Little Bits of Knowledge.........

[Osprey]

post whatever might confuse anyone while doing something.......

I'll start
32-bit and 64-bit explained
We'll look at your computer system as three parts: the hardware, the operating system and the application programs. At the end we'll look at some of the common questions people have.
32-bit versus 64-bit

As the number of bits increases there are two important benefits.
More bits means that data can be processed in larger chunks which also means more accurately.
More bits means our system can point to or address a larger number of locations in physical memory.

32-bit systems were once desired because they could address (point to) 4 Gigabytes (GB) of memory in one go. Some modern applications require more than 4 GB of memory to complete their tasks so 64-bit systems are now becoming more attractive because they can potentially address up to 4 billion times that many locations.

Since 1995, when Windows 95 was introduced with support for 32-bit applications, most of the software and operating system code has been 32-bit compatible.

Here is the problem, while most of the software available today is 32-bit, the processors we buy are almost all 64-bit.
So how long will the transition from 32-bit to 64-bit systems take?

The main issue is that your computer works from the hardware such as the processor (or CPU, as it is called), through the operating system (OS), to the highest level which is your applications. So the computer hardware is designed first, the matching operating systems are developed, and finally the applications appear.

We can look back at the transition from 16-bit to 32-bit Windows on 32-bit processors. It took 10 years (from 1985 to 1995) to get a 32-bit operating system and even now, more than 15 years later, there are many people still using 16-bit Windows applications on older versions of Windows.

The hardware and software vendors learnt from the previous transition, so the new operating systems have been released at the same time as the new processors. The problem this time is that there haven't been enough 64-bit applications. Ten years after the PC's first 64-bit processors, installs of 64-bit Windows are only now exceeding those of 32-bit Windows. Further evidence of this inertia is that you are probably reading this tutorial because you are looking to install your first 64-bit software.
Your computer system in three parts

Now we'll look at those three components of your system. In simple terms they are three layers with the processor or CPU as the central or lowest layer and the application as the outermost or highest layer as shown below:


To run a 64-bit operating system you need support from the lower level: the 64-bit CPU.

To run a 64-bit application you need support from all lower levels: the 64-bit OS and the 64-bit CPU.

This simplification will be enough for us to look what happens when we mix the 32-bit and 64-bit parts. But if you want to understand the issue more deeply then you will also need to consider the hardware that supports the CPU and the device drivers that allow the OS and the applications to interface with the system hardware.
What 32-bit and 64-bit combinations are compatible and will work together?

This is where we get to the practicalities and can start answering common questions.

The general rule is that 32-bit will run on a lower level 64-bit component but 64-bit does not run on a lower level 32-bit component:
A 32-bit OS will run on a 32-bit or 64-bit processor without any problem.
A 32-bit application will run on a 32-bit or 64-bit OS without any problem.
But a 64-bit application will only run on a 64-bit OS and a 64-bit OS will only run on a 64-bit processor.

These two tables illustrate the same rule:Table 1 — What is compatible if I have a 32-bit CPU?
Processor (CPU) 32-bit 32-bit 32-bit 32-bit
Operating System (OS) 32-bit 32-bit 64-bit 64-bit
Application Program 32-bit 64-bit 32-bit 64-bit
Yes No No No

Table 2 — What is compatible if I have a 64-bit CPU?
Processor (CPU) 64-bit 64-bit 64-bit 64-bit
Operating System (OS) 64-bit 64-bit 32-bit 32-bit
Application Program 64-bit 32-bit 32-bit 64-bit
Yes Yes Yes No


The main reason that 32-bit will always run on 64-bit is that the 64-bit components have been designed to work that way. So the newer 64-bit systems are backward-compatible with the 32-bit systems (which is the main reason most of us haven't moved to 64-bit software).

An example of backward compatibility is Windows 64-bit. It has software called WOW64 that provides compatibility by emulating a 32-bit system. See the article How Windows 7 / Vista 64 Support 32-bit Applications if you want to know more. One important point that is made in that article is that it is not possible to install a 32-bit device driver on a 64-bit operating system. This is because device drivers run in parallel to the operating system. The emulation is done at the operating system level so it is available to the higher layer, the application, but it is not available to the device driver which runs on the same level.
Hardware virtualization is the exception to the rule

Another question many people have is whether a 32-bit system can run 64-bit software. As more people are looking to use 64-bit Windows they are wanting to try it out on their existing systems. So we are getting more questions about whether they can run it on their 32-bit processor or under their 32-bit OS.

