If you have never heard about magnet links before I suggest you check out What Is A Magnet Link And How Does It Differ From Torrents?. For those in a hurry: A magnet link is a hypertext link that contains information that the torrent client can use to find the data to download.

Downloaders should not experience many issues when they switch from torrents to magnet links. It may take longer before the client begins the download, but that is about it.

Another issue is that without access to the torrent file, you cannot use it in a program like Torrific which turns torrents into direct http downloads.

What most users do not know is that their torrent client will actually save a torrent file once the magnet link has been added to the client and the download has been started.

Users of the popular uTorrent client can for instance open the %appdata%\Roaming\uTorrent\ directory to find all torrent files listed in that directory. Torrents only appear here once the client has started downloading the file, and not before.

Having to start to download the files to get the torrent link is not an optimal solution, but it seems to be the only option at this point in time. Maybe someone will create a program in the future that downloads only the torrent file, for now, that’s not possible.

A far better solution is available for users of Dropbox. Dropbox, for those who do not know, is a file hosting and synchronization service. It allows users to synchronize files between multiple devices and the cloud. Dropbox users can access their files on the Dropbox website, and that access is what we will be using to send torrents to uTorrent from remote computer systems.

You need to configure Dropbox and uTorrent first before you can use the new functionality. Download and install Dropbox first. I suggest you create a torrent directory in the root Dropbox folder. This is the location where you will save the torrents into.

Open uTorrent afterwards and click on Options > Preferences. Switch to the Directories listing and locate the Automatically load .torrents from setting. Activate the option and select Dropbox’s torrent directory as the source folder.

This basically tells uTorrent to load all torrent files that are put into that folder automatically.

You can from that moment on log into Dropbox’s web interface from any computer system to save torrents into that folder. Dropbox will synchronize the torrent files with the home computer when it is online. If the PC is online right away downloads start immediately, if it is turned off, downloads will start once the computer is turned on and uTorrent is started.

You can naturally use the method with other file synchronization services that offer cloud based storage space. Dropbox is just one of the popular options.

Users of previous versions of uTorrent can check for the update under Help > Check for Updates. The update check should return that uTorrent 3.1 stable is available. A click on yes in the notification window will trigger the download and installation of the new version on the system.

The new version is not yet advertised on the main uTorrent website; The download link on the other hand leads to the download of uTorrent 3.1.

The homepage does list the new paid service uTorrent Plus prominently which we have reviewed previously here on Ghacks. It appears as if the release of uTorrent 3.1 has also triggered the release of the new service.

So what’s new in the latest version of uTorrent? The release notes lists three new major features and a handful of changes and bug fixes.

Among the new features are a built-in media player and a new device node to transfer content to connected devices such as mobile phones or gaming systems. Both features seem to be limited uTorrent Plus features. If you recall, uTorrent Plus adds a HD Media Player and converter option to the P2P software.

Fixes and changes mostly affect the program’s stability and performance.

The new client displays an ad for the uTorrent Plus service that can be hidden with a right-click and the selection to hide the advertisement. Some users have voiced concern over the addition of features that related directly to uTorrent Plus and not so much to the client’s original purpose.

These users have selected uTorrent because its lightweight, fast and stable. The addition of new program modules could seriously dampen the program’s reputation in this regard.

What’s your take on uTorrent’s latest version and uTorrent Plus?

So what’s uTorrent Plus, and how does it compare to uTorrent Free? Both programs use the same core, you could say that all features of uTorrent Free are included in uTorrent Plus.

When you look at the comparison chart, you will notice that the company lists four additional uTorrent Plus features. The exclusive features are built-in antivirus protection, a HD media player, a mobile device converter and the option to download contents remotely.

These new features come at a price; The company is asking for $24.95 for a 12-month subscription to uTorrent Plus (with six additional months for pre-orders). It is clear that the company is not targeting tech savvy users with the plus version of uTorrent, as they would not really have problems finding and running alternatives to what Plus offers.

But even inexperienced users who may benefit from the all-in-one application approach that uTorrent Plus offers may be left in bewilderment about the additional features. The program is currently in testing and that may explain the absence of information on the uTorrent website.

