Topic: If BitTorrent could stream videos, would you actually care?

[WindAndConfusion]

Imagine there was a P2P protocol that worked exactly like (say) BitTorrent except that, no matter which piece of the file you downloaded, it's always the very next part you need. Eg, the first piece you download always ends up being the first part of the file you're downloading, the second piece is always the second part, et cetera.

Thus you could (for example) stream videos (or any other kind of data).

Would this actually have a practical impact on how you used BitTorrent?

[Quemaqua]

In a word, nope.

[WindAndConfusion]

Is that because it would have no practical bearing on the way you use BitTorrent, or because you're a misanthropic luddite who hates everything that has ever happened?

What? It's a legitimate question.

[idolminds]

I'd like a client that did that. Like when I'm downloading an albums worth of music, I can listen to the half finished MP3s...except you'll have the first 10 seconds of the song, then it skips to 5 seconds in the middle, then skips again...etc until the file just ends.

Even just a way to set the order in which to download files within a torrent. uTorrent has low, medium, high, and skip priorities, but I don't think you can set it to download the files in a specific order. That would be useful...esp right now. I'm downloading the Doom Remix album in FLAC. I'd have the first handful of tracks done and ready to listen to if it was downloading in order...what I have is every track has little bits of it done.


Ok...so off topic there a bit. For video? I wonder if thats what that Joost project is doing. Supposed to be some BT video thing. I suppose it would be pretty useful for any site that wants to offer HD res videos without going broke on bandwidth, while still allowing streaming.

[Ghandi]

Usually my music downloads finish fast enough that it doesn't really matter. I don't download movies so those aren't an issue either.

And we all know you just can't wait for your porn to finish downloading. You don't have to play coy.

[WindAndConfusion]

Even just a way to set the order in which to download files within a torrent.

Ironically, that's a much harder problem than creating streaming torrents.

[Quemaqua]

Is that because it would have no practical bearing on the way you use BitTorrent, or because you're a misanthropic luddite who hates everything that has ever happened?

What? It's a legitimate question.

Hating cellphones makes me a luddite?  It has less to do with the technology and more to do with the idiots that use it.

Anyway, it's just because it would have zero effect on my BT experience given the way I use it.

[gpw11]

Yeah, that'd be pretty sweet for video downloads, but wouldn't it cause the downloads to go slower (I'm assuming BT clients work by downloading whatever segment of the file is the most readily available at any given time).

[WindAndConfusion]

Yeah, that'd be pretty sweet for video downloads, but wouldn't it cause the downloads to go slower?

You'd probably expect so.

[gpw11]

Interesting indeed. Yes, I'd be very interested.

[scottws]

There is already something coming out like this from the guys that did KaZaA.  I'll have to check my Wired magazine when I get to work.  There's an article in there about it.

Edit:  Ok, found it.  The service is called Joost.

[NatchDan]

I dunno about other clients, but Azureus has a checkbox somewhere for "prioritise first piece of file".