bittorrent
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D-Link updates DNS-323 NAS unit with BitTorrent client
D-Link's DNS-323 is already a pretty capable unit with FTP, UPnP AV, iTunes, and print server support, but it's getting even more flexible today with the addition of an official BitTorrent client that'll run independently of your computer. It's certainly not the first NAS we've seen to include everyone's fave copyright, ah, re-appropriation app, but it's certainly one of the cheapest -- you can snag it for under $200 from most retailers.[Via Crowdedbrain]
QNAP adds new BitTorrent engine to NAS family, launches TS-409U
We're still struggling to see if this is just a PR push or if QNAP is really introducing something new here, but whatever the case, it's using Computex to announce a "new" P2P download engine in cooperation with BitTorrent. Said engine will be embedded within its TS-109 II, TS-209 II, and TS-409, and it should enhance download performance as well as add support for DHT / TCP / UDP tracker protocols. Beyond all that, the firm is kicking out an all new Turbo NAS: the 1U rack-mountable US-409U. The unit is based on a Linux-embedded system and includes a 500MHz SoC CPU, 512MB of DDR2 RAM, four hot-swappable bays, online RAID capacity expansion and RAID 0/1/5/6/5+spare disk redundancy support. Regrettably, QNAP didn't pass along any information in regard to pricing / availability.Read - QNAP TS-409U Turbo NASRead - QNAP launches BitTorrent certified NAS family
Verismo Networks' PoD beams all sorts of web video to your TV
This whole "it's web video, on your TV!" space is getting crowded fast, but we'd say there's certainly room from this new "PoD" device from Verismo Networks. Not content to merely concentrate on one form of content, the PoD can handle content from YouTube, BitTorrent, vTap, Amazon Unbox, CinemaNow, you name it. It's a pretty simple box, with an Ethernet plug, a couple of USB ports for flash storage, some sort of wireless (we're guessing WiFi), and outputs for S-Video or HDMI, up to HD resolutions. It'll sell later this summer for $99, with a bit of a marketing push from YouTube, so this probably won't be the last you hear of PoD.
Transmission 1.2 released
If you're a fan of the ever so popular BitTorrent client, Transmission, then you might like to hear that a new version was just released. According to the release notes some of the fixes included: You can now reset global statistics Support of multitracker torrents has been improved UPnP port mapping now faster on startup Ability to IP block using the Bluetack Level1 blocklist Dock badge images have been updated The new dock badges provide greater readability of the transfer in progress. Transmission is freeware and can be downloaded from their website.
Planex DigiJuke NAS snags YouTube and BitTorrent video -- jams it down the Wii, Xbox 360, iPod... and throat of MPAA
Here it is copyright bandits, the single biggest reason (besides silicone) to make a Hollywood studio notice you: the MZK-NAS02SG1T network attached storage device from Planex. The main selling point behind the ¥54,799 (about $524) 1TB Gigabit Ethernet block is the claim to "universal access" for all your devices. That little trick comes courtesy of its DigiJuke browser for searching and tagging the BitTorrent and YouTube content you want downloaded in the appropriate PSP and iPod (MPEG-4), Wii (FLV), or TV (MPEG-2) format for in-home or on-the-go viewing. The NAS also streams audio and video to your iTunes laptops or desktops, DLNA TV, Xbox 360, or other compliant device in the home. A front-facing USB 2.0 jack offers one-touch dubbing of USB sticks while a second around back offers ready storage expansion. It ships with a pair of 3.5-inch 500GB drive which you can swap out for higher capacity spinners at a later date. That is if the studios don't shut you down first.[Via Impress]
QNAP delivers BitTorrent-lovin' TS-109 Pro II and TS-209 Pro II NAS drives
QNAP's TS-109 / TS-209 NAS drives weren't anything to sneeze at, but the company's looking to improve overall responsiveness and speed up BitTorrent download performance with a pair of successors. The one-bay TS-109 Pro II and two-bay TS-209 Pro II both include a potent 500MHz Marvell processor and 256MB of DDR2 RAM, which is double the memory stuffed within the prior iterations. You'll also find a new and improved BT engine that promises "the [same] level of P2P download speed as PC-based BT downloads," built-in Joomla! CMS 1.5.1, scheduled backup / logging applications, DivX-friendly TwonkyMedia v4.4.4 and support for DLNA / NFS / SMB multimedia sharing. Sorry, no pricing deets to share at the moment.