Questions that remain unanswered include:

• Which antivirus solution is integrated into the client. How does it compare, and how compatible is the feature with other antivirus software installed on the computer system.
• What exactly does remotely downloaded content mean?
• Which functionality is provided by Convertor?

You need to look around quite a bit to find answers to those questions. According to an Extreme Tech article the antivirus solution is provided by BitDefender. uTorrent Free users can download the Virus Guard app for their client which provides basic virus detection. The built-in antivirus solution of uTorrent Plus includes a larger database and virus removal options, which the free version does not offer.

Remotely downloaded content adds capabilities to uTorrent Remote, the web-based control panel of the software. It allows uTorrent Plus users in particular to download files remotely from the web interface. Users can log in from any computer to transfer files to that computer right from the client running uTorrent.

The convertor adds device specific conversions to uTorrent. The idea is simple. You add your mobile and external devices, like your smartphone, gaming console or hardware media player to the list of devices in uTorrent. You can then use uTorrent to transfer optimized contents to those devices.

The features that uTorrent Plus offers can make the life of uTorrent users more comfortable. Especially the ability to convert media before it is transferred to external devices from inside the software, and the ability to download uTorrent files remotely are noteworthy.

The antivirus protection on the other hand and the HD media player are additions that may not be necessary for the majority of users. It does not really make sense to use a built-in antivirus solution if system wide antivirus protection is running on the system. I personally like some of the features provided by uTorrent Plus, and do not have issues with the commercial version as long as it is not limiting the free version in any way.

What’s your take on uTorrent Plus? Let me know in the comments.

When you open the preferences in uTorrent, you will see a new DNA entry in the left menu. The preference lists a small explanation at the top:

Bittorrent DNA is a content delivery system that reduces publisher server load by using Bittorrent peer-to-peer delivery. Is is used only for content that you request.

DNA is enabled by default, at least in the latest test version of uTorrent 3.1. With DNA enabled, users may be able to download data that is powered by DNA faster. The service won’t accelerate standard torrent downloads.

It works exactly like those MMORPG downloaders that Blizzard and other companies offer. These downloaders use official servers and other users who download the data to speed up the downloading. DNA seems to be basically the same deal. Please note that you will also distribute part of the data to other users whenever you download with DNA enabled.

If you do not download data from websites or services that support DNA, you should consider disabling Bittorrent DNA in the preferences as it is of no benefit to you.

Just uncheck Enable DNA powered downloads to block Bittorrent DNA from being used by uTorrent. You may also check Alert me when DNA-powered downloads are added to uTorrent to receive notifications when downloads that make use of DNA are added to uTorrent.

Please note that DNA can also be distributed as a separate client alongside programs, games and other contents on websites. The program works in the same way but is completely independent of the Bittorrent client.

Remote is another new feature. Unlike DNA, it is disabled by default. The technology can be used to connect to the client from a web browser to manage and control the Bittorrent software remotely.

You need to supply a username and password and check the Enable uTorrent Remote Access feature. All you need to do then is to open the remote service on the uTorrent website and enter your computer name and password to remotely connect to the uTorrent client.

Hope this answers some of the questions that users may have when they encounter Bittorent DNA and uTorrent Remote for the first time.

Transmission-QT is an unofficial Open Source port of that Bittorrent client for the Microsoft Windows operating system. It is an alternative to uTorrent, and maybe the better choice for users who work with Transmission on a Mac or Linux system.

Almost as important as the ability to download and seed files is support for popular features that users expect their Bittorrent client to support.

Transmission-QT users can tick off a lot of those features from their imaginary requirements list. The program supports features such as speed limits, encryption, PEX and DHT, a blocklist to prevent certain IP connections, the option to change the local port and a web client to manage the program from a remote web browser. It is definitely more than an average Bittorrent client offers, but not as much when compared to programs such as uTorrent.

The program is in many regards not as sophisticated as uTorrent. There is for instance no option to configure a transfer cap per day or month, no scheduler, no support for apps or add-ons, no torrent discovery options, and no option to stream video files even if they are still downloading.

