Rant: Why do people use rar files for videos?

[Cheesemoo]

I got 99 problems but compression ain't one.

 

[jagec]

How else are you supposed to span a multi-MB file across dozens of 3.5" floppy disks?

 

[Chaotic42]

WTH is wrong with RAR? WinRAR is, or used to be, the first thing that I would put on a system.

The only thing I don't like about it is that it isn't completely open.

 

[Cerb]

How else are you supposed to span a multi-MB file across dozens of 3.5" floppy disks?

Zip, of course. You use the last disk first, and if a single bit is bad, across the whole set, you're boned.

Those were the days...there are a lot of things I miss, but at least as many that I don't!

 

[Ichinisan]

Not only do some use rar files, but they feel the need to split it up in a million pieces. I can't do anything with that shit, use tar.gz, .7z or .zip or hell, why even try to compress it, it's a video, it's not going to compress well anyway just leave it alone. Stop it!

/rant.

It only makes sense when they do the initial release through a newsgroup. They have limited retention and error correction. People use IRC / FTP to supplement the missing or corrupted pieces.

I always loved that I could download what was available on a newsgroup, even if parts were missing, then find a torrent for the same release with the same files. After checking the existing files, the torrent would be 9X% complete and would download the rest very quickly before seeding.

I'm not a movie pirate, but I've used newsgroups and torrents for ISOs and such that I had no other way to obtain.

 

[Ichinisan]

Torrents can work in tandem with newsgroup parted RAR releases if warez kiddies knew what the hell they were doing. I've downloaded huge releases that were missing a couple pieces and used a torrent to fill-in the blanks....simultaneously reviving a dead torrent that was missing major parts from the swarm; which I restored. Since I downloaded the bulk of
It through a newsgroup, I downloaded it hundreds of times faster than I could have by torrent alone.

...and where do you get the impression that parted RAR = porn? Almost all PC/console warez and scener-released movies are released this way.

Oh. I've been in this thread before.

 

[pcslookout]

RAR files will be around forever! I hope they never get rid of them.