Word: swaps
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 2000-2009
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...believed in it because his idea was so simple: a program that would allow computer users to swap music files with one another directly, without going through a centralized file server or middleman. He'd heard all the complaints about how frustrating it was to try to find good music on the Net, how so many of the pointers on websites offering current (which is to say copyrighted) music seem to lead only to dead ends. But Fanning figured out that if he combined a music-search function with a file-sharing system and, to facilitate communication, instant messaging...
Napster and Gnutella let users swap data from one PC--or "peer"--to another, without going through a central server. Here's how they work...
...least that's how it works in theory. When I checked out half a dozen swap sites with names like switchme.com swapit.com and secondspin.com however, I discovered that there can be all sorts of hidden fees, from transaction charges to cash sales disguised as swaps. Still, I found two sites that stood out above the crowd: mrswap.com and webswap.com WebSwap has waived all transaction fees, at least for now, making it the best deal on the Net. MrSwap, on the other hand, adds a small premium on mailing charges that averages around $1.50 per item...
...loved MrSwap--even though it deals only in music, video games and movies--because it's so simple. To list things for trade, all you do is type in the name of the item and assign a number of "swap points" indicating how much you think it's worth. One swap point is about $1, and you can easily pick a value by comparing your item with those of others on the site. For example, when I posted my Lauryn Hill album, I saw that 31 other people had grown tired of her as well. So I picked a relatively...
...latest Patricia Cornwell thriller, a Beatles CD and three Star Trek movies, but for some reason I couldn't manage a single trade in a month. (During the same time, I traded five CDs on MrSwap.) Part of the problem could be that WebSwap requires a one-for-one swap with whoever wants your stuff, making it harder to find a match...