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+About BitTorrent:
+=================
+
+BitTorrent is a tool for distributing files. It's extremely easy to
+use - downloads are started by clicking on hyperlinks.  Whenever more
+than one person is downloading at once they send pieces of the file(s)
+to each other, thus relieving the central server's bandwidth
+burden. Even with many simultaneous downloads, the upload burden on
+the central server remains quite small, since each new downloader
+introduces new upload capacity.
+
+
+Instructions for users:
+=======================
+
+Once you install BitTorrent, you should be able to download .torrent
+files.  If you have any questions, please read the FAQ:
+
+http://www.bittorrent.com/FAQ.html
+
+If you find a bug, check the FAQ for your bug.  If your bug is not in
+the FAQ, please send email to:
+
+bugs at bittorrent.com
+
+
+Instructions for publishers:
+============================
+
+Instructions for trackerless operation are in TRACKERLESS.txt.
+
+To start hosting -
+
+1) start running a tracker
+
+First, you need a tracker. If you're on a dynamic IP or otherwise 
+unreliable connection, you should find someone else's tracker and 
+use that. Otherwise, follow the rest of this step.
+
+Trackers refer downloaders to each other. The load on the tracker 
+is very small, so you only need one for all your files.
+
+To run a tracker, execute the command bittorrent-tracker.py Here is an
+example -
+
+./bittorrent-tracker.py --port 6969 --dfile dstate
+
+--dfile is where persistent information is kept on the tracker across 
+invocations. It makes everything start working again immediately if 
+you restart the tracker. A new one will be created if it doesn't exist 
+already.
+
+The tracker must be on a net-addressable box, and you must know the 
+ip number or dns name of it.
+
+The tracker outputs web logs to standard out. You can get information 
+about the files it's currently serving by getting its index page. 
+
+2) create a torrent file using maketorrent.py (GUI) or
+maketorrent-console.py. The GUI version, maketorrent.py is preferred.
+
+To generate a torrent file using maketorrent-console.py and give it the file
+you want a torrent for and the url of the tracker
+
+./maketorrent-console.py myfile.ext http://my.tracker:6969/announce
+
+This will generate a file called myfile.ext.torrent
+
+Make sure to include the port number in the tracker url if it isn't 80.
+
+(You may also use maketorrent.py to create trackerless torrents. See
+the file TRACKERLESS.txt for information about trackerless operation.)
+
+This command may take a while to scan over the whole file hashing it.
+
+The /announce path is special and hard-coded into the tracker. 
+Make sure to give the domain or ip your tracker is on instead of 
+my.tracker.
+
+You can use either a dns name or an IP address in the tracker url.
+
+3) associate .torrent with application/x-bittorrent on your web server
+
+The way you do this is dependent on the particular web server you're using.
+
+You must have a web server which can serve ordinary static files and is 
+addressable from the internet at large.
+
+4) put the newly made .torrent file on your web server
+
+Note that the file name you choose on the server must end in .torrent, so 
+it gets associated with the right mimetype.
+
+5) put up a static page which links to the location you uploaded to in step 4
+
+The file you uploaded in step 4 is linked to using an ordinary url.
+
+6) start a downloader as a resume on the complete file
+
+You have to run a downloader which already has the complete file, 
+so new downloaders have a place to get it from. Here's an example -
+
+./bittorrent-console.py --url http://my.server/myfile.torrent --saveas myfile.ext
+
+Make sure the saveas argument points to the already complete file.
+
+If you're running the complete downloader on the same machine or LAN as 
+the tracker, give a --ip parameter to the complete downloader. The --ip 
+parameter can be either an IP address or DNS name.
+
+BitTorrent defaults to port 6881. If it can't use 6881, (probably because 
+another download is happening) it tries 6882, then 6883, etc. It gives up 
+after 6889.
+
+7) you're done!
+
+Now you just have to get people downloading! Refer them to the page you 
+created in step 5.
+
+BitTorrent can also publish whole directories - simply point
+btmaketorrent.py at the directory with files in it, they'll be
+published as one unit. All files in subdirectories will be included,
+although files and directories named 'CVS', 'core', 'Thumbs.db',
+'desktop.ini' and beginning with a dot ('.') are ignored.
+
+
+Instructions for installation:
+==============================
+
+Instructions for Unix installation are in INSTALL.unix.txt
+
+Instructions for Windows installation and creating Windows installers
+are in BUILD.windows.txt