LimeWire

Peer-to-peer file sharing saw its heyday in the late 1990's with the rise of Napster and other services. LimeWire was among the earliest platforms to permit users to share movies, music, and computer programs. It once had millions of users. Today, about 700,000 continue to use the service in the wake of crackdowns on copyright infringement. Using LimeWire is simple. The first step is to download the application. LimeWire is free to download. The installation process takes only a few minutes, and the program will automatically open a window with downloading options. At the top of the window there is a search bar. The user types in the media that they are looking for. Anyone on the LimeWire network who has the file can then be used as a download source. The program can conduct downloads of a single file from multiple sources at the same time in order to speed up the process. Media that users have selected will appear in the program's main window. Users are able to view the progress of their chosen downloads. Once the files have finished downloading, they may be opened and viewed. The user then joins the network of those who have the file, and the user will contribute to subsequent downloads requested by other users. Unfortunately, LimeWire and other peer-to-peer file sharing platforms have come under the watchful eye of authorities tasked with rooting out copyright infringement. At the present time, downloads from this platform are very limited. Users should also be aware that LimeWire has been used by hackers in the past to deliver malicious viruses.