Following the general rule, we would expect that you cannot run 64-bit software on a 32-bit system. Except that there is one exception called virtualization.

Virtualization creates a virtual system within the actual system. Virtualization can be achieved in hardware or software but it works best if the virtual machine is created in the system hardware. The guest operating system is not aware that there is a host operating system already running. This is the way that a 64-bit operating system can think that it is running on 64-bit hardware without being aware that there is a 32-bit operating system in the mix.

Tables 3 and 4 illustrate the result. Provided that the virtual machine can actually be created and isolated by the virtualizing software then the host OS is effectively removed from the equation, so I've grayed it out. We can now apply the general rules for a non-virtualized system to the three remaining layers.Table 3 — What is compatible if I have a 32-bit CPU and software virtualization?
Processor (CPU) 32-bit 32-bit 32-bit 32-bit
Host Operating System 32-bit 32-bit 32-bit 32-bit
Guest Operating System 32-bit 32-bit 64-bit 64-bit
Application Program 32-bit 64-bit 32-bit 64-bit
Yes No No No

Table 4 — What is compatible if I have a 64-bit CPU and software virtualization?
Processor (CPU) 64-bit 64-bit 64-bit 64-bit
Host Operating System 32/64-bit 32/64-bit 32/64-bit 32/64-bit
Guest Operating System 64-bit 64-bit 32-bit 32-bit
Application Program 64-bit 32-bit 32-bit 64-bit
Yes Yes Yes No


Before you hurry away to try running 64-bit in a virtual machine, you must check that your computer BIOS supports hardware virtualization. If it does not then hardware virtualization will not work even if the CPU does support it.
Emulation of the 64-bit CPU is not an option

All the feasible configurations that we have looked at so far have the processors (CPUs) running software that use the instruction set that is native to that processor. Running 64-bit software on a 32-bit processor doesn't work because the 64-bit instructions are not native to a 32-bit processor. But what if I could emulate a 64-bit processor using 32-bit software?

It is theoretically possible but practically impossible to emulate a 64-bit processor while running software on a 32-bit processor. Even if you can get non-native 64-bit emulation to work, the virtual machine that duplicates a 64-bit CPU would run very slowly because every 64-bit instruction has to be trapped and handled by the emulator. 64-bit memory pointers also have to be converted to work within the 32-bit address space.

Furthermore, my understanding is that the x86 (32-bit) processors used in PCs and Apple Macs are not able to completely emulate the x64 (64-bit) instruction set. Some 64-bit instructions cannot be trapped by the emulator. This causes the system to crash when the x86 processor tried to run those x64 instructions.


Answers to common questions about 32-bit and 64-bit systems
Will a 64-bit CPU run a 32-bit program on a 64-bit version of an OS?

Yes it will. 64-bit systems are backward-compatible with their 32-bit counterparts.
Will a 64-bit OS run a 32-bit application on a 64-bit processor?

Yes it will. Again, this is because of backward compatibility.
Can 64-bit applications contain 32-bit code?

Yes, many times 64-bit software will contain portions of 32-bit code.

Similarly 32-bit software (usually very old programs) can have some code in 16-bit which is why those 32-bit applications will usually fail to run properly on a 64-bit OS.
Can 16-bit applications or code run on 64-bit systems?

No, as we said previously. 16-bit code will NOT run on 64-bit OS because the designers did not provide backward-compatibility. This is one reason why some 32-bit programs will not work on 64-bit operating systems.
Can a 64-bit CPU with a 32-bit host OS run a virtual machine (VM) for a 64-bit guest OS?

Yes. It all depends upon the level of virtualization.

With software virtualization it is hardly likely to work, or if it does work it may be very slow.

Hardware virtualization will need to be supported by the CPU (e.g. with Intel-VT or AMD-V) and the BIOS.


Answers to common questions about 32- and 64-bit Windows
Can I run Windows 2000 and Windows XP on a 64-bit CPU, and use old software?

Yes, a 32-bit OS (Windows 2000 or XP) will run on a 64-bit processor.You should also be able to run older 32-bit software on a 64-bit OS.
Is a Windows Vista or Windows 7 license key valid for both 32-bit and 64-bit versions?

