Private, simple peer-to-peer filesharing, that's all I want...

October 7, 2005 2:25 PM

I download loads of amusing.interesting pictures and videos that I want my non-geek friends to see. Is there a private peer-to-peer service that's easy to use and install, so that they don't get confused? And ideally the program doesn't need registration or payment, or be bulked out with IM etc! So, in a nutshell: simple, private peer-to-peer. Anyone?

The ideal would actually be a PHP script that can display a folder on my computer - then my friends wouldn't have to install anything. But a program will do...

posted by wibbler to Computers & Internet (14 answers total)

Waste?
posted by muckster at 2:27 PM on October 7, 2005

If you don't mind only being able to music, Grouper is retardedly simple.
posted by keswick at 2:29 PM on October 7, 2005

Response by poster: Waste, as far as I can see, is not simple for the average non-geek...
posted by wibbler at 2:30 PM on October 7, 2005

It sounds like what you really want is not "peer-to-peer" at all, but just a simple web server or FTP server.

(That is, you don't need everyone in the network to be able to share files with each other; you just want everyone else to be able to download from you. Right?)
posted by mbrubeck at 2:55 PM on October 7, 2005

install a simple webserver and allow directory indexing. setup DyDNS with no-ip.org or the like.

bang, you're done.
posted by fishfucker at 3:02 PM on October 7, 2005

although if you want it truly private, you'll have to install a webserver that can authenticate using the host computers privlegess (a la IIS), one that does some server-side work to authenticate users, or one that has directory security built in. The directory-security built in would probably be the easiest for you.
posted by fishfucker at 3:06 PM on October 7, 2005

Just do what fishfucker said at first, but use apache on your windows or mac box, and do a simple password protection on the directory.

Then all your friends need to do is save the password once, and they're golden.
posted by mathowie at 3:10 PM on October 7, 2005

I know you said peer-to-peer, but I thought yousendit might help you out just as well. We've used it to transfer files up to a gig, and pretty swiftly too. Your friend just gets an email link to follow when they're ready to download.
posted by BorgLove at 4:04 PM on October 7, 2005

Http File Server is insanely easy to use if your non-geek friends need to do the same.
posted by whatisish at 6:22 PM on October 7, 2005

I used a simple PHP script called File Thingie that lets your friends upload things as well as download things from a browser. It's dead simple to install if you have a web server since it's just one file. They all seem to have no problems using it and playing with it.
posted by bcwinters at 6:24 PM on October 7, 2005

what's so wrong with the AOL stand alone instant messenger. I have long stopped using it to chat, but it came in hella - handy when i needed to transfer epsiodes of the bbc office to my buddy. It is truly idiot proof.
posted by stavx at 6:35 PM on October 7, 2005

Simple, private, and peer-to-peer? I'll go stavx one further and say email. You might run into a problem with huge files, but at that point, you need a torrent from a file server - just send them a link to where you got it. Heck, just do that in the first place - you're downloading it anyway, they can too.
posted by attercoppe at 8:29 PM on October 7, 2005

I've had a hard time with AIM and different home router/firewalls. Also some schools seem to block the file transfer aspect.

Make it so people have to login to Apache, it's a fairly simple process that took a couple of hours to setup if you're going from scratch (no Apache). About as secure as you need to be.
posted by geoff. at 8:14 AM on October 8, 2005

doesn't aim have a file-sharing feature between buddies?
posted by shmegegge at 12:41 PM on October 8, 2005