What else do you download from p2p networks?

November 24, 2004 7:23 AM

Everybody knows about music, warez, pr0n and movies. Everybody who reads AskMe now knows about comicz.
What else do you download from p2p networks? Not looking to get Matt in trouble here, so please no links to files / "sharing" sites, etc. I'm just curious as to what other sorts of media are being p2ped.
posted by signal to Computers & Internet (21 answers total)

Sometimes documentaries that didn't air in the US, although many of them are wacko conspiracy stuff. P2P rarely has the variety or access to the stuff I really want, like this one BBC sitcom that was discontinued, for example. It's almost worth it to just pay the $20 for the DVD on occasion. As Jobs said, why work for minimum wage?
posted by mecran01 at 7:43 AM on November 24, 2004

I know of someone who downloaded a good number of computer programming books in pdf format.
posted by kenaman at 8:07 AM on November 24, 2004

TV shows.
posted by skwm at 8:16 AM on November 24, 2004

ROMs. Or do those count as warez?

Also audiobooks, lectures and other spoken recordings.
posted by box at 8:52 AM on November 24, 2004

Yeah, P2P is a good source for literature-- programming books, software guides and the like.
posted by Mayor Curley at 8:58 AM on November 24, 2004

TV shows I missed, British and Australian TV shows, audiobooks.
posted by smackfu at 9:08 AM on November 24, 2004

I download lots of spoken word / lectures etc.
posted by Quartermass at 9:12 AM on November 24, 2004

Stuff for my pda: apps, language instructional cds as mp3s, and ebooks - the complete works of Neal Stephenson, for example (most of which I already own in formats that don't fit in a pocket).
posted by Zetetics at 9:18 AM on November 24, 2004

I get old-time radio shows, out-of-print art and computer books, vintage video (like a very young Zappa playing the bicycle on steve allen). Roms, occasionally, old speeches by Malcolm X, homemade tutorials on various programs. I was able to get a whole run of Comics that my dad worked on in the '80s (he has all the originals, of course, but he liked the new format).

Of course, there are a few groups that preserve TV shows that have not been rereleased and are not shown or easily available (MST3K being a popular one, that actually encouraged recording and redistribution while it was stilll on the air), like Cartoon Planet, which has fallen to the wayside with the success of Adult Swim.

The easiest stuff to get is the most popular TV shows and movies, but that can be gotten anywhere, which is from where the controversy stems. Much of what I look for I have only seen for sale by bootleggers at comic conventions or swap meets.

When I was living in Japan the past few years, being able to see the daily show with only a slight lag was a godsend, my only other option was waiting for relatives to mail me random video tapes that rarely had a complete episode, or had been recorded on mute, etc.
posted by lkc at 9:35 AM on November 24, 2004

i've a friend who downloads nothing but educational content- training for apps and etc, in ebook and video formats. pretty nice stuff.
posted by fake at 10:46 AM on November 24, 2004

old kung fu movies and indie rock (and #!*%-ing Survivor for my wife who works on Thursday nights)
posted by maniactown at 11:00 AM on November 24, 2004

TV shows, and audio books.
posted by majcher at 11:15 AM on November 24, 2004

bookz.
posted by majick at 11:28 AM on November 24, 2004

I work prime time every night, so downloading TV showz for me. And word on the street is it is actually legal, though not sure.
posted by jmd82 at 11:40 AM on November 24, 2004

bookz, bookz, bookz.
posted by sonofsamiam at 12:45 PM on November 24, 2004

bookz, bookz, bookz, bookz.

Damn it, we need a WASTE network for MeFi.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 12:58 PM on November 24, 2004

Response by poster: 3d models and textures, documentation, comics, comics, comics, bookz, bookz, bookz.
Mr. Chicken, the waste network is something we should do. Anybody interested, email me and we'll see what we can set up.
posted by signal at 1:55 PM on November 24, 2004

Do you all actually read the books online or print them out? Curious because I can't read online for more than 20 minutes before I go insane and I hate reading full printer pagers beyond about 10 pager. I love me reading a normal sized book, but other mediums just throw me off.

Also, what exactly is a waste network? Would be more interested if I knew what it was about...
posted by jmd82 at 3:01 PM on November 24, 2004

Response by poster: I read on my Clie, at 320x320 pixels it's not so bad.
A WASTE network is a private, encrypted, invitation-only p2p network.
posted by signal at 4:06 PM on November 24, 2004

I third a mefi WASTE network!!
posted by Grod at 5:43 PM on November 24, 2004

I want to get w.a.s.t.e.d.

I would like to download "An American in Canada" but it is not popular enough to get on the p2ps, nor will it ever.

ANd when I do try to download tv, it's usually so slow that I freak out and imagine lawyers scribbling down my IP address or something.
posted by mecran01 at 7:18 AM on November 28, 2004