paranoid newbie

[kan200]

i'm a pretty casual user of file sharing programs and am not too knowlegable of the inner workings of bit torrent but the last two files i downloaded contained a file named 'system information' which made me a bit paranoid as when i opened it it seemed to be details of my computer. obviously this becomes available to others once i start distributing it. should i worry about this? the thing that made me even more paranoid was when i tried to delete this file it said i couldnt cos it was being used by someone else. any words of wisdom much appreciated!

[SeK612]

From you're post I'd say you're possibly talking about .nfo files. Most torrents should come with them and they explain about the release (such as the release group and how to use the file).

These are harmless to you're machine (essentially the format is use as it allows for the correct rendering of things like ascii art used in the files). By default they will show system information of the computer the file has been opened on as that's the function the .nfo causes. To view these files correctly you need to open them in a text editor like notepad (or google for a .nfo viewer).

As for you're computer you should be running an up to date virus checker and firewall especially if you're downloading files from via a filesharing program which combined with a little knowledge and common sense should protect you from possible problems :)

[kan200]

thanks a lot! i thought i was probably just being thick! still you dont know if you dont ask! :)