Yes, unless you have an OEM version. If it was installed on your computer when you bought it and you only have one Windows disk then it is almost certainly an OEM version and you will have to buy the other bit version if you want it. If you have two disks, one for 32-bit Windows and one for 64-bit Windows, then you have a non-OEM version so you get to choose which bit version you will use without having to buy another license. See Microsoft Answers for a discussion of these issues.

Remember, if you have only bought one license then, even if you have both bit versions on disk, you are only licensed to install and run one version on one computer.
How do find out if my system is 64-bit?

Microsoft provide resources to help you find out such as FAQ on 32-bit and 64-bit Windows and Taking the mystery our of 64-bit Windows.

I recommend that you look at downloading SecurAble from Gibson Research Corporation (GRC) which will tell you if you have a 64-bit processor with the useful features of hardware DEP and hardware virtualization.
How do I migrate my 32-bit system to 64-bit Windows?

There is no upgrade path from 32-bit to 64-bit Windows only from 64-bit Windows. You will almost certainly have to do a clean install of your 64-bit operating system, copy back your data files, and reinstall your 32-bit applications.

If you want to keep your old install then you can try dual booting or virtualization.
How do I run 32-bit software once I have installed 64-bit Windows?

Windows 7 64-bit provides a 32-bit compatibility mode called WOW32 (Windows 32-bit on Windows 64-bit) that should run most if not all your applications. See How Windows 64-bit supports 32-bit Applications.

If you have 32-bit application you want to run from the Command Prompt then you need to use the WOW64 version of cmd.exe. At the Start Menu select Run and enter the following command. Note that the %systemroot% variable points to your Windows folder so this will work even if Windows is not installed on C: drive:
%systemroot%\SysWOW64\cmd.exe


If your application won't run under Windows 64-bit then try XP Mode, Windows Virtual PC, or other virtualization solution. Be aware that XP Mode reduces your system security and so it should be used as a last resort.
How can I tell if my application is 32-bit or 64-bit?

There are a number of indicators of the bit type for your program but they are not definitive as you will see if you use guidelines like the following.
Windows installs your programs to these folders on your system drive:
'\Program Files' for 64-bit programs
'\Program Files (x86)' for 32-bit programs
In Task Manager, 32-bit processes will usually have a suffix of '*32' and 64-bit processes will not.

The reason that these indicators cannot be relied upon relates to the way 64-bit Windows installs software. 64-bit install packages usually install 64-bit applications or a mixture of 32- and 64-bit components but can even install only 32-bit components.

What determines where a component is installed is the registry setting for that component rather than the setting for the install package. Windows also assumes that all components are 32-bit unless told otherwise. This means that a 64-bit component not flagged as 64-bit will install to 32-bit folders and 32-bit registry keys but will execute as 64-bit.

You can, with the necessary knowledge, find the information yourself but there are better solutions:
Run a system information or audit tool such as Belarc Adviser. Just be aware that most of these types of applications are helpful but not definitive e.g. SIW, MSINFO.
I recommend running the PowerShell script from Auditing 32-Bit and 64-Bit Applications with PowerShell which will list all installed applications and their bitness. Just remember to run the 64-bit script to get all versions as the 32-bit script will not have access to the 64-bit portions of the registry.
If you want more detail about the modules used by a program then try Dependency Walker, which is also part of Microsoft development tools such as Visual Studio and Visual C++.
As with other software running under 64-bit Windows you will get the best results if you run the 32- or 64-bit version of Dependency Walker that matches the application you want to check. Remember that Windows 64-bit restricts access to the relevant 32-bit or 64-bit portions of the registry.
What are the differences between Windows 32-bit and 64-bit?

I've chosen to highlight the physical and logical differences between each version of desktop Windows as shown in Table 5. This table illustrates the progressive improvement of Windows 64-bit and indicates that Windows has a long way to go before it exhausts the capabilities of 64-bit processors.

Many of the limits in the 64-bit versions of Windows are design choices rather than limitations of the 64-bit CPUs. The number of physical processors is the most obvious as Windows Server editions support many more.