That does not necessarily mean that the program is inferior. It all depends on what you want to use the program for. If you only want to download files then Transmission-QT is a perfectly fine choice. If you want to use those extra features that uTorrent or comparable clients offer then it is not the best of choices. It needs to be noted that Transmission-QT supports loading an IP blocklist while uTorrent does not.

Some users at least will like the program’s simplicity and pick it because of that. Then again, uTorrent is not more complicated as all additional features are optional. If you do not want to use them, you simply ignore them.

Windows users who are looking for an open source Bittorrent client can take a closer look at Transmission-QT Win. The program is actively developed and definitely a solid application for downloading files via Bittorrent. The program is compatible with 32-bit and 64-bit editions of the Microsoft Windows operating system.

The release notes are as usually available on the official forum. Version 3 of uTorrent adds features such as a portable mode, streaming, torrent ratings or drag and drop sending of files. The complete list of changes and fixes is available in the forum.

The drop files to send feature is incredibly easy to use. Just drop a file that you want to share on the drop area, and uTorrent will create the torrent for you. The program displays a tiny url link that the recipients of the file need to open. The torrent is then added to their uTorrent version. If they do not have uTorrent it is installed on their system.

Streaming needs to be activated in the uTorrent options before it becomes available. All suitable media players are automatically available for selection in the options.

The Stream button becomes then available in the torrent listing. A click on the button loads the stream url in the selected media player. It is then possible to play the media in the player directly, even if it has not been downloaded completely yet.

Depending on your previous version, you may see a different looking client with additional features that you had not had access to before. This includes uTorrent apps which more often than not provide access to media and file releases of companies and organizations. You find some apps among the available ones that add features to uTorrent, a chat for instance.

The getting started guide in the client seems to be new as well. It offers a step by step guide, a beginners guide and links to faqs and information about the program (correct me if I’m wrong here).

The developers have fixed a boat load full of issues, from crashes and stability issues over freezes and hangs to cpu optimizations.

Users should take a look at known issues before they update, if they want to make sure that the program works on their system without difficulties. The list displays confirmed problems and issues that are not fixed in the uTorrent 3.0 stable release.

Most of the bugs listed seem to be limited to display issues, only a few indicate stability issues.

On a personal note. I’m running uTorrent 3.0 since the first alpha and did not have a single problem ever since. The update to version 3.0 went without difficulties. Some users in the release thread are on the other hand reporting problems with the version.

Have you made the update to uTorrent 3.0 yet? What is your impression of the new version.

Utorrent 3 adds several interesting features to the torrent client, some of which have already been available for some time in alpha versions. Among the changes is a new portable mode to run the Bittorrent client without installation and the option to stream media torrents while they are being downloaded.

You can click on the Stream button under Playback in the torrent listing to stream the media contents while downloading. The uTorrent client displays the time it will take before the stream becomes available on your computer.

The service opens the stream in the default media player that is installed on the system. This can be changed in the program’s settings. Here it is possible to select another media player for streaming.

Another interesting new option is the ability to send Torrents. You can right-click a torrent in the program and select Send Torrent to do that.

This creates a web link on the uTorrent website where recipients can download the torrent to their system and torrent client. Even better, users without a torrent client installed have the option to download a bundled version of uTorrent which reduces lots of the explaining that you may need to do if you send a torrent link to a first time user.

The drop files to send feature builds up on that. You can use it to create a torrent file by dragging and dropping files to the uTorrent interface. This opens the same Send Torrent wizard. This simplifies the creation and sharing of torrents noticeably.

Additional new features include torrent ratings, a new encrypted web user interface that requires almost no configuration.

You can download the 32-bit and 64-bit release of uTorrent 3.0 beta from the official forums (32-bit here, 64-bit here). The new web gui, called uTorrent Remote is accessible here. You need an account to use that feature. The beta is only offered for the Windows operating system. (via)

But since this is a slow day I decided to take a closer look at one of the tools that got released recently, to demonstrate that these tools are not accelerating the downloads.

Wirebooster is advertised as bringing “crazy extra power to your file sharing client”. The program has been designed to work with lots of different P2P clients including Frostwire, uTorrent, Emule or DC++.

