We tend to use "file-sharing" and "peer-to-peer" interchangeably these days, but they aren't really the same thing. P2P systems allow users to to send files directly back-and-forth to one another, but they are only one part of the file-sharing universe. Most of the things that wind up on the KaZaa network or the major BitTorrent trackers got there via Internet Relay Chat (IRC) or File Transfer Protocol (FTP).

It all starts with a scene release group. If you've ever downloaded an album or a TV show, you may have noticed a seemingly random three-character string at the end of the filename; that's the name of a release group. These are the hardcore file-sharers who, in some cases, have access to advance copies of CD's or have high-end digital TV equipment capable of dumping tonight's episode of Boston Legal out to an XviD file in about ten minutes. They also, uniformly, have access to very high-speed connections and secure, private servers.

When something is ready to go, these scene releasers distribute it among themselves using IRC and FTP, very old protocols as the Internet goes. IRC is the precursor to today's chatrooms, but very obtuse and not friendly to average users. It is perfect for computer nerds and is good for sending files around to a group of people. It requires a central server for everybody to connect to, but it can be made private, so you can keep out unwanted MPAA/RIAA spies. It also requires you to be fluent in leetspeak.

FTP is even simpler. A file (say, a copy of the German "Mr. 3000" DVD) sits on a server somewhere. You open your FTP client, connect to the server, locate the appropriate directory, select the file and double-click it. These types of distribution are the backbone of Internet file-sharing, and comprise the biggest problem the big media corporations face in trying to stop it -- no matter what they do to the infrastructure of P2P networks, or to the individual file-sharers involved, IRC and FTP will still exist, as will dozens, if not hundreds, of scene releasers, ready, willing and able to do the initial distribution.

Furthermore, they face another insurmountable challenge from Usenet. Usenet is a decades-old network that used to be an alternative to the then-closed Internet, and now is comprised of distributed newsgroups. Like IRC, Usenet is something of a pain in the ass for the typical end-user, especially when it comes to downloading large multimedia files. Reliable Usenet service is generally only available by buying an account from a provider such as Newsfeeds, and most such services limit the amount you can download per day.

But unlike every popular P2P service, Usenet can be totally anonymous. You can post anonymously, and nobody can see what you're downloading. File-sharing on Usenet predates Napster by at least a decade (indeed, I first discovered the world of MP3 sharing through Usenet in early 1998) and has proven robust during the last several years of P2P ups and downs. While it might have been true that Usenet wasn't a threat to corporate power a few years ago, I think it is now clear that a significant number of people want to participate in file-sharing and will pursue inconvenient means to do so. When the big BitTorrent sites collapsed last month, many users, newbies and vets alike, flooded the big Usenet providers. In fact, discussion sites covering the BitTorrent topic at the time seemed to uniformly recommend Usenet as the best alternative to P2P (see threads such as those found at dslreports.com).

Though the corporate lobbies would never admit it, many have speculated that they would be content to stifle file-sharing, rather than wholly eradicate it. I suspect that is the case, but that it's too late for them to accomplish that. The file-sharing ethic is too entrenched in too much of Generations X and Y for the vast majority of file-sharers to simply stop if their favorite P2P tool gets taken away. The roles played by IRC, FTP and Usenet in the file-sharing process are too much for Big Media to overcome, and make up one more reason why they need to change their strategy.

But wait -- "file-sharing ethic?" In my next post I'll try to tackle the ethics and/or morals of file-sharing which, if anyone were reading this, will be sure to piss off half of them.