Bringing the file-sharing community to mobile devices is hardly anything new. With web interfaces galore, µTorrent, eMule, Azureus and many others have found their place among Palm and Windows portable devices. With the advent of the iPhone and iTouch, two devices that bring true mobile computer one step closer to reality, many believed file-sharing wasn't too far behind. Today, WickedPsyched reports success in their efforts to operate the BitTorrent protocol via the iPhone.

The efforts of the development group didn't exactly reinvent the wheel. However, they did manage to implement code from Transmission, a Linux BitTorrent client, to work on the iPhone. Using the word "work" might be an overstatement, as the current implementation is spotty at best.

"We managed to get this code from this wonderful site: http://www.transmissionbt.com/index.php running on the iPhone. Lots of fun now for some real time downloads etc. I've posted the binary of the cli above for those eager to get at it before it makes it to cydia. I'm using a legal torrent file from VMWARE here just to prove it works. Good times, I can finally close the book on all this crazy torrent stuff!"

Now, before anyone goes off and starts filling their iPhones with content, the site has several disclaimers. One, the developers highly discourage using AT&T's EDGE network for BitTorrent downloading. Apparently, their attempts to do so were not overwhelmingly successful, and were subsequently disconnected when attempting to download a small application. Additionally, the current implementation of the client is command-line only, and its capability to upload is questionable.

"This is a screen grabby after reconnecting via wireless after a quick Terminal.app test over EDGE - clearly I don't think it is uploading... but even so, it does not take a rocket scientist to work out that this could be erm... well "iffy" to say the least..."

So if you're a die-hard BitTorrent fan with an iPhone, reside near a WIFI hotspot, and enjoy command line clients, this latest iteration might your cup of tea. The iPhone/iTouch BitTorrent client might be in its primitive stages, but then again, so it mobile computing. Expect great things from both philosophies in the coming years.

This story is filed in these Slyck News categories
BitTorrent :: Independent/Other Development

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