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I know about BitTorrent, but I have never used it since it tends to be mostly used for illegal download of movies and software. Typically whenever I see a legitimate use for it (Linux distributions) there is also a regular download option so I haven't had the need for a client until today.

There is a large (500 MB) file I want to download that appears to only be accessible via BitTorrent.

For a one-time use, is there an online resource that converts the torrent to a normal HTTP no-special-client-software download?

If not, what is an easy to use and light client to install/uninstall on Windows XP for a one-time use?

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Because of the nature of bittorent you wouldn't be able to find a http alternative to using a client. – MrStatic Mar 11 '10 at 21:37
I was just guessing/wishing that maybe a host with the seed would also allow it to be http downloaded, obviously with the user not being able to take advantage of multiple sources as in regular torrents. – greye Mar 11 '10 at 23:22
"since it tends to be mostly used for illegal download of movies and software". This sentence always irks me, in the same way as cars are "used for drive bys". Currently pirates like to use torrents, but that doesn't have to mean torrents are for pirates. I agree torrents are in the news alot, but it gets such a bad press over and above anything it deserves. – Sirex Jan 20 '11 at 18:51
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6 Answers

up vote 8 down vote

μTorrent would be a good option. Free Download Manager is a download manager with BitTorrent support, you can't go wrong with either of them.

Remember that most BitTorrent clients might need to use ports for incoming connections, and if your router doesn't support UPnP you might have to do it manually.

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For windows I've found that uTorrent (utorrent.com) tends to have the least problems, and it's easiest to use. – Michael Kohne Mar 11 '10 at 21:13
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uTorrent allows for just stand-alone usage. So you won't even have to install it if you don't wish to. – MrStatic Mar 11 '10 at 21:36
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up vote 2 down vote accepted

See this post explaining how to download any torrent through your browser (using the site http://torrentrelay.com/). One of their suggested services is torrent relay.

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torrentrelay.com seems to be defunct now. – Peter Mortensen Jan 20 '11 at 18:22
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up vote 1 down vote

What browser do you use? Opera comes with built-in client for BitTorrent and Firefox has some BitTorrent plug-ins. I don't know how about Chrome though.

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Firefox. Any recommendation? – greye Mar 11 '10 at 23:26
Alas, I don't use Firefox, so I have no personal experience with any such plug-in. FireTorrent seems quite well rated though. – sYnfo Mar 19 '10 at 17:23
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up vote 1 down vote

Yes, there is an online way to convert a torrent to HTTP downlodable.

You can use the ImageShack Torrent Drive.

Downloading the file(s) pointed in the torrent can started and can run unattended. When it is finished download can be done using a normal HTTP transfer.

The ImageShack torrent download service is free.

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I tried this and it requires a subscription – greye Mar 12 '10 at 2:02
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up vote 1 down vote

Although it is true that torrent is used mostly for illegal downloads. There is nothing in the technology that makes it only valuable for those activities.

Torrent is based on peer-to-peer sharing technology. Peer 2 peer is used in different applications like Skype.

I too recomend uTorrent It shouldn't give you any problem.

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matter of fact torrent technology was the basis for the formation of services like Skype -- Nope. You seem to be confusing Peer-to-Peer (P2P) as synonymous with BitTorrent. – mctylr Mar 12 '10 at 0:53
Many Games for instance world of warcraft update their game clients via bit torrent. – Xiuhtecuhtli Jan 20 '11 at 18:13
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up vote 0 down vote

I would go with the original

http://www.bittorrent.com/

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