Warning lights should go off immediately as the introductory text on the program’s homepage contains no information on how the speed on the P2P networks are accelerated. What you get is this:

While requiring the lowest CPU usage, WireBooster harnesses powerful features able to skyrocket the performance of your file sharing application almost instantly! Once you’ve installed the software (and launched the p2p client) you can sit back and let it boost some download speed.

Among the numerous advantages of WireBooster is its ease of use and its good looking, well thought-out interface. The program makes any technical skill redundant since its simplicity allows even a newbie to use it properly – it’s like point-and-shoot cameras, you just start the program and then totally forget about it.

Still, not saying how the program accelerates P2P traffic is not enough to say it does not work at all. Lets take a look at how the program is used.

Wirebooster displays all controls in the main interface on startup after installation. It tries to detect available P2P clients automatically and displays them in the P2P run list. Below that are all installed network adapters of the system, and users need to select the right one for the program to display traffic statistics.

To boost P2P traffic users need to select the P2P client (e.g. Frostwire, uTorrent), the right network adapter (trial and error works) and press the big status button to start the acceleration.

Wirebooster then starts to display percentage statistics in the lower half. It is not clear if that is supposedly the accelerated speed gain or an overall speed graph. Now, for my own unscientific test. It is possible to turn the acceleration on and off in the program interface.

Without P2P acceleration download speeds varied between 350 and 550 kB per second. With the accelerator enabled download speeds varied between 330 and 570 kB. While that looks like a gain of 20 kB it has to be noted that traffic fluctuates constantly, and that the difference is likely a fluctuation and not an acceleration caused by the P2P accelerator.

And even if it was the case, the lowest speed was 20 Kilobytes below the normal connection speed. What’s the conclusion? For me, P2P accelerators do not work. That’s all I’m saying. If I would have to guess, I’d say they do not do work for anyone out there. Wirebooster is just one of the programs available that supposedly boost the speed of the P2P traffic.

Have you made different experiences? Let me know in the comments.

Apps for uTorrent are currently only available in the latest developer releases of the p2p client. The first version with integrated apps was uTorrent 2.2 beta with four applications in total.

The latest uTorrent 3.0 alpha ships with a total of ten apps, of which most can be installed from within the client. This article acts as an overview to provide uTorrent users with information about the apps that can be installed.

An experimental uTorrent client that only works on English language systems is required to work with apps in the software program. The latest version is always available at the Project Griffin project page.

The interface of uTorrent 3 looks different than that of previous versions. A sidebar is displayed consisting of search functionality, the torrent listing, feeds and apps.

A click on Apps displays all available applications that can be installed. Most apps are directly installed in uTorrent, some like TuneUp, trigger an external installer.

• Outspark – direct links to MMO game clients
• ClearBits Featured – Offers direct access to Clear bits open licensed digital media, mostly music albums and movies.
• uMap – utilizes Google Maps to display the locations of connected peers on a world map.
• uBrowse – a local file browser to quickly access downloaded files directly from within uTorrent.
• Tetronimoes – play Tetris in the uTorrent client.
• TuneUp – fixes mislabeled music, adds cover art, displays concert alerts.
• Virus Guard – virus protection, will scan downloads directly in the Bittorrent client
• Raptr Free Games – play free games in uTorrent, great to pass the time.
• uGadget – adds torrenting features to Microsoft Internet Explorer and Firefox, ability to monitor and control torrent downloads in the browser.
• VODO – offers direct free movie downloads shared by their creators.

Currently there are three types of applications in the apps gallery: Applications that are directly torrent related, like the virus scanner or uMap, apps that add torrent selections directly in the client, like Vodo or ClearBits, and applications that add torrent unrelated features like the gaming apps.

Installed applications are displayed in the sidebar from where they can be selected easily. App development will take off once the first final version of uTorrent containing the apps feature is released. Apps in the long run will increase the popularity of the Bittorrent client further.

The latest stable version offered on the uTorrent homepage is version 2.02, the latest official beta 2.03. Utorrent 3.0 Alpha replaces the latest development release uTorrent 2.x. It is not clear yet why the developers have decided to make the version jump to 3.0.