GTA IV pirates recommend you 'go and buy this one'
Gasp! Pirated Grand Theft Auto IV game data has begun popping up on BitTorrent sites today. One alleged rip (6.32 GB) was compiled by a group known as "iCON" and apparently stripped from a PAL-region, Xbox 360 disc. A description of the file warns that the data is not region free and teases, "sorry bushlovers!" (Hey, that's "Mr. President George Dubya Bush lovers" to you, ya stinkin' pi-rats!).An additional warning recommends would-be players stay off of Xbox Live lest "dirty little spies" catch them and ban their accounts. Ironically, at the end of the file description, the thievery and paranoia gives way to a glowing endorsement: "and guys, seriously, go and buy this one! R* deserves it..." How's that for a back-of-the-box quote![Note: We've chosen not to link to any torrent sites hosting the GTA IV tracker -- just take our word for it whydontya!]
Comcast backs off BitTorrent, will continue to manage internet traffic
Although Comcast has been beating around the proverbial bush about its data-meddling ways, it seems the pressure from the recent FCC investigation efforts have forced it to play nice. Reportedly, the firm is getting set to (begrudgingly, we presume) announce that it will "stop targeting BitTorrent on the internet." More specifically, the cable company will purportedly "boost broadband capacity" in order to make things speedier all around, but details on this tidbit were unsurprisingly absent. Nevertheless, BitTorrent has also agreed to make its software "more efficient," but those hoping that Comcast would leave well enough alone are in for even more disappointment. The outfit still plans on managing traffic on the 'net (standard practice, we know), but Tony Werner, executive VP and CTO, noted that it was "working hard on a different approach that is protocol-agnostic during peak periods."[Thanks, Mike and Kenneth]
CBC torrenting Canada's Next Great Prime Minister, DRM-free
Everyone knows you can find torrents from plenty of TV shows on the internet, but it's usually not seeded by the broadcaster. Taking a page out of mariposaHD's book, the CBC is putting a "high quality" DRM-free copy of Canada's Next Great Prime Minister online (no wonder they think HDTV has no business model) after it airs March 23. No idea yet if this is a one time thing or the start of a trend, but we applaud the Canadians for one-upping Her podcasting Majesty in getting with digital distribution. Hopefully, the reasoning behind selecting political leaders soliciting ideas for a better country via a reality TV show (and why the U.S. isn't), will also be answered.[Thanks, Sukhminder]
Myka sneaks BitTorrent into the living room
OK, perhaps not so sneaky, there's a nice big BitTorrent logo right up front, but Myka seems to be quite the end-to-end solution for getting those torrents up on the big screen. The box hooks up to the internet via LAN or WiFi, includes a 80GB, 160GB or a 500GB drive for storage and runs a torrent client on Linux. Outputs include HDMI, composite, S-Video and SPDIF, and codec support is substantial. You can add storage via USB, and pull video off your computer if you're not in a downloading mood. Prices range from $299 to $459. Let's keep it legal out there, kids![Thanks, ARZ]
Verizon gloms onto "P4P," doubles up on the competition
We're guessing we're not the only one to have never heard of P4P before now, but there's probably a good reason for that: it doesn't exist yet. See, P4P is designed to speed up peer-to-peer file transfers and alleviate network strain by using information about network conditions and network topology in order to increase routing efficiency -- more bits, less work. The problem is that you're going to need service provider cooperation to pull that off (P4P stands for Proactive network Provider Participation for P2P) and now Verizon has signed on to take the concept to the next level. What's not clear yet is whether only specific, commercial P2P apps will be able to benefit from this tech, so that carriers can make sure everything is on the up and up, but with tested performance improvements as high as 600 percent, we sure hope this is coming soon to a torrent client near you.[Thanks, Ehren]
Vista SP1 riding the torrents, breaking Ballmer's heart
For those of you who simply can't wait one more second to get your hands on one of the more hyped updates in recent memory, Vista SP1, you're in luck. According to a report (and our BitTorrent client, chugging along in the background), the new service pack has been leaked, then promptly made available for your forbidden downloading pleasure. Apparently, the full install doesn't provide you with an upgrade option, so make sure you backup necessary files (like those pictures of Mom, apple pie, etc.). PC World offers a highly detailed report on how many seeders and / or leechers were available at the time its article was written, but we'll spare you. Suffice to say, it's there for the taking.
