Re: Looking for open source project maintainer

On Fri, 16 Sep 2011, Ulli Horlacher wrote:


In your "You have the following possibilities" section, you don't mention
BitTorrent. I don't know if you've heard of it, but it's a popular way to
exchange files. I'll run through the talking points you list in that
section ...

BitTorrent can handle large datasets - the second-largest known dataset is
the complete archive of Geocities, weighing in at 641.32 gigabytes:

http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/5923737/Geocities_-_The_Torrent

It's as quick as any direct connection method, and quicker than F*EX,
because (assuming i have understood F*EX correctly), that requires the
uploader to finish uploading before the downloader begins downloading, so
the elapsed time is at least the sum of their best transfer times, whereas
BitTorrent finishes in the maximum of their best transfer times.

BitTorrent does not involve knowing any ancient scripts.

BitTorrent does not require passwords, or allowing a correspondent access
to your machine.

BitTorrent does not do any sort of auto-deletion. But since you are
transferring directly between users' machines, this is not necessary.

BitTorrent does not do encryption, but files can be encrypted before
transfer if they are sensitive.

Many BitTorrent clients allow you to monitor the transfer to a peer, and
to see when it is complete.

BitTorrent is portable across all popular consumer operating systems, and
unix. The protocol is publicly documented, and there are multiple actively
maintained open-source implementations of all the software needed.

You do need at least one of the users' machines to be able to accept
incoming connections from the internet. This is usually easy enough to
arrange. If not, then it is possible to set up a third machine somewhere
else which can accept such connections, and have it also join the swarm,
and act as a relay. Unlike with FTP etc, it can begin transferring data to
the downloader as soon as it has received one complete chunk from the
uploader.

In addition to the transfer software, you need a tracker. There are many
publicly available trackers. It is also straightforward to run a tracker
of your own, using XBT, or one built into your client of choice.

The main problem with BitTorrent is probably that the documentation around
using it in this way is poor, and the field is littered with poor
implementations of clients. There are good implementations, but it may not
be immediately obvious which they are (for future reference: rtorrent is
good).

So, if you are having trouble finding a maintainer for your software,
perhaps you should consider switching to BitTorrent.

tom

--
I was eventually persuaded of the need to design programming notations
so as to maximize the number of errors which cannot be made, or if made,
can be reliably detected at compile time. Perhaps this would make the
text of programs longer. Never mind! Wouldnt you be delighted if your
Fairy Godmother offered to wave her wand over your program to remove
all its errors and only made the condition that you should write out
and key in your whole program three times! -- C. A. R. Hoare