The release notes of uTorrent 3.0 Alpha does not contain major feature additions, included are a handful of bug fixes and changes. The only feature addition is the ability to disable UDP trackers.

2010-06-24: Version 3.0 (build 20228)
- Fix: fixed uTP crash on sockets being closed with uninitialized read buffers
- Fix: default download directory fix for multifile torrents
- Change: rate limit uTP by default
- Fix: Fixed fast-resend bug in selective ack handling in uTP. This could cause too aggressive resends on packet loss
- Change: fix crash when formatting a string with NULL
- Change: make uTP slightly less aggressive on loss
- Change: Mention uTP in settings and reorganize new bandwidth checkbox since they apply to both up and down limits
- Change: Render TCP rates in speed graph when uTP is not throttled
- Change: Moved net.calc_overhead to the Bandwidth settings pane
- Fix: RSS items show a different icon if disabled
- Change: Turn on uTP throttling when scheduler is in “limited” mode
- Fix: Fixed a delayed ack issue in uTP (lowers overhead)
- Fix: RSS items would show when torrent list was empty
- Fix: made magnet links in RSS feeds work
- Change: made uTP packet size increase based on low delay measurements
- Fix: made uTP packet size depend on total send rate, not just uTP send rate
- Change: new advanced settings net.disable_ipv6 that defaults to True on 64bit Windows
- Change: Don’t show add torrent dialog by default.
- Feature: Add checkbox to disable UDP trackers

The latest alpha of uTorrent 3.0 is available for download at the uTorrent forum. Users who have already worked with development releases before will get an automatic update notification in the Bittorrent client to install the new version directly.

A closer look at the standard process of downloading files via torrents reveals several factors and parties that are necessary for this. The user needs a Bittorrent client like uTorrent or Vuze, a torrent file that is usually downloaded from a Bittorrent server which functions as a tracker and torrent provider and of course other seeders and leechers of that torrent.

A Bittorrent magnet link contains all the information needed to start downloading the files from peers directly. It is a server-less way of retrieving the right information to start downloading the requested files. A magnet link therefor is theoretically all that is needed to download files from other peers in the Bittorrent network. Magnet links can be distributed by email, messaging and other forms of communication but are most often found on the torrent sites that usually offer both torrent and magnet links to their users.

A magnet consists of several parts:

• magnet: (This is the magnet link identifier)
• ?xt=urn:btih: (Defines a Bittorrent Info Hash, the Edonkey identifier would for instance look like this xt=urn:ed2k:)
• 5dee65101db281ac9c46344cd6b175cdcad53426 (The content hash)
• &dn=name (The name of the file)

The full magnet link would look like this magnet:?xt=urn:btih:5dee65101db281ac9c46344cd6b175cdcad53426&dn=download. Detailed information about additional Magnet Link parameters are listed on Wikipedia. One useful parameter that has not been mentioned yet is the as= parameter which contains encrypted information about a download source. This speeds up the process of finding the first peers.

Main Advantages of Magnet Links

The main advantage for Bittorrent indexers is that they do not have to store the torrents on their servers anymore which could be beneficial for them in several ways. It could reduce the pressure from the media creation industry and reduce hardware infrastructure expenses thanks to less tracking and downloading.

The end users on the other hand benefit from Magnet Links as well. All they need is the link to start downloading the files which makes them independent from torrent indexers. It also allows them to distribute the information more easily. Torrent indexers remain on the other hand the main source of information for new files that are available for download.

Magnet Links use DHT

A tracker less environment should raise a question of identification. How can a download be initiated ff there is no tracker to inform the Bittorrent user about other users who download and seed the file? The answer is DHT, Distributed hash tables. DHT is enabled by default in popular clients such as uTorrent or Vuze. Without going into to much detail, the hash of the magnet link is used to find peers using DHT.

Torrent files

Torrents are still essential for Bittorrent as they contain information about the download that need to be present in the swarm. The only aspect that is changing is the way the torrents are distributed which is shifting from Bittorrent trackers and indexers to the server-less DHT procedure.

Many popular Bittorrent clients support magnet links already. This includes uTorrent and Vuze for Windows and Transmission for Linux and Mac systems.

