July 14, 2008 by sharky
Mac users have long played second fiddle to Windows when it comes to private BitTorrent sites. Most Mac/Apple enthusiasts have to rely on ‘general’ trackers that offer a special section dedicated to them. That’s where Brokenstones came along and filled in a much-needed Mac torrent void - sorrowfully, they were dealt a staggering blow two weeks ago when the Malaysian government ordered the closure of torrent sites. Fortunately, as we have seen (and demonstrated) in the past, destroying a site is futile if the community and its ideals are allowed to remain. Although rebuilding a lost torrent site takes a monumental effort, the dedicated communities surrounding them are invariably capable and motivated enough to do so.
Enter Vortex Network - the new torrent tracker devoted solely to Mac.
Gazelle Codebase
So what’s so special about a new Mac tracker? For starters, it’s only the third tracker to use What.cd’s Gazelle tracker codebase. But what really makes Vortex special is the community effort and support put into its fruition. To quote Rachel Faith (owner/sysop of Vortex): "The best sysops, admins and coders from around the world, working on the bleeding edge of this technology, have spent days going over the code, site, layout, modules and effects. You do not get a brand new tracker in 7 days without such heroics. And that is what these fine folks are: Heroes." Well said - they hydra lives on.
Something to Behold
The first thing you’ll notice about Vortex is the striking similarities to What.cd, as torrents can be filtered through a sophisticated ‘tagging’ scheme (hence Gazelle). Vortex has a ‘Roman’ theme going on, as you’ll notice in the Fora (not "Forums") which are incredibly busy for such a new tracker. There’s already 1,000 torrents - not too shabby for a tracker that’s only been online for 2 days. Torrent "details" are in-depth and informative with tracker info, file & peer details, and individual user comments are encouraged for each.
| Homepage | Browse Torrents | Torrent Details |
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| Fora | Categories/Search | User Classes |
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Getting an Invite
Vortex is not publicly open to new signups, but invites are easy to come by (for now). Stop by their IRC channel and request an invitation: irc.vortexnetwork.org:6667. Use these channels:
#vortexnetwork
#vortexnetwork-help
With a user limit of 22,000, expect Vortex to fill up fast - they’ve already filled up 6,600 slots, and added 3,000 new users just yesterday alone.
All new users get 25 invites to use as you wish (although, it has been brought to our attention that all the invites are being taken back this Friday).
Sitewide Freeleech
To honor Brokenstones, Vortex is offering a sitewide freeleech for the first week. Looks like there’s only 5 days left for users to snatch some very large torrents for free.
Look for Vortex Network to get very popular, very fast. Mac-lovers should not hesitate to join this great community - once they hit 22,000 users they’ll be strictly invite-only.
Well, it looks like members and staff are leaving en masse in reaction to the “Pay-to-Leech” scandal surrounding Vortex. Read the story at:
http://torrentfreak.com/controversy-as-rookie-admin-aspires-to-bittorrent-domination-080730/”
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