The document discusses the history of downloading and file sharing technologies from the 1990s to early 2000s. It describes how mp3 files allowed for smaller, more shareable music files starting in the mid-1990s. Winamp and Napster then enabled widespread sharing of mp3s between users on the emerging internet. While Napster faced legal issues for facilitating copyright infringement, other peer-to-peer networks like Gnutella and BitTorrent provided decentralized sharing of files between users.

1. DOWNLOADING

2. The HistoryWhat We Download

3. The Internet The origins of the Internet reach back to research in the 1960s It was commissioned by the United States government for military purposes. Commercialised in the mid 90’s

4. Mp3 Created in 1991 and released in 1993. Mp3 = MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer 3 At 128 kbit/s – 11 times smaller than original source. Removes High and low frequency sounds undetectable by human hearing. Allowed music to be shared. Mp3 appeared on internet in 1994. Popularity increased with the creation of Winamp

5. Nullsofts’s Winamp A Media player Created in 1997 One of the first and most popular Mp3 player. Available for free. Its popularity, and ease of use aided in the file-sharing of Mp3.

6. Napster Created in 1999 Created by Shawn Fanning while attending Northeastern University in Boston. Software allowed music (Mp3) files to be shared between other users.

7. Gnutella Gnutella works by having a large circle of users (called nodes),using the gnutella client software. On initial startup, the software must find at least one other node. When conducting a search, a request is sent to each node , who forwards the request to all its connected nodes, and on and on... (initially) up to 7 times, until the request is found If a search request turns up a result, the node that has the result contacts the searcher.

9. Created in 2001 by Bram Cohen

10. It works by having the owner of a file, split and send each part of the file to whoever wants it.

11. As the receivers all receive different parts of the file, they in turn share their part of the file to the others