Show floor video: Netgear ReadyNAS stores and plays it all
Netgear's ReadyNAS is a NAS, yes, but it comes pre-configured with an iTunes server, bittorent, wireless disk and printer support and more. Quite the plug-and-play darling, Netgear was kind enough to create some Mac-friendly tools to manage the thing (it's got a Widget!). You can configure the thing to your heart's delight , which makes it that much more versatile. The ReadyNAS line was previously sold by Infrant prior to the Netgear acquisition, so the products are distinct from Netgear's earlier NAS products. There are several flavors of ReadyNAS: a rackmount server for business folk, the Duo series, and the terribly gorgeous NV+ series -- Netgear also sells a cute entry-level NAS called Storage Central. The sweet spot for most people will likely be the Duo or NV+, as the Storage Central doesn't have the extensive RAID tools every other model does (and as noted by our commenters, the older/cheaper devices can't be administered from Mac OS X).Prices for the NV+ with a whopping 4TB of X-RAID storage ran from roughly $2,000 to $3,000. By comparison, the old Storage Central lines can be found online for around $70 (hard drive not included, $90 from Netgear), but the new line, Storage Central Turbo, was floating close to the MSRP of $200 (shows $189.99 on the Netgear store).Check out the demo with Scott after the jump.
Transmission shifts into 1st gear
Transmission, long available in beta form, is one of my favorite torrent clients. BitTorrent, as you probably know, is a way to transfer or share files over the internet, for free, using a 'swarm' model to speed files along. Transmission makes the downloading of those files quite stunning, with its simplicity and ease of use. Transmission's beautiful user interface goes nicely with Leopard, as it has been redesigned; not to mention, it's 100% Leopard compatible. Some of the new updates in version 1.0 include: Group labeling, filtering, and sorting Leopard: Time Machine will ignore incomplete downloads Display remaining time for seeding transfers Ability to set global and per-torrent number of connections Overall, this looks like a very nice release. It is available right now, for free, from the Transmission website.
Starting bittorrent downloads remotely from the iPhone
I like Mac OS X Hints a lot, although I will admit that most of the hints they post just aren't for me-- either they're for things that I just don't have a need to do, or they're for things I already figured out a solution for on my own. But lately, I've been trying to figure out if there was a way to start up bittorrent downloads from my iPhone (we've already been able to control clients remotely, but getting the torrent file was the hard part). And so I was ecstatic to see this tip from Whosawhatsis-- with just a little tweaking, you can install a bookmarklet on the iPhone and a script on a PHP server that will send a URL from the iPhone to the server, and then download that URL directly into a folder that a bittorrent client (Transmission is used in the example) will monitor to download the torrent.Pretty slick. Whosa runs this on a separate server, but while I'd have to read up on exactly how to do it (or maybe our commenters could jump in with suggestions), I'm sure that it wouldn't be too hard to enable a Mac to run a PHP script when asked remotely. Get that running, make the necessary modifications in Who's script, and bingo, you should be able to click the bookmark and then the link on your iPhone, and have the torrent file show up in your Mac, ready for a bittorrent client to grab it immediately.