Hardware is also limited by design. For example, while 64-bit AMD and Intel CPUs use 64-bit memory pointers, the supporting chipsets only use a 52-bit physical address space (4 Petabytes) and a 48-bit virtual memory space (256 Terabytes). This is presently more than sufficient because Windows 7 64-bit only allows 192 GB of physical memory and 16 Terabytes (44-bits) of virtual memory.Table 5: Physical and Logical limits for Windows Versions
Numbers in parentheses indicate extended settings that are not the default and require compatible hardware
Version: XP Vista 7
Version Bits: 32 64 32 64 32 64
System:
Physical Processors 2 2 2 2 2 2
Logical Processors 32 64 32 64 32 256
System Cache 1 GB 1,024 GB 1 (2) GB 1,024 GB 1 (2) GB 1,024 GB
Physical Memory 4 GB 128 GB 4 GB 128 GB 4 GB 192 GB
Virtual Memory 4 GB 16,384 GB 4 GB 16,384 GB 4 GB 16,384 GB
Kernel 1 (2) GB 8 GB 2 GB 8 GB 2 GB 8 GB
User Process:
Physical Memory 2 (3) GB 2 (4) GB 2 (3) GB 8 GB 2 (4) GB 8 GB
Virtual Memory 2 (3) GB 2 (8,192) GB 2 (3) GB 2 (8,192) GB 2 (4) GB 2 (8,192) GB


Note 1. I have used Gigabytes (GB) for consistency even though it would be convenient to convert 1,024 GB to 1 TB.

Note 2. I've excluded the first 64-bit version of Windows XP (2002) because it has a different architecture. It used Intel Itanium (IA-64) CPUs which had an x86 processor built-in for compatibility. It was replaced by AMD's 64-bit architecture (x86-64) which extended the x86 instruction set and worked so well that it has been licensed by Intel and other chip makers. The name is commonly shortened to x64 as it is the most common 64-bit CPU type today.

http://www.techsupportalert.com/cont...-explained.htm

[Osprey]

Many a times when you download software you will get it as a ISO or a CD image file formats which are just a image of the actual CD drive. An ISO file needs to be burned on a CD or DVD so that you can use or install the software.

For those who do not have a CD / DVD burner this may cause a lot of problems as those files will be rendered as useless.

If you are one of those who do not have a CD / DVD burner or do not want to burn the image on a CD / DVD but still want to make those use the files inside the image you can do that with the help of MagicDisc.

MagicDisc Virual CD/DVD-ROM is a freeware that allows you to mount ISO files as a virtual CD or DVD drive.

You can mount up to 15 virtual CD / DVD drives using MagicDisc. In addition to this you can also create a image file (ISO) from a existing CD or DVD. Usage is pretty simple. Once you have installed the software. It will show up as a tray icon like shown below.



Right clicking on the icon will load a new menu using which you can mount or unmount and image files as a virtual CD / DVD drive. Selecting the virtual drive will show you options to mount or unmount the drive.



Clicking on mount will open a file dialog from where you can choose the image file and mount it as a virtual drive and will appear in your Windows Explorer. You can then install the software or copy the files using the mounted drive. Once you have finished use of the mounted drive you can simply click on the Unmount option to unmount the drive.

This is a very useful software as it supports many different types of image files along with supporting the default ISO files
BIN (CDRWin)
IMA/IMG (Generic disk images)
CIF (Easy CD Creator)
NRG (Nero – Burning ROM)
IMG/CCD (CloneCD)
MDF/MDS (Fantom CD)
VCD (Farstone Virtual Drive)
VaporCD (Noum Vapor CDROM)
P01/MD1/XA (Gear)
VC4/000 (Virtual CD)
VDI (Virtuo CD Manager)
C2D (WinOnCD)
BWI/BWT (BlinkWrite)
CDI (DiscJuggler)
TAO/DAO (Duplicator)
PDI (Instant Copy)

MagicDisc will work on Windows 9x / Me / 2000 / XP / 2003 and Vista based PC for 32 bit version and Windows XP / 2003 and Vista 64 bit editions.

Let me know if you found this software useful. Your comments are always welcome.

Download MagicDisc Virtual CD/DVD-ROM.

Here are some more things that might interest you
Free ISO Burner & Burn ISO Files to CD/DVD Free tool – Using these tools you can easily burn a ISO file to a CD or DVD.
Create ISO Files from any Folder – Want to create your own ISO files? Use this handy tool to create them.
Find Which Programs Can open Unknown File Types – Have you ever come across files that you are not aware of or have never seen before? Use this excellent free utility to find which application can open that file.

http://techie-buzz.com/how-to/mount-...dvd-drive.html

[Osprey]

Many fitness enthusiasts, particularly men, pursue weight training with the sole goal of building muscle mass. While the attractive outward appearance is nice, those guns can actually help increase your metabolism and even your mood.This article will give you a few key principles necessary for building muscle mass. It's the information you need to make the most of your current workouts.

