MAGNET-URI Project

MAGNET is an open URI-scheme and supporting practices/code for enabling seamless integration between websites and locally-running utilities, such as file-management tools. Here's an example of what a MAGNET URI could look like:

magnet:?xt=urn:sha1:YNCKHTQCWBTRNJIV4WNAE52SJUQCZO5C

Numerous other forms are possible -- "magnet:" URIs are not just to pass URN-based names. See the draft overview/spec for details.

MAGNET is:

A work-in-progress. Assistance improving the specification, examples, and implementating code is needed!
Open. Anyone can implement and advertise MAGNET support in their applications.
Vendor- and project-neutral. There is no single project or application, commercial or otherwise, which is *the* "MAGNET" program. Programs need not fight over installing themselves as *the* one "magnet:" handler -- instead, "magnet:" can bring up a list of options, for the user to choose from.

"Magnet" and "Magnet-URI", in the context of resource identifiers and clickable links, are trademarks of the MAGNET-URI project, but blanket permission is granted to freely use these terms to describe software and content faithfully implementing the MAGNET specifications.

Some software that handles MAGNET URIs:

LimeWire, a file-sharing program using the Gnutella network
Bearshare, a file-sharing program using the Gnutella network
Xolox, a file-sharing program using the Gnutella network
Shareaza, a file-sharing program using the Gnutella network
TrustyFiles, a file-sharing program using the Gnutella network
Kazaa Media Desktop, a wildly popular file-sharing program
Phex, a file-sharing program using the Gnutella network

Some websites that publish MAGNET URIs:

MagnetMix, a guide to freely-downloadable files
Bitzi, a collaborative guide to any and all files in circulation
P2PFiles, a web-based search engine for resources on the Gnutella network
Morle's Magnets, a blog featuring magnet links to interesting files

Other relevant links:

Draft Tech Overview/Spec, what it does and how it does it. Last revised, June 17, 2002 -- many changes still possible, including the Javascript-centric way applications supply their own embeddable UIs.
The MAGNET-URI YahooGroup hosts discussion of the specs, MAGNET apps, and future directions.
The MagnetLink.org website collects resources of interest to users of MAGNET URIs, including the helpful introductory Kazaa Magnet CDK (Content Distribution Kit).
MagnetHandler is a project to create a "MAGNET router tool" which will allow multiple MAGNET applications, which each handle certain kinds of MAGNET URIs, to coexist.
Examples
- Example Page of MAGNET URIs, with Javascript code to catch clicks on these links and automatically probe for any local apps which can do interesting things with the URIs.
- Example Page of MAGNET URIs, *without* Javascript handling code. Useless unless you have MAGNET support locally installed in a platform/browser-specific manner, which will be possible but is not yet available.
- Noop Magnet-compliant Demo Java App based on the Mortbay Jetty HTTP server. This is an executable JAR file, with all the Jetty and Servlet stuff necessary to make the tiny demo class and its supporting resource files work:
  MagnetNoop+Jetty.jar
  With a recent Java installed, you can just download and then double-click this JAR to launch. There will be no interface at all; to quit you'll have to kill the java process. Run one or more copies of this, and then visit the (Javascript-enhanced) example page above, to see what it looks like when the auto-probe discovers local MAGNET options.
  This JAR app does not yet fully conform with the spec above; it only does enough to demonstrate the detection and insertion of local options. (Source code is inside the JAR as well.)
  The Jetty Package is Copyright (c) Mort Bay Consulting Pty. Ltd. (Australia) and others. Individual files in the Jetty package may contain additional copyright notices. The javax.servlet packages are copyright Sun Microsystems Inc. You can get Jetty at Jetty.Mortbay.Com.
Useful icons:

Comments and other contributions welcome to the discussion group.

Created by gojomo@bitzi.com 2002-06-12