Torrent Software Download Mac Free

Written by Mårten Björk •

Using torrents, you can quickly download movies, films and other files to your Mac. A torrent is a file with the file extension .torrent. This article will explain how to download torrents on a Mac.

Are torrent files legal?

Torrent files are not illegal, but downloading copyrighted material is. However, there are many torrent files out there containing non-copyrighted material which is why we choose to publish this article.

Torrent applications for the Mac. There are various torrent applications available for Mac users. In this article, we’ll tell you about our favorite application, Transmission. It’s simple to use and free (we’re not paid to say this). Transmission is a great torrent application for Mac.

Torrent clients or downloader plays a very crucial role when it comes to downloading large files, such as movies, software, games etc. But the catch is, you just can’t download a torrent file using your casual downloader.
BitLord is a free, simple P2P client for reliably downloading and streaming torrents on Mac and Windows platforms. It features a built-in torrent search function, bandwidth controls, automatic post configuration, detailed download statistics, RSS subscriptions, etc.
Once you have identified the torrent file to download, you can click or drag it into your free torrent software. Because the protocol benefits from hundreds of millions of active torrent programs installed on home computers across the world, the distribution of files from many recipients to your home computer is fast and efficient.

How torrent downloads work on the Mac

Without going all geeky, we’ll now try to explain how torrents work.

Someone downloads a .torrent file

The first thing that happens is that a user downloads a .torrent file. This file is very small and contains only a list of the files that are to be downloaded and some other stuff used by the user’s torrent application.

Opening the torrent

The next thing that happens is that the person that downloaded the file opens it with an application designed to handle this kind of file (more about these applications later). This application will try to find other people trying to download the same file. The torrent application will now grab pieces of the file from the other computers and put them together into one file. The user’s torrent application will in its turn start to share pieces that you have downloaded with other users. You get some and you give some.

Torrent applications for the Mac

There are various torrent applications available for Mac users. In this article, we’ll tell you about our favorite application, Transmission. It’s simple to use and free (we’re not paid to say this).

Transmission

Transmission is a great torrent application for Mac. It’s easy to understand, it works pretty flawlessly and it has most of the features that one wants. To download Transmission, click here (download will begin immediately).

Adding torrent files to Transmission

Create a new downloads folder

Okay, let’s assume that you have downloaded Transmission and want to start downloading files. The first thing you should do is create a folder where your downloads will be put. For instance, name it “Downloads” and place it on your desktop.

Tell Transmission that you want your downloads to be out into that folder

Now, open Transmission and go to the top menu. Click Transmission > Preferences. In the preferences window, click the second tab labeled “Transfers”. A drop-down menu is now available and from that menu, choose the folder where you want your downloads to be put (the folder you just created).

Get a torrent file

The next thing you do is download a .torrent file. You do this from your web browser. Find a web site that offers torrents and find a download button. When you click it, a .torrent file will be downloaded to your computer.

Open the .torrent file with Transmission

Now drag the torrent file into Transmission and it will be visible in the list. All the files that you want to download will now be created in the Downloads folder. These files are useless and broken until Transmission says that the files are 100% downloaded. You can throw the .torrent file away after adding it to Transmission.

Download problems that may occur

The torrent download won’t start

The problem with torrents is that they depend on someone seeding the file from his or her computer. Seeding means that you allow other users to download parts of the file from your computer. Sometimes no users are downloading or seeding the file and therefore it can’t be downloaded.

Try to find another file. Finding good torrents might be tricky, but have patience.

Azureus for Mac Editor's Review

'Azureus' is a BitTorrent client that is written in Java.
Because of its development framework, the application is highly portable. It's used by Windows and Linux users the same way as Mac OS X users use it.
The application has a very large 'Preferences' panel. This program has the biggest number of features from all the BitTorrent clients that I've tested.
It has so many features that I doubt that users need all of them. The good thing is that they exist. Therefore, if you want to practice your networking skills, then this client is a good program for it.
It has advanced configuration support for bandwidth management, support for editing the tracker list, and advanced statistics of the download progress. It even has a real-time map of the peers from a swarm. If you are a beginner, this will help you understand the BitTorrent technology.
The client uses a single listening port for all torrents. Thus, if you are using a router, the port forward will be done very easily. If you have the UPnP (Universal Plug-and-Play) enabled and your router has the support for it, then the port can be automatically mapped.

Torrent For Mac Free Download

The plugin support of this client is generous. You can install them directly from the program. The application downloads the torrent file and it automatically downloads and installs the plugin. Since it uses the BitTorrent technology, when you install a plugin you become part of the distribution network for the plugin. This method is also used by the client updates, so you don't need to check the producer's Website every time. Every installation of new plugins or updates requires you to restart the client.
The online documentation (FAQ) of this application is very good. If you need more than that, then Azureus has a built-in IRC client that you can use for tech support.
Azureus has the support for DHT. It's not compatible with all the other BitTorrent client implementations of DHT, but it's good enough for a proper use.
The program has a built-in tracker server. Therefore, if you want to host your own torrents this application makes it possible. Since you can host them, you can also create them. The program has a good tool that can be used for torrent creation.
Since the third version, this application is code-named Zudeo. This isn't just a simple code name. The third version of this client has the BitTorrent client features that were implemented in 2.5. However, Zudeo is more than that. It's a complete distribution platform. I think the producers defined best what Zudeo is, so I'll give you a quote from the official FAQ: 'Zudeo is an application powered by Azureus 3.0 that enables users to publish and share creations in high-quality (DVD or HD-quality videos, high-fidelity audio), with unprecedented ease of use. The process takes minutes, and the videos can reach substantially more viewers worldwide, almost instantly'.
Pluses: It's a great BitTorrent client. It has a large 'Preferences' panel. It's plug-in capable and it uses the BitTorrent protocol for plugins and updates distribution.