Download manager
A download manager is a program designed to download files from the
Internet, unlike a web browser,
which is mainly intended to browse pages on the World Wide Web (with
file downloading being of secondary importance). A download manager is also designed to download files from slow connections,
which can cause problems with web browsers.
There are several things that web browsers are not very good at. That's
where the download managers enter the equation:
- pausing the downloading of large files.
- resuming broken or paused downloads (especially for large files, like LiveCDs).
- downloading files on poor connections.
- downloading several files from a site automatically according to simple rules (file types, updated files, etc.).
- automatic recursive downloads (mirroring).
- scheduled downloads (including, automatic hang-up and shutdown).
- searching for mirror sites, and the handling of different connections to download the same file more quickly.
Download managers are useful for active Internet users. For dial-up users, they
can automatically dial the ISP at night, when rates or tariffs are usually lower, download
the specified files, and hang-up. They can record which links the user clicks on during the day, and queue these files for later
download. For broadband users, download managers can help download 100+ megabyte files by resuming broken downloads, by limiting
the download capacity used, so that user's browsing is not affected much and the server is not overloaded, or by automatically
browsing a site and downloading content specified by user (photo galleries, MP3 collections, etc.), including automatically
downloading whole sites and regularly updating them.
Most download managers today integrate seamlessly with popular web browsers, and are extremely easy to use. Clicking on a link
in a browser automatically starts the download in the download manager. For power users, additional features are available, such
as scheduling, traffic shaping, virus-checking, cataloguing, etc.
See below for some examples of commonly used download managers. Some downloaders are optimized for a certain fuction. For
example, Offline Explorer is designed to download entire websites,
Nici is a picture downloader for automatically
collecting pornography from free online galleries and TGPs, cataloguing and viewing it.
Download managers, such as GoZilla, were among the first adware applications
displaying a banner ad in the user interface.
Related to download managers are two other breeds of Internet programs - file-sharing peer-to-peer applications (KaZaA, eMule, BitTorrent, gnutella) and stream recorders (such as StreamBox VCR).
While download managers are designed to give users greater control over downloads, some downloaders are created to give
that control to content distributors instead. Some software companies, for example Adobe [1] (http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/acrrmanager.html), provide such downloaders for downloading
software on their own site. Presumably this increases reliability and reduces tech support costs to them. A possible reason is
increasing the control over redistribution of their software (even when the software is free).
Download Managers
Command Line Download Managers
See also
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