But there are situations where a user does not want to contribute the upload speed to spreading the shared files to other users of the network.

Zapshares has been designed to protect a computer user from accidentally sharing files over P2P networks. The service currently supports several popular P2P applications including uTorrent, Bittorrent, Frostwire, LimeWire, Vuze and Shareaza.

It does that by blocking file uploads in the supported P2P programs but only after the files have been downloaded.

This works well in P2P clients where the user does not upload the bits received while downloading the rest. Zapshares will spring into action once the download of a file has been completed. It will automatically move the file into another location so that it is not offered and shared by the user.

The program will scan the computer system for shared files on the first startup to block those from being shared as well. The software runs minimized in the system tray after this initial configuration wizard.

Zapshares is definitely not the holy grail that protects users from sharing files in P2P networks. We already mentioned that users are uploaders in many P2P networks for as long as they download the files. It should also be noted that Zapshares did not detect the uTorrent installation on our test system.

It is also bothersome that there is no option to close Zapshares once it runs in the system tray.

Users who want to give Zapshares a try can download it from the developer’s website. The software program is compatible with most Microsoft operating systems. (via ILoveFreeSoftware)

This in theory should make it easy for third party developers to create apps for uTorrent that users can integrate into their Bittorrent client.

Apps have access to all the functionality of the client according to the developers. The apps come with the new file extension .btapp. Examples given in the project announcement are:

• Offer a simple and more integrated way for consumers to find and download different types of content
• Integrate with external programs which can provide services like BitTorrent-specific anti-virus
• Offer UI for a broad range of applications that simplify the experience or extend functionality

A total of four apps are already available for the preview version of uTorrent 2.2. Apps are accessible from within the bittorrent client by clicking on the Apps section in the left sidebar.

The four available apps are:

• Virus Guard by Bitdefender: A free virus scanner that works from within Bittorrent.
• Raptr Free Games: Play free games
• uGadet: Torrenting features from within Internet Explorer or firefox browser like monitoring and controlling downloads.
• VODO: brings movies to uTorrent

This new apps framework raises a few questions including performance and relevancy related questions. Windows users who want to give uTorrent 2.2 Beta a try can download the new client from uTorrent Labs.

The new version boasts slight fixes to uTP, an alternative communication method allowing uTorrent to automatically regulate the bandwidth usage to avoid that it has an impact on the Internet connection of the user.

It basically allows one use to download torrents while other users who use the same connection to use the Internet without noticing a big difference. Another addition to uTP is its own form of STUN which is a method of “getting incoming connections without direct connectivity to the Internet” which increases connectivity and speed.

The transfer cap finally was added to aid users with capped Internet connections. Some ISPs limit the monthly bandwidth to a certain amount and the transfer cap allows a user to track the upload and download bandwidth and configure uTorrent to stop transferring once a limit is reached.

The new uTorrent release can be downloaded from the official uTorrent forum (via Lifehacker).

Further observation revealed that only old torrents were showing that error message. All new torrents were downloading just fine even if the compatibility mode was disabled. The solution to the problem was therefor an access problem of the new Windows 7 user account. More precisely a write access problem.

It was thankfully very easy to fix. A right-click on a temporary file or folder in the uTorrent cache folder and the selection of Properties opened a window with configuration possibilities. The Security tab at the top of the window lead to the access permissions for the selected file or folder. It displayed the access rights for various system users including the system administrator, the content owner (that’s the Windows XP user in this case) and the currently logged in user.

This can be easily changed by clicking on the Edit link to edit permissions for specific users of the computer system. All it takes is to select the current user in that new window and add write access permissions for that user. Once that is done the torrents will download just fine without errors.

The same write problem exists for other files that have been created in the previous operating system. If you are encountering write problems you simply need to add the write permission for the logged in user to be able to save the file.

My initial though was that it was either a rights-issue or a read-only flag that was preventing the writing of the data to the hard drive. Both assumptions did not turn out to be true however.

It seems that uTorrent is having compatibility issues with Windows 7. The easiest way to fix those is to run uTorrent in compatibility mode. This can be done by right-clicking the uTorrent.exe file and selecting Properties from the menu. This opens the file properties with a compatibility tab at the top.

