How to Use BitTorrent on a Mac

BitTorrent is a way to share files among peer computers. To download, you need to install a BitTorrent client such as BitTorrent or Transmission. Unlike downloading files from a server, the more people that have downloaded a torrent the better because BitTorrent breaks up the work among the peers to make download time faster. This tutorial will discuss how to use a BitTorrent client called BitTorrent for Mac. Other BitTorrent clients work in similar ways.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Computer
• High-speed Internet connection

Downloading Torrents

1. 
   Download BitTorrent client

   Download BitTorrent for Mac. You can download BitTorrent from www.BitTorrent.com. Double click on the .dmg file to extract the files and install your BitTorrent client.

2. 
   Set your upload and download speed.

   Determine what your upload and download speeds are. Open BitTorrent and click on "BiTorrent">"Preferences..." Then, Click on the "Networks" tab and set your upload and download speed.

3. 
   Download a torrent file

   Download a torrent file. A number of websites (isohunt.com, mininova.com, piratesbay.com) host torrent file sharing. Review the website's policies before you download from their site since some websites require you to upload files in exchange.

4. 
   Click on the "Add Torrent File" button.

   In the BitTorrent menu, click on "Add Torrent File" (the green plus sign in the upper left corner). Click "Browse" and locate the torrent file that you downloaded. Then, click "Open." Your torrent will begin to download.

Uploading Torrents

5. Create a folder that can contain all of your torrent files. Because the websites that you upload your files to will refer to this folder, you should not change any of the properties of this folder.

6. Click on "File">"Make New Torrent". Then, click on "Choose File..." if you are adding a single file or "Choose folder..." if you are adding a folder. Browse to the file or folder you want to upload.

7. 
   Make a torrent dialog box

   Fill in the title, comments, and tracker for this torrent. Then, click "Publish" and BitTorrent will save the torrent file or folder.

8. If you are ready to begin seeding (allowing others to download your file) click "seed." In order for others to view your torrent, you will need to upload your seeded file to one of the torrent websites.

Tips & Warnings

• BitTorrent for Mac seems to be slower than other BitTorrent clients such as Transmission.
• Downloading from a third party may contain viruses that could harm your computer. Some of the content you download could infringe on copyright laws.

Resources

• This site has links and news for torrent information.
• A useful torrent tracker site
• Another useful tutorial on BitTorrent