Stimulating a muscle, or even multiple muscle groups, to grow in size is a relatively simple objective to meet. Muscles grow when they are given a stimulus (resistive exercise) that is of sufficient intensity. However, the intensity of the workout is not the only important factor. Recovery is just as key.

The first contributor to recovery is nutrition. Getting a snack that is a 60:40 mix of carbohydrate to protein within 40 minutes of finishing your workout is crucial. After the 40-minute mark, you body will start to pull nutrients from storage to help with recovery. The catch is, the same amount of nutrient storage is necessary to maximize recovery and size development. Essentially, if you work out hard but don’t have enough recovery nutrition, the body will use muscle mass to feed itself. It will break down the same muscles you're trying to build.

Snack on a turkey or peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole wheat bread, plain yogurt with fresh fruit, a protein bar or a nutritional protein drink.


http://health.howstuffworks.com/well...uscle-mass.htm

[Osprey]

Answer: Bittorrent networking is the most popular form of modern P2P (peer-to-peer) file sharing. Since 2006, bittorrent sharing has been the primary means for users to trade software, music, movies, and digital books online. Torrents are very unpopular with the MPAA, the RIAA, and other copyright authorities, but are much beloved by millions of college and university students around the planet.

Bittorrents (also known as "torrents") work by downloading small bits of files from many different web sources at the same time. Torrent downloading is extremely easy to use, and outside of a few torrent search providers, torrents themselves are free of user fees.

Torrent networking debuted in 2001. A Python-language programmer, Bram Cohen, created the technology with the intent to share it with everyone. And indeed, its popularity has taken off since 2005. The torrent community has now grown to millions of users worldwide in 2009. Because torrents strive to screen out dummy and corrupt files, are mostly free of adware/spyware, and achieve amazing download speeds, torrent popularity is still growing fast. By straight gigabytes of bandwidth used, bittorrent networking is the most popular activity on the Internet today.

How are torrents special? How is the torrent community different from Kazaa and other networks?

Answer: Like the other file-sharing networks (Kazaa, Limewire (now defunct), Gnutella, eDonkey, and Shareaza) Bittorrent's primary purpose is to distribute large media files to private users. Unlike most P2P networks, however, torrents stand out for 5 major reasons:

Torrent networking is NOT a publish-subscribe model like Kazaa; instead, torrents are true Peer-to-Peer networking where the users themselves do the actual file serving.
Torrents enforce 99% quality control by filtering out corrupted and dummy files, ensuring that downloads contain only what they claim to contain. There is still some abuse of the system, but if you use a community torrent searcher like www.isohunt.com, users will warn you when a torrent is a fake or dummy file.
Torrents actively encourage users to share ("seed") their complete files, while simultaneously penalizing users who "leech".
Torrents can achieve download speeds over 1.5 megabits per second.
Torrent code is open-source, advertising-free, and adware/spyware-free. This means that no single person profits from torrent success.

Answer: Torrent sharing is about "swarming and tracking", where users download many small bits from many different sources at once. Because this format compensates for bottleneck points, it is actually faster than downloading a large file from a single source.

"Swarming" is about splitting large files into hundreds of smaller "bits", and then sharing those bits across a "swarm" of dozens of linked users.
"Tracking" is when specific servers help swarm users find each other.
Swarm members use special Torrent client software to upload, download, and reconstruct the many file bits into complete usable files.
Special .torrent text files act as pointers during this whole process, helping users find other users to swarm with, and enforcing quality control on all shared files.


Comment: Torrent vs. Kazaa. Torrents are different from the competing Kazaa network in one significant way: torrents are true P2P sharing. Instead of "publisher servers" dishing out files, torrent users do the file serving. Torrent users voluntarily upload their file bits to their swarm without payment or advertising revenue. You could say torrent users are motivated, not by money, but by a "Pay-It-Forward" cooperative spirit. If you recall the Napster.com model of the 1990's, bittorrent swarming is the same, but with sharing incentive added.

Torrent sharing goes like this: if you share files via bittorrents, you will be rewarded with increased download speed. Conversely, if you choose to "leech" and not share your files upwards, you will be punished with slow Torrent download speeds.