Checking the “Run this program in compatibility mode for” will make the application run in the selected compatibility mode. I have selected Windows XP (Service Pack 3) which is working fine. Others might be working as well but this has not been tested.

A click on Apply and Ok will close the window. The program will be launched from then on in Windows XP SP3 compatibility mode which gets rid of the error message for now.

It is actually very easy to make uTorrent portable. All that is needed is a installation of uTorrent on the computer system. Now create a new file in the directory of the utorrent.exe and name it settings.dat. uTorrent will recognize the file and start using it instead of the settings file located in the application data folders.

Please be aware that old settings are not carried over and that it is needed to configure the client again. All torrents will be missing at the first start as well. You can easily add them again by selecting the correct locations for new and finished downloads in the client. The software will then automatically recognize the new torrents upon restart, perform checks and start downloading them again.

Running a portable version of uTorrent does make it easier to backup the Bittorrent client as well. All that is needed is to backup the files in this one directory (and in the unfinished downloads directory if those should be backed up as well).

The developers, who were working on uTorrent 1.9 alpha initially have decided to skip 1.9 and move forward to version 2.0 directly. The release notes mention the following feature additions in the Bittorrent client besides many fixes and changes.

• We’ve added UDP tracker support!
• uTP has been improved significantly over the previous alpha, with many bugs fixed and performance improvements. It’s no longer hidden in Advanced settings.
• The setup dialog has been overhauled to make it much easier to use and with a built-in speed test. It’s still not quite complete yet, but this will give you a good taste of what we’re up to with it!
• A new transfer cap feature has been added to track bandwidth usage, along with graphs to show your usage.

UDP trackers are a different protocol for tracker communication that uses significantly less processing power on the tracker end. It’s important for us to support this because trackers have limited resources, so this should allow them to support many more users with their current hardware and not crash under the load.

Support for UDP trackers could be beneficial not only for torrent tracker administrators and owners but also users as the performance gain could be noticeable on the front end as well.

uTP is an alternative communication method for BitTorrent traffic that allows the client to automatically regulate its bandwidth usage to avoid adversely impacting your internet connection. This will allow you or other users on the network to download their torrents without killing your connection without any additional setup required.

This is probably the most exciting addition for users who like to run uTorrent 24/7.

The transfer cap settings were added in response to various users who have ISP-mandated caps on how much data they can download/upload in a month. Now you can track your usage in MB (with a handy graph to visualize it) and even configure µTorrent to stop torrenting once the limits are exceeded. Currently, you can configure the time interval, the data cap and whether it should stop based on only download, upload, or both combined.
As a privacy notice, this traffic data is not sent back to us or anyone.

The transfer cap settings can be very interesting for users with bandwidth caps but it can also be useful for users who like to keep an eye on their bandwidth usage.

The setup guide on the other hand has been changed as well. Currently only test servers that are located in the United States are accessible which makes it unsuitable for users from Europe and Asia.

Users who want to upgrade their version of uTorrent to version 2.0 beta can do so by visiting the uTorrent forums.

The user needs to enter a search term and can optionally select a category, change the number of results and the download directory for the torrents. The interface will then be populated by search results after a short time. It will list the title, seeders, peers, the size and date of each torrent that has been found during the search.

A double-click on any search result will automatically download that torrent to the directory specified in the header of the torrent search engine. It should be noted that TorrentFetcher will not download the contents the torrent is linking but only the torrent itself. This means that it has to be used in conjunction with a Bittorrent client such as uTorrent.

It works very well with torrent clients that automatically monitor a directory for torrents and begin downloading the files automatically after finding a new torrent file in that directory.

The software developer does not reveal the torrent search engine that is used to populate the results. An option to reveal that information and probably even exchange that torrent search engine with another one would come in really handy. The search in its current stage seems to be concentrating on English torrents. It would also be nice if the results could be sorted by clicking on a column so that the search results could be sorted by date for example.

TorrentFetcher is a handy software program to find torrents. Adding some of the previously mentioned features would increase its reach.