Open beta for Zu Online starts tonight
If you're looking for a game with a Chinese-wuxia-esque twist, you'll be interested to know that Zu Online will enter its open beta testing phase this evening at 8:00 PM EST. Poke around the official website for the client download (which can even be acquired via BitTorrent, if that's your sort of thing!) and for instructions for the actual launch when it comes. All the old alpha accounts are getting wiped just prior to the beginning of the new phase, so the servers will be a level playing field for new players. If you're not familiar with the game: it's a Kung Fu MMO which features player flight and group-oriented story quests as major selling points. It also has a really neat, stylized cell-shaded look -- something that when you think about it seems like a really good match for the genre.Animated, story-driven Wire Fu -- how can you possibly go wrong with that?
EFF claims that Comcast is still meddling with data
According to a report released by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), Comcast has yet to relinquish its data discriminating habits, and users attempting to share content via P2P could still face slowdowns and unexpected delays. Of course, Comcast's Charlie Douglas proclaimed that the firm "does not, has not, and will not block any web site or online application, including peer-to-peer services," but followed up by stating that it did engage in "reasonable network management to serve all of its customers with a good internet experience." The EFF, however, saw things differently. During its own tests, it was reportedly able to confirm conclusions drawn earlier this year by the AP, and it also exclaimed that Comcast was "essentially deploying against its own customers techniques more typically used by malicious hackers." Pretty strong words, to say the least, but we're curious to know if the continued Comcast bashing is indeed legitimate. So, dear readers / Comcast users, are you still (or have you ever, for that matter) experiencing sketchy P2P performance, or is this all just one overblown mess?
Coalition urges FCC to halt Comcast's data tampering
Just a fortnight after the AP called Comcast out for tampering with some users' ability to swap files over P2P networks, a coalition has formally asked the FCC to stop the operator from interfering with such activity. The petition reportedly asks the Commission to "immediately declare that Comcast is violating the FCC's policy," and it's being supported by the Consumer Federation of America, Consumers Union, Media Access Project and professors at the internet practices of the Yale, Harvard and Stanford law schools (among others). Separately, Free Press and Public Knowledge are filing a complaint that asks the FCC to demand a "forfeiture from Comcast of $195,000 per affected subscriber." It's also said that this will be the "first real test of the FCC's stance on Net Neutrality," but there's no telling how long the Commission will wait before acting on the filings.
Transmission .90 released
Transmission - the open source, lightweight BitTorrent client that is the closest alternative to uTorrent that us Mac users can get - has just released version .90.New features added in this update include: Encryption support (finally!), with an option to ignore unencrypted peers The ability to ban peers that send too much bad data Reporting only downloaded and verified good data to the tracker Improved BitTorrent compliance and more For OS X users, specific updates include:A per-torrent action menu, optimizations to decrease memory usage, and general changes/updates to the interface to make managing files easier and to provide users with more options.Note: Users upgrading from version .72 or earlier will lose any data from uncompleted downloads, so please beware and either move your torrents to another program or finish downloads before installing the upgrade.[via Digg]
Comcast fesses up to traffic delays
Following AP reports published last week that painted Comcast in a less-than-positive light for apparently stifling BitTorrent uploads, the company has come clean (somewhat, that is). Reportedly, the firm did admit to "delaying" some subscriber internet traffic, but stated that any hiccups were "temporary and intended to improve surfing for other users." More specifically, Mitch Bowling, senior vice president of Comcast Online Services, was quoted as saying that Comcast utilized "several network management technologies that, when necessary, enabled it to delay -- not block -- some peer-to-peer traffic," but that doesn't exactly jive with the AP's findings. Nevertheless, Mr. Bowling also stated that the problem was "unintentional and due to a software bug [saywha?] that had been fixed." So with that being said, are any of the afflicted users out there still seeing issues, or has all this negative attention really resulted in a change of heart?
