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I need to download a very old publicly-released SDK from about 15 years ago. The file is no longer available from the company that wrote it since the company was bought out and does not exist anymore. The file is big enough or obscure enough that it is not available on any web site I could find. Therefore, I need to use a file sharing repository to find this file and download it.

The old file sharing systems like Gopher seem to no longer exist and have been replaced apparently by "bittorrent", so I was like, Ok, I will try this BitTorrent thing. Unfortunately, I have not been able to get it to work.

I installed the "micro torrent" client, but it just sits there and does nothing. There is no "search" function that I could find on the interface. There is no help system for the software. The "help" button just redirects the user to their web site. When I go to micro torrents web site there is no user manual or operating guide or quick start manual, just a brief set of "frequently asked questions", none of which describe how to get started with the software.

How can I find out how to operate this software so I can download the file I need?

(Note: I do not want to use BitTorrent web sites because they require registrations, etc, so please do suggest going to a web site. I want to understand how to operate a BitTorrent desktop client.)

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    Bittorrent isn't a magical "everything is stored here" and you can't just search the internet of people to see what files they have, you need either a .torrent file for what you want to download or a magnet link for it. You need to go to a torrent tracker site. You can only download things people have specifically shared and that means looking through the websites. All the client does is take a torrent file from that website and can download the related file.
    – Mokubai
    Apr 22, 2017 at 8:28
  • Downvotes with no explanation violate SE guidelines. Apr 22, 2017 at 8:32
  • Hover your mouse over the downvote arrow and you will see the explanation most people will use: "This question does not show any research effort; it is unclear or not useful" Have you researched how to use a bittorrent client (in general) or googled "How does bittorrent work?"
    – Mokubai
    Apr 22, 2017 at 8:40
  • @Mokubai Uh, not only did I research how to use micro torrent, I even explained what I did IN MY QUESTION and how I went to micro torrent's web site looking for manuals and help. I mean what more do I need to do? I searched extensively on the wikipedia article on bittorrent WHICH I LINKED IN MY QUESTION and then went on to describe the steps I took to try to figure out how to use the software. Seriously, how much more detailed do I have to be to receive the glorious designation of "well-researched"? Apr 22, 2017 at 9:24
  • Try reading the help. "none of which describe how to get started with the software". Clearly you didn't look hard enough Downloading With BitTorrent
    – DavidPostill
    Apr 22, 2017 at 9:36

1 Answer 1

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There's no Central directory like oldschool file sharing. You'd need to find a source on the web first.

There's three elements you need for a torrent download - a client (You have one - but I prefer picotorrent - the non windows store version is free or qbittorrent for something with more features).They all work mostly identically.

You need a torrent file or a magnet link - There's a few sites of dubious legality (and copyright infringement is against the TOS) - but I use it to download linuxlivecds. Lets say you want to download a copy of ubuntu and want to use a torrent - this page has a selection of .torrent files (a magnet link does the same thing). A torrent file basically tells you "these trackers track this torrent, and you need these files, and these are the checksums). You need to find a torrent file of your SDK from some source and load that torrent file into your torrent client.Installed correctly, you just need to download and open it with your torrent client.

Once that's done, your download should start - though you can only really download what other people have, so a successful torrent download relies on seeds.

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  • Ok, so how do I find the locational information for my file? I need to do a search somehow. Apr 22, 2017 at 8:34
  • @TylerDurden you go to a bittorrent tracker website.
    – Mokubai
    Apr 22, 2017 at 8:41
  • @TylerDurden You use google for that. Either you look for the file you want and find a torrent file (or magnet link), then you use a client to download the file. Or you use google to find search engines for torrents - the most infamous one was once en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pirate_Bay but the landscape is way more fractured nowadays.
    – Peter
    Apr 22, 2017 at 9:00
  • @Peter I did try that and "found" the file I need, but the problem is that the web site did not reveal the torrent file, only that it had it. They wanted me to have Javascript enabled, cookies on, register for their web site and become a member, etc etc. So, just doing a web search is not helping because the searches are not returning .torrents, they are returning essentially ads and come ons to join their services. I want a search mechanism that I can use without having to join it. Apr 22, 2017 at 9:29
  • A lot of those sites are scammy and claim they have whatever you're looking for when they don't. Torrents are "fun" like that.
    – Journeyman Geek
    Apr 22, 2017 at 9:37

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