Web 2.0 developers have left Internet users with no lack of private filesharing services, but nearly all of them come with some severe limitations. Private P2P networks solve these problems neatly by letting groups of users who trust one another share files and folders on their computers freely.

GigaTribe is a private P2P service with a free version that limits users to downloading one file at a time and imposes other restrictions, but we tested the Ultimate version, which allows for unlimited simultaneous uploads and/or downloads. Sharing folders is easy, and an Options screen lets you establish all kinds of permissions, including password protection. When another user in your private network launches GigaTribe, he can then download any of the files in that folder, regardless of size. GigaTribe displays thumbnails for pictures so you can preview what you’re about to download before wasting the bandwidth. All data that is transferred is encrypted.

The interface is a bit confusing, but there are plenty of tooltips to guide you, and there are so few options on any given screen that finding your way around never becomes overwhelming. We had two copies of the software configured and were transferring files within just a few minutes. It’s possible to tweak options while downloads and uploads are in progress without interrupting anything. Group members can also send text messages to one another, but IM, video chat, and other advanced forms of communication are not supported.

One obvious downside to GigaTribe (and any other private P2P network) is that download speeds are limited to the upload speed of the computer on the other end. It took several hours to download nearly 1GB worth of files in testing, but outside that limitation, the software worked great. Uploads and downloads automatically paused and resumed where they left off as machines were turned off and back on.

If you only share big files occasionally, then burning them to DVD and mailing them is more cost-efficient than using a program like this. For people who share a lot of big files frequently with a group of tech-savvy friends, GigaTribe Ultimate is definitely worth the money just for the convenience factor.

by Tracy Baker