Free but risky... is it worth it? (Limewire)

Member Name: Great_reviewer07

Product:	Limewire
Date:	15/03/09 (943 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Quick & simple to use

Disadvantages: Illegal, danger of viruses

LimeWire is a file sharing network which is used by millions all over the world to download music, videos and pictures.

LimeWire was first released back in 2000 & since then has become one of the biggest file sharing networks on the planet, it's available in 31 languages.

LimeWire is capable of running on any computer whether it be Windows or Mac & is extremely simple to download. Simply type in Limewire on google then click on the link provided which will forward you to their website. Downloading Limewire only takes a minute or two & during the downloading process you are asked where you want your music to be saved, this is so if you have downloaded music from another place like iTunes you may want your Limewire music to go in the same folder. You simply find the folder you want & double click, this means that you wont have to be looking for your music for ages because it's saved in a completely different file.

One of the great things about Limewire is that you can sync it to your iTunes library so everything you download from Limewire will go straight into your iTunes library when you request it to be. This took me a while to figure out how to do when I first got iTunes but it only takes a minute when you know how & I now do it automatically without even thinking. When on iTunes you simply go to file, then click 'add folder to library' there is an option to add a single file to your library but this can be very time consuming if you have a lot of music as it means that you will have to sift through all your tracks just to find a certain song whereas if you select add folder this will import any new music in the folder even if it's just one song.

LimeWire isn't just for downloading music, you have the option to download programmes as well such as Windows or Mac programmes that otherwise you may have to pay for on their respective websites. I think this is a nice touch however I would never download a programme from LimeWire as you run the risk of viruses. If you're going to use LimeWire on a regular basis, no matter what you're planning on downloading you will need to make sure you have a firewall installed in your computer, I currently use AVG Free on my laptop & it works wonders, it scans everything I download & if it detects a virus it will be removed automatically. This really is the only way to guarantee that your computer wont get infected because if you don't have a firewall installed it's almost inevitable that your computer will contract viruses & these can have minor to major consequences for you. It can start on the minor scale from things like freezing & pop ups to the major end of the scale where you could become a victim of identity fraud so it's important you're aware of your security settings before downloading anything.

Another great thing about LimeWire is the speed that things download, this ultimately will depend on your internet connection but if you have a good one & you choose a file with enough servers then your file will download in no time. The files will then automatically be in your chosen file(s) for you to do what you wish with them. On LimeWire you have the capabilities to download multiple files at once, when you reach the maximum which I believe is about 7 files at once then the ones after will be put in a queue therefore as soon as one thing finishes downloading the next one will start & so on. This is a really quick & easy thing to do things as it means you don't have to wait around until one things finished downloading so you can select the next thing, if they're queued you can just select them all at once, go make yourself a cup of tea & wait for them to finish downloading!

The layout of LimeWire is incredibly simple, on the left hand side you will see your search options, this enables you to choose which type of file you wish to download. If you're looking to download music which is what LimeWire is mainly used for you click on Audio, then you have the option to enter a song name, artist name & album name or of course for a more defined search you can enter all three. You also have the option to select which style of music you're looking for however this option is a bit redundant in my case as I tend to just enter the names or artists, songs & albums. Upon entering your information & clicking search, depending on what you've entered you will get a list of songs to download. If you get a list of 100 songs which are all the same then the best bet would be to click on the one right at the top as this will be the one with the most servers. Servers are really just people like you & me who have previously downloaded the track & have decided to share it with everyone else, the more servers available, the faster your download will be. When downloading music or anything you download you will be given an option of whether or not you want to share your files with other LimeWire users, personally I don't share mine because I've heard it's safer not to but there's no set rule that everyone must follow so it's up to the individual user.

When first using LimeWire it can look very daunting however the layout is extremely simple to use & you'll get used to it after 10 minutes of use. There are however a lot of buttons that you can click on, this can be a bit off-putting but to be honest most of them don't need to be used anyway, the only things I use is the search & download buttons, the rest I simply ignore.

I think I forgot to mention the best thing about LimeWire... it's completely free! For those of you that don't like paying for music on iTunes then LimeWire is an invaluable application for you. However there is a LimeWire download that you pay for so when you download LimeWire be very careful that you're clicking on the free version as I think the other one is about £30 a year or something similar, not a lot but why pay when you can get the equivalent for free! When downloading LimeWire will try to pressure you into downloading the 'Pro' version which is the one you pay for, they tell you about all the added benefits but when you think about it logically the only reason you're downloading LimeWire is because you want to have the ability to download free files which is exactly what the free version does so don't let them persuade you otherwise.

One of the bad things about LimeWire, besides the viruses is that when you're downloading a song sometimes (rarely) they will not play or it'll end up being something completely different to what you thought it would be i.e. you could be trying to download Eminem & end up with Girls Aloud! However when you've been using LimeWire for a while you'll become aware of which files are genuine and which aren't and even if it does happen on the odd occasion, yes it's annoying but it's not something that would put me off using LimeWire. Another thing I should add is that if you're planning on using LimeWire to download films or pictures then be careful because there's a lot of 'adult content' on LimeWire & I don't think there's any way of preventing it so if parents are going to let their children use LimeWire then I suggest you monitor what they're downloading as there's some very strong stuff on LimeWire.

Overall I would highly recommend LimeWire to anyone who objects to shelling out on iTunes as it can be quite expensive if you download a lot of music. LimeWire is incredibly simple to use, I've used it for about 3 or 4 years now & have had no problems whatsoever, it's really easy to get used to. The only thing I will say is check your firewall before you begin downloading as it's better to be safe than sorry!

I better just add that Limewire is illegal, I don't use it anymore as it's illegal, if you want to download music I suggest using iTunes.

Summary: Essential for any music lover

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