Could we get the FreeBSD torrent servers back?

[Jeff Mohler]

Oh ya..i agree.  I was being a futurist, not a realist.


On 2/25/07, Ted Mittelstaedt <tedm at toybox.placo.com> wrote:
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Chris Slothouber" <chris at hier7.com>
> To: <freebsd-questions at freebsd.org>
> Sent: Saturday, February 24, 2007 10:02 PM
> Subject: Re: Could we get the FreeBSD torrent servers back?
>
>
> > Ted Mittelstaedt wrote:
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: "Andrew Lentvorski" <bsder at allcaps.org>
> > > To: <freebsd-questions at freebsd.org>
> > > Sent: Saturday, February 24, 2007 6:38 PM
> > > Subject: Could we get the FreeBSD torrent servers back?
> > >
> > >
> > >> Can we please get the FreeBSD torrent tracker and/or server back?
> > >>
> > >> (snip)
> > >>
> > >
> > > Nobody pays the mirrors for their bandwidth.  They are hosting and
> > > paying for the bandwidth out of the goodness of their hearts.
> > >
> > > Nothing is stopping you from setting up your own torrent server on a
> big
> > > fast
> > > pipe that everyone else can use, and not pay you for.
> > >
> > > I don't know for sure how other ISP's do it but we definitely use
> > > bandwidth limitations on the servers we host, customers that pay a lot
> > > get a lot, customers that pay less get less, and the freebie servers
> > > get whatever is left over after the paying customers have had their
> fill.
> > >
> > > (snip)
> > >
> > > I would suspect if you examined the financing scheme used for the
> Linux
> > > download servers you would find that it is quite different than
> FreeBSD.
> >
> > But isn't the whole point of peer to peer file distribution to
> > *distribute* the bandwidth requirements to the point that the costs
> > involved for each of the individual peers is trivial but the client
> > receiving the file still obtains full speed of a direct download?
>
> Most of the time the way peer-to-peer filesharing is used, the point is to
> hide the sources of the streams, in order to distribute illicit material.
>
> What your talking about only works if you have a large group of FreeBSD
> volunteers
> that are willing to run the torrent servers.  Let's assume that only 0.01%
> of any
> population group would step up to the plate to offer a torrent
> server.  Well
> I can see a Linux torrent network working because Linux has an order of
> magnitude
> greater number of users than FreeBSD.  But I think you would find it
> impossible
> to recruit something like 1000 FreeBSD users to step up to the plate and
> offer a torrent server.  The population numbers just aren't there.  Worse,
> the
> initial people that offer the server are going to get the brunt of the
> load
> and
> you can't give them any guarentee that your going to be able to recruit
> future
> torrent servers to lessen the work on them.
>
> Like out-of-control-broadcating on an Ethernet nework, sometimes in
> networking
> things just coalesce out of nowhere when the network gets large enough.  I
> don't
> think we have enough FreeBSD users in the population to depend on things
> like
> this just appearing by themselves.
>
> FreeBSD came to the "grow big or grow well" crossroads many years ago and
> took the "grow well" path.  Linux took the "grow big" path.  It is very
> much
> like
> what happened to MacOS and Windows.  One grew big, the other grew well.
> Today, though, neither can really change.  FreeBSD can no more displace
> Linux
> in terms of numbers and in terms of newbies using it, than Linux could
> displace
> FreeBSD in terms of being able to be usable for commercial products, or
> displace
> FreeBSD in terms of being able to collect the absolute best developers in
> the
> industry.  I think the Open Source world is much better off for this
> happening since
> it gives more different choices for the consumers, but by the same coin
> your
> going to be frustrated if you try to make FreeBSD look, walk and talk just
> like
> Linux.
>
> Ted
>
> _______________________________________________
> freebsd-questions at freebsd.org mailing list
> http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions
> To unsubscribe, send any mail to "
> freebsd-questions-unsubscribe at freebsd.org"
>