the beta official BT client), it makes stopping bi torrent extreamly diffuclt.

So what does Microsoft do? Try and compete with a p2p application, with a network called Avalanche? Have they gone mad? There is all this talk of Avalanche being so superior to BT:
http://www.theregister.com/2005/06/1...ing_microsoft/

I have to agree with the creator of BT that Avalanche is vapor ware. (http://www.livejournal.com/users/bramcohen/20140.html) But I hope to god I am wrong. Why you ask? I would love for a better file sharing protocol! So what if this is designed for “legal” files. If it is better its just going to get ripped off! Look at Divx, its just a rip of Microsoft’s compressed video format. The exact same thing is going to happen here. (new version 6 of divx is amazing, check it out)

Its not like development on BT has stopped either, new sharing algorithms come out with every release, the release of avalanche is just going to fuel that.

So good old competitive Microsoft trying to crush its adversaries is just going to shoot its self in the foot. You can’t stop p2p. You can try, but the internet conforms to a least common denominator of the legal system (Read: chaos). I mean if china doesn’t have intellectual property rights, then you can host tracker databases there. With networks like Tor, i2p and Freenet you can’t stop the flow of information. I’m not quite sure how trying to improve upon it is going to stop it… you tell me.

Information has a half-life, costly to produce and in many cases has limited return. Serial numbers and anti-copying measures on products are designed to increase sales.

I hope intellectual property fails. It will send a message that you need to create products open and free. If you want to make money selling software and not working a dedicated position at a fry machine, sell support not the software itself. The overeducated underpaid in this crazy world will hack, clone and crack anything you produce.

BT torrent is an improved FTP, and will only get better, standardized and embedded in appications and someday the OS itself.

[crestfallen]

I don't mind paying for software. On one condition: that, after I purchase it, I am free to do with it what I please. THAT is what is wrong with copyright and IP laws right now. Fair use is nonexistant, and we have precious few friends where we need them.

[Afn]

Fair use is nonexistant, and we have precious few friends where we need them.

Some people have no friends, but that is another story. I agree fair use is no longer fair.

The good news is they can not stop 60 to 200 million citizens from civil disobedience. Copy on.