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or anybody that has never used it before...

There are a billion how-to, explanatory sites, and what-not out there, but none of them have that trustworthy, loving tone that you all have come to expect from me. I have taken it upon myself to explain bittorrent to my mother, and any of you other n00bs might benefit too. This is meant as a primer and persuader away from the old school methods of file trading.

Why do I need Bittorrent? Isn't Kazaa/Napster/blah enough?
Bittorrent (referred to as BT from here on in) is the best thing to happen to file trading. It is similar to Kazza in that users trade files over the internet, but that is where it ends. Instead of queuing up files one by one, like Kazaa, you click one link, and it will download a whole batch of files (like a complete cd, discography, whatever). If you are just looking for a single song, I still recommend one of the common apps like Kazaa. Also, unlike Kazaa, while you are downloading, you are simultaneously uploading to other users. Everyone is doing so. This means that the more people grabbing a file, the faster it goes because *everyone* is sharing. Another significant difference is BT uses "trackers" instead of a program that you install on your computer to search for files.

But won't I get caught?
Well that depends alot on what you are downloading. I know Cox Cable (my internet provider) actually does keep a lookout for Fox Studios movies, so I tend to stay away from that. Another site that comes in handy for those careful kids (when downloading music) is the RIAA Radar Search. Simply search for the band you want to download, and it will give you a thumbs up or down on whether it is RIAA safe or not. Anything that isn't on RIAA labels are highly unlikely to cause you legal trouble. Other than that, it's no more or less risky than Kazaa, and as long as you don't start an underground Britney Spears BT site, I wouldn't be all that concerned, (especially if you live in Mexico, like you Mom).

What are "trackers" ?
Trackers are websites that you view in your browser, like normal, that have links to BT files. There are lots and lots of them, and I will point you to a few good ones later on.

Okay, I'm ready to try it...
Now there are many BT programs (kind of like flavors of Kazaa), and while none of them have spyware, they all offer something a bit different. I am going to recommend what I use because I feel it is easiest for the newcomer.

1) Right click and download this file (which is called Bittornado).
2) Install
3) Pat yourself on the back, you're mostly done.

Now what?
Remember those trackers I told you about? Well now is the time to go to them... Here are a couple to get you started:
VIP-Torrents.com
Torrentspy.com

Okay, so open VIP-Torrents in another window, and lets walk through this.
Pick a category you are interested in, lets go to the Iron Chef Category under TV Shows.

What do all those columns mean?
Since: Not really important, but this is when the file was originally listed on the tracker (vip-torrents.com is called a tracker, remember?).
Torrents: Here are the links to the file, see that 2000th Dish Special on the top? Don't you *really* want to watch that? Okay, well right click that link, and save it to your desktop (or a folder on your desktop, if you like to keep things tidy). This will *not* start downloading the actual tv show yet, you are just downloading the file that will allow Bittorrent to connect to others to download the file. Reread that if you didn't get it.
Filesize: The size of the.. uh.. file that you will eventually have downloaded.
Seeds: Now this is important. This is how many people have the completed file and are sharing it. If it is zero, you will *not* be able to download the complete file, so don't bother. As long as this is atleast 1 you are okay, but of course the bigger the number, the faster your download speed will be.
DLs: (sometimes called Peers) This is how many others are downloading the file right now. The bigger this number, generally the better as well, because while *everyone* is downloading they are sharing too.
Type:: This usually just gives some info about the file. For TV Shows it mentions where it is ripped from (a vcr, or tv card on your computer etc). For music it will be the bitrate of the song (the higher a bitrate, the better quality the song will sound).

Okay, so you right clicked and saved that Iron Chef file right? Now, you can go to your desktop, and double click on that file. It will open the Bittornado window, and then ask you where you would like to save the file. Now the download will begin.

Some more explanation of the BT window (with screenshot)

And that is it. If you minimize the window it will sit in your system tray (next to your clock, as a grey square that says BT on it. When that square turns white, your file is done. If you double click the square it will reopen the download window (or you can just hover over it to see some quick stats on the download).

I usually try to keep my ratio to atleast 1.0 (which means you have uploaded as much as you have downloaded, but if there is nobody else grabbing the file it is not always possible). When you are done downloading (and sharing) click finish and the window will close. Now you can play the file that you have just downloaded (you *must* close the BT window first, as it locks the files when it is open).

Something else to keep in mind is BT downloads bits and pieces of the file at a time, not in any particular order, which means even if you have 98% of the file complete, you will not be able to play it.

Also, if you need to restart your computer, or resume the download at a later time, click cancel on the window. Then when you are ready to resume the download, just double click on the torrent file sitting on your desktop (the white document icon with the BT on it). You can stop and resume downloading as much as you like. After the tv show (or whatever you are downloading) is complete, you can delete the torrent file.

Moving forward:
Creating/uploading your own torrent files
Port forwarding to make your downloads faster