DC++ is a

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and

open-source Open source is source code that is made freely available for possible modification and redistribution. Products include permission to use the source code, design documents, or content of the product. The open-source model is a decentralized sof ...

peer-to-peer Peer-to-peer (P2P) computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads between peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the network. They are said to form a peer-to-peer ...

file-sharing File sharing is the practice of distributing or providing access to digital media, such as computer programs, multimedia (audio, images and video), documents or electronic books. Common methods of storage, transmission and dispersion include r ...

client Client(s) or The Client may refer to: * Client (business) * Client (computing), hardware or software that accesses a remote service on another computer * Customer or client, a recipient of goods or services in return for monetary or other valuabl ...

that can be used for connecting to the Direct Connect network or to the ADC protocol. It is developed primarily by Jacek Sieka, nicknamed arnetheduck.

History and background

DC++ is a free and open-source alternative to the original client, NeoModus Direct Connect (NMDC); it connects to the same file-sharing network and supports the same file-sharing protocol. One of the reasons commonly attributed to the popularity of DC++ is that it has no

adware Adware, often called advertising-supported software by its developers, is software that generates revenue for its developer by automatically generating online advertisements in the user interface of the software or on a screen presented to the ...

of any kind, unlike NMDC. Many other clients exist for the Direct Connect network, and most of these are DC++ "mods": modified versions of DC++, based on DC++'s source code. A partial list of DC++ mods is given below. Some of these clients were developed for specialized communities (e.g. music-sharing communities), or in order to support specific experimental features, or perhaps features that have been rejected from inclusion in DC++ itself. An example of an experimental feature is

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, which was initially implemented in BCDC++ and later adopted by DC++. , DC++ had around 90% market share of the Direct Connect community.

Forks

An advantage of the

free and open-source Free and open-source software (FOSS) is a term used to refer to groups of software consisting of both free software and open-source software where anyone is freely licensed to use, copy, study, and change the software in any way, and the source ...

nature of DC++ is that several mods have been released which add features to the original client. Many users send patches to DC++ which are included in future releases, but some features are rejected by the developer. Stated reasons for rejecting a patch are because they are coded poorly, or that the feature is frivolous, abusable or overly specialized, and does not belong in the main client. Examples include: upload bandwidth limiting (many users feel that upload bandwidth limiting is a form of cheating, while other users not using a

full-duplex A duplex communication system is a point-to-point system composed of two or more connected parties or devices that can communicate with one another in both directions. Duplex systems are employed in many communications networks, either to allow ...

network connection can only achieve reasonable download speeds by limiting uploads), colorized chat, specialized operator functions (e.g. client/share checking). The developers of some forks contribute features and bug fixes back

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to DC++.

Client software comparison

General

Operating system support

Interface and programming

Features

References

External links

DC++
(Official website)
DC++ Webhelp
{{DEFAULTSORT:DC Direct Connect network Free file sharing software Free software programmed in C++ Windows-only free software 1999 software