Download speed is controlled by torrent tracking servers, who monitor all swarm users. If you share, tracker servers will reward you by increasing your alotted swarm bandwidth (sometimes up to 1500 kilobits per second). Similarly, if you leech and limit your upload sharing, tracking servers will choke your download speeds, sometimes to as slow as 1 kilobit per second. Indeed, the "Pay It Forward" philosophy is digitally enforced! Leeches are not welcome in a bittorrent swarm.

nswer: Bittorrent "swarming" requires six major ingredients.

Bittorrent client software (there are dozens of choices, all free to install. See next page for software suggestions.).
A tracker server (hundreds of them exist on the Web, no cost to use).
A .torrent text file that points to the movie/song/file you want to download.
A Torrent search engine that helps you find these .torrent text files. (See next page for torrent search links.)
A specially-configured Internet connection with port 6881 opened on the server/router to allow torrent file trading.
A working understanding of file management on your PC/Macintosh. You will need to navigate hundreds of folders and filenames to make file sharing work for you.


Next, Part 4: the step-by-step download process.

Setup Comment: At the very worst, it will take you about one day to set up your PC or Mac for torrent swarming. If you don't employ a hardware router or software firewall with your modem, then setup will likely take only 30 minutes of choosing and installing your bittorrent client. If you do use a hardware router or firewall (which is a smart way to configure your home machine), you are likely to get "NAT" error messages at first. This is because your router/firewall has not been taught to "trust" your bittorrent data yet. Once you open digital port 6881 on the router/firewall, the NAT messages should stop and your bittorrent connection should work just fine. Check this page for help on setting your Internet router.

Answer, Part 1: Copyright warning. Unless you live in Canada, you must understand that copyright laws are commonly violated by P2P sharing. If you download/upload a song, movie, or TV show, you do risk a civil lawsuit. Canadians are somewhat protected from these lawsuits because of a Canadian court ruling, but not residents of the USA or most parts of Europe and Asia. This lawsuit risk is a reality, and you must accept this risk if you choose to download P2P files. Click here for more details on this copyright controversy.

Answer, Part 2: The torrent download process goes likes this:

You use special torrent search engines to find .torrent text files around the Net. A .torrent text file functions as a special pointer to locate a specific file and the swarm of people currently sharing that file. These .torrent files vary from 15kb to 150kb file size, and are published by serious Torrent sharers around the world.
You download the desired .torrent file to your drive (this takes about 5 seconds per .torrent file at cable modem speeds).
You open the .torrent file into your torrent software. Usually, this is as simple as a a double-click on the .torrent file icon, and the client software auto-launches. In other cases, this software will even open the torrent file for you.
The torrent client software will now talk to a tracker server for 2 to 10 minutes, while it scours the Internet for people to swarm with. Specifically, the client and tracker server will search for other users who have the same exact .torrent file as you.
As the tracker locates torrent users to swarm with, each user will be automatically labeled as either a “leech/peer” or as a “seed” (users who have only part of the target file, versus users who have the complete target file). As you might guess, the more seeds you connect to, the faster your download will be. Commonly, 10 peers/leeches and 3 seeders is a good swarm for downloading a single song/movie.
The client software then begins the transfer. As the name “sharing” implies, every transfer will happen in both directions, “down” and “up” (leech and share).
*SPEED EXPECTATION: Cable and DSL modem users can expect an average of 25 megabytes per hour, sometimes slower if the swarm is small with less than 2 seeders. On a good day with a big swarm, however, you can download a 5MB song within 3 minutes, and a 900MB movie within 60 minutes.
Once the transfer is complete, leave your torrent client software running for at least two hours. This is called "seeding" or "good karma", where you share your complete files to other users.
Suggestion: do your downloads just before you go to sleep at night. This way, you will seed your complete files, you will increase your upload/download ratio, and you will have complete downloaded files by the time you wake up!
Movie and music plug-ins: you will likely need to install media players and updated codec converters to play your downloads:
e.g Windows Media Player, DivX, RealAudio, Daemon Tools Virtual CD/DVD. Click here for details on getting these plug-in players.
e.g. XP Codec Pack and other coder-decoder converters. Download the best codec packs here
Enjoy your movies and songs!
Fair warning: you will want a second hard drive once you start serious torrent downloading. Songs and movies require large disk space, and an average P2P user commonly has 20 to 40 GB of media files at any one time. A second 500GB hard drive is common for serious P2P users, and the recent low prices on hard drives make it a good investment.

http://netforbeginners.about.com/od/...handbook_4.htm