So, DC++ is here to stay even with the new copyright laws?

DC++ is a sharing network, and there's nothing illegal about that. How the people got the movies, games, and songs in the first place is their own business...

I'll just add that the changes to Canadian copyright have only been proposed, and are not law yet. The changes are wildly unpopular from the perspectives of both consumers and artists, and really only benefit the recording industry. Because of this, and because of the massive backlash that passing it could cause to the inherently shaky minority government (Liberal wussiness aside), it may die a quiet death over the summer break. I don't think the Conservatives expected it to get quite as much negative press as it did, and that's not something that they'd want to fight over in an election.

If you want to know more about bill C-61 (which is the one at issue here), there is tons of info on Michael Geist's website (http://www.michaelgeist.ca/). He's a law prof at the University of Ottawa who specializes in digital rights and issues, and has a fantastic blog.

Having said that, Mitch is right in that DC++ itself is simply software that also has a legitimate purpose, so there wouldn't be anything inherently unlawful about using it. Obviously it's the contents of the files that are being shared that are the issue, and if this bill passes into law, it could put Mac (and other universities) in the rather uncomfortable position of having to identify its students to record companies looking to sue them (as has been happening in the States for some time now).

Right now Canadian copyright law is written in such a way that the common uses of DC++ are pretty much legal, and you can see why industries would want to change that. Hence, bill C-61. We'll see what happens.

Thanks for that info Cippi! Just curious how it would work if the bill was passed... Say you are downloading off the internet, the government could theoretically see what you are downloading and what sites you are visiting. But if they sue you, couldn't you say that it's invasion of privacy? And if they make their own site where you could download free music, can't you call that entrapment? Just curious how the law works...

It wouldn't be up to the government to enforce it, per se - this is more a matter of civil law. In other words, the government wouldn't be monitoring what you're downloading and then prosecute you if you download a file that infringes - it's up to the rights holder to do that. So let's say you download the latest Coldplay single - the rights holder would be the record company, EMI, and it's up to them to prove infringement and pursue prosecution.

How would they do that? Well, they've been doing it for years in the US. The biggest player is a company called MediaSentry (now bought by a company called SafeNet) - it was formed to search peer-to-peer networks for infringing files shared on people's computers. Using this evidence, they were able to file lawsuits agains tens of thousands of people who were sharing copyrighted music. The vast, vast majority of these cases were settled out of court, in a process likened to extortion by many - i.e., "pay us $3000 and the charges go away". A very few made it before judges, and the results have been mixed. It's been made harder for the record companies to prove infringement actually took place now, but there are still a ton of unresolved legal issues surrounding these cases. Most people don't fight them, because they can't afford an astronomical legal bill. It's not a good situation, and that's potentially what we're heading towards in Canada.

Now, what I just stated is what's happening over public P2P networks in the US - those are the only ones MediaSentry has access to, theoretically. On private networks (such as a university's internal one), it's a different story. They're out of reach, for the moment, since there isn't a good legal avenue for them to prove infringement without infiltrating the network, which is itself illegal - and it's not like the university is going to invite them in and say "please, come and sue our students!". The students in the lawsuits in the US are in that position because of what they did from residence over public networks, not internal ones. And since there were plenty of sharers on those public networks already, there was plenty of work for the record companies' lawyers to do without going to the added trouble of trying to get access to internal ones. Pick the low-hanging fruit, as they say.

Again, what I described is the situation in the US, but it could be repeated here. In that context, internal networks such as DC++ at Mac are probably relatively safe, in a sense - it'd be far easier for record companies go after the public networks.

Given what I've said, you probably can surmise the answers to your other questions - since it's not the government doing it (and they're not monitoring all your internet traffic), it's not an invasion of privacy; similarly, since a law enforcement agency isn't enticing you to download a file under false pretenses, it's not entrapment. Good questions, though.

In case you can't tell, digital rights issues and internet law are sort of a hobby of mine :p Up until now most of the action has been in the US, but Canada may be bracing for a fight soon too, which is why it's important for more people to know about Bill C-61. Anyway, if you have any more questions about this kind of thing, I'll do my best to answer them!

Originally Posted by amit

one question: if the file sharing in dc++ at mac happens over the same network, does it count towards your daily bandwidth limit?

No, It does not.

how much is the daily bandwidth limit?

Originally Posted by Reno V

how much is the daily bandwidth limit?

I believe it 2gb (upload or download). If you do go over it, your internet speed the next day will be slow as poo.

So this is all relatively safe right? I mean you don't have to worry about virus's or anything right?

I have never heard of anyone getting a virus off of DC. It's because the stuff is shared by students at MAC. If the item they are sharing contains a virus, they would usually know that it has a virus beforehand because it would be screwing up their computer. I don't think anyone wants to purposely infect other people's computers at MAC. Not like limewire or whatever, where anyone in the world could be uploaded crazy stuff. Also, if something is infected, it can be reported to the moderators.

However, anything's possible. It's just never happened yet to my knowledge, and I've been around since the beginning.

Although, you should be careful about what you think it is that you're downloading. I downloaded a movie that was called "The Prestige, Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale". I didn't open in it to check if it was real because I assumed it was. On the GO bus ride home, I opened it and everyone sitting behind me got a good look at hardcore p*rn playing from my computer. It was funny. I have to type P*rn like this because apparently it's blocked out.

Can someone link me up with a good thread that walks through DC++and mcmaster hubs and how one can go about setting it up?

Download it HERE

Open the program (you'll probably want to make a shortcut for it on your desktop so you don't have to always search for it)

Under FILE>Settings go to the Personal Information tab and enter a nickname (if it is already taken when you get to MAC, you'll have to change it.

Still in Settings, go to the Downloads tab and Choose a download and unfinished download directory so you will know where your stuff downloaded. I would also suggest your limits be set to 0 to download unlimited items at the same time. If you're computer starts to slow down, don't download as much at once.

Still in Settings, go to the Sharing tab. This is the most important one. Click Add Folder. Browse through stuff in your computer and choose things which you would like other people to be able to download from you. Usually at MAC, there is around a 500mb limit, so you need to be sharing at least 500mb worth of files. You can change # of Upload slots if you'd like more or less people to be able to upload stuff from you.

Press OK and leave the Settings window.

Click the yellow star at the top. Click the NEW button in the middle of the screen. Add a nickname for the name like "MAC". Then type in the address: machub.dyndns.org
Press OK
Make sure that the box beside "MAC" is checked.
What this does, is connects you to the McMaster hub every time you open DC so you don't have to connect manually every time.
***The address might not be machub.dyndns.org this year, if it changes, change the address.

Press the normal Magnifying button at the top to search for files and double click a file for it to download!

Hope that will help you with the basics.

Oh, that must have sucked...you will always be remembered as "guy who watches **** in public places" haha =)

I followed the dowloading process provided, I added my music folder to the hub and when the hashing completed an error message popped up that reads "error creating magnet registry key". Can anyone help with troubleshooting?