Gnutella Community

IMPORTANT!

This version of BearShare introduces some changes to the default settings. If you have just upgraded BearShare, we recommend that you exit the program, delete the FreePeers.ini file located in the directory where you installed the program, and then run BearShare again. You will be prompted with the Setup Wizard, and the program settings will be optimized for you and everyone else on the network using new recommended values.

Freeloading

Freeloading is taking files without giving, and is highly frowned upon by users who contribute. If you don't have files, you can still contribute by running BearShare, since you are adding the 'glue' necessary to keep the network together. As you download files they are automatically added to your shared directories.

It is very important to share files. Without sharing, the Gnutella community cannot support itself, and the people who are willing to share will become reluctant to support freeloaders.

Make sure you share any files that you download, and any files that you already have. You should see people being uploading from you almost immediately if you have at least a small collection of files.

Sometimes, people think they are sharing but they aren't. To make sure you are sharing, click the "Share files" checkbox in the Uploads page, and make sure you are connected to the Gnutella network by checking "Auto connect".

If you are behind a firewall, be very sure to check the firewall box in the Connection page of the Setup Dialog.

Getting Help

For someone who is not used to a true peer to peer program like BearShare, it can be a little difficult to begin using the program and getting good results right away.

Don't despair! Help is just a click away. You can press the Help button from the BearShare Main Window to bring up the complete documentation. You can also press the Community button to access the BearShare.Net forums.

BearShare.Net

BearShare.Net exists so that users can help other users. If you have problems connecting, searching, downloading, or sharing, you can come to BearShare.Net and tap the knowledge of the entire community.

We encourage you to visit BearShare.Net frequently, to stay informed of new developments and new techniques that will enhance the sharing experience.


If the animation is playing, then your Onflow Rich Media
plugin is correctly installed. Soon, you'll get a rich multimedia
experience on BearShare.Net!