3 ms·

I don't think BitTorrent ever got popular in Japan - this survey [1] says that only 6% of file-sharing users used BitTorrent in 2006. I think these entirely new

I don't think BitTorrent ever got popular in Japan - this survey [1] says that only 6% of file-sharing users used BitTorrent in 2006. I think these entirely new systems were natural developments out of other, older systems from which everyone then moved, like WinMX and Limewire. [1] http://www.infoworld.com/d/developer-world/number-file-sharers-in-japan-rises-sharply-590 http://www.infoworld.com/d/developer-world/number-file-share...

gwern 13y ago
> I think these entirely new systems were natural developments out of other, older systems from which everyone then moved, like WinMX and Limewire. But then why didn't they move to BitTorrent or Freenet? Those are equally natural moves, and superior in some respects. (Look at the system requirements for Perfect Dark, and reflect that that doesn't even buy you security if the firm's claims are true.)
- a_bonobo 13y ago
  I think one thing to consider might be a language-gap - not many Japanese speak English, and read English pretty slow, to the point that Japanese Internet is sometimes its own island. BitTorrent started in the English-speaking world and had Japanese support a while later (edit: and there are still few torrenting sites in Japanese), maybe too late and the other new clients had already moved in?
- creamyhorror 13y ago
  It's the combined effects of - their unawareness of BitTorrent (the Galapagos effect) - the unwillingness to/difficulty of using English-language torrent sites - a lack of Japanese champions of BT BT simply never took off there, and Freenet hasn't taken off anywhere from what I know. I recall coming across a single BT site that was being used by a small but significant number of Japanese, which was surprising, but everything we heard indicated that WinNY and Share dominated there. Similarly, BT isn't a major player in Korea (which has its own networks), but dominates in China. The Internet is a series of interconnected but independently evolving regions. Also, people will keep using a risky network if the chance of arrest is low and the benefits substantial enough. Humans are lazy, after all.

gwern 13y ago

> I think these entirely new systems were natural developments out of other, older systems from which everyone then moved, like WinMX and Limewire. But then why didn't they move to BitTorrent or Freenet? Those are equally natural moves, and superior in some respects. (Look at the system requirements for Perfect Dark, and reflect that that doesn't even buy you security if the firm's claims are true.)

a_bonobo 13y ago
I think one thing to consider might be a language-gap - not many Japanese speak English, and read English pretty slow, to the point that Japanese Internet is sometimes its own island. BitTorrent started in the English-speaking world and had Japanese support a while later (edit: and there are still few torrenting sites in Japanese), maybe too late and the other new clients had already moved in?
creamyhorror 13y ago
It's the combined effects of - their unawareness of BitTorrent (the Galapagos effect) - the unwillingness to/difficulty of using English-language torrent sites - a lack of Japanese champions of BT BT simply never took off there, and Freenet hasn't taken off anywhere from what I know. I recall coming across a single BT site that was being used by a small but significant number of Japanese, which was surprising, but everything we heard indicated that WinNY and Share dominated there. Similarly, BT isn't a major player in Korea (which has its own networks), but dominates in China. The Internet is a series of interconnected but independently evolving regions. Also, people will keep using a risky network if the chance of arrest is low and the benefits substantial enough. Humans are lazy, after all.