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Downloading in Dharran?

 
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holbrook



Joined: 14 Jun 2003
Posts: 60

PostPosted: Mon Apr 02, 2007 11:10 am    Post subject: Downloading in Dharran? Reply with quote

I'm taking a job in Dhahran and am curious about the possibility for downloading from the internet. I currently live in Dubai where I find the internet to be fine. Some websites are blocked but it is possible to use Bit Torrent, E-mule and other software to download music, movies and books that you cant get here.

Is it possible to do this is Saudi too? Are downloading sites blocked?

Also how about web-cams? My family would be back home for some time. I would like to connect with they via webcam. Does anyone know if this sort of thing is possible/legal? (I'm not asking how to do it. I know how, only I want to know if they block the hosting sites, etc.).

Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences with me.

Cheers
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Van Norden



Joined: 23 Oct 2004
Posts: 409

PostPosted: Mon Apr 02, 2007 12:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I use Onspeed. Nothing ever gets blocked.

Ask 007 about webcams. That's his area.
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007



Joined: 30 Oct 2006
Posts: 2684
Location: UK/Veteran of the Magic Kingdom

PostPosted: Mon Apr 02, 2007 4:21 pm    Post subject: Re: Downloading in Dharran? Reply with quote

holbrook wrote:
I'm taking a job in Dhahran and am curious about the possibility for downloading from the internet. I currently live in Dubai where I find the internet to be fine. Some websites are blocked but it is possible to use Bit Torrent, E-mule and other software to download music, movies and books that you cant get here.

Is it possible to do this is Saudi too? Are downloading sites blocked?

Also how about web-cams? My family would be back home for some time. I would like to connect with they via webcam. Does anyone know if this sort of thing is possible/legal? (I'm not asking how to do it. I know how, only I want to know if they block the hosting sites, etc.).

Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences with me.
Cheers

You can download anything from the Internet except sites wich are blocked by the Saudi (e.g. porno, political sites against SA, and other sites which are considered non appropriate by the Saudis!).
You can use the WebCam for your chatting, I used it with SkyPe and Yahoo Messenger. The quality of your WebCam might be affected by the type of connection you have and the firewall if you are using a university/college connection. Also, it is best if you have a DSL connection.
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Stephen Jones



Joined: 21 Feb 2003
Posts: 4124

PostPosted: Mon Apr 02, 2007 9:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

If you don't mind paying a few hundred dollars up front you can get Orbit Satellite internet which bypasses the Saudi proxy.

The censorship software used in Saudi is imported from the Emirates, so if you were going the official way there, then the same here.

You can use skype and messenger services and webcam; do bear in mind that sites such as flickr are banned.

I am pleased to know you got bittorrent to download anything. I gave up after numerous attempts.
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Cleopatra



Joined: 28 Jun 2003
Posts: 3657
Location: Tuamago Archipelago

PostPosted: Tue Apr 03, 2007 11:54 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

This subject has been raised at least once before on this board - I suggest you do a search. Saudi censors focus on any sites which are remotely pornographic (some rather 'innocent' entertainment sites are banned for this reason) as well as sites - particularly Arabic language sites - dealing with 'sensitive' political and religious issues. In practice, I've rarely found such censorship to be a problem, but then I suppose, it all depends on what you're after...
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Queen of Sheba



Joined: 07 May 2006
Posts: 397

PostPosted: Tue Apr 03, 2007 1:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

You can use bittorrent in KSA, and no downloading isnt a problem, any more than it is anywhere else in the ME. All you need is a good DSL or satellite connection, even blocked websites can be unblocked with software, if that is ever a problem, which isnt for most people who download using torrents or Kazaa, itunes, pandora etc.
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holbrook



Joined: 14 Jun 2003
Posts: 60

PostPosted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 6:14 am    Post subject: Thanks Everyone! Reply with quote

Thanks for the input. I'm ready to ship over now. I'll be apart from the kids so access to web-cam technologies are critical. I'm surprised Skype is not banned in the Kingdom. It is here in the UAE. Fortunately many areas (Internet city, The Green Community, Media City) and most college campuses are outside the Etisalat firewall.

As long as I can download away I don't think I'll have much problem adjusting to Dharran from Dubai.

Thanks again.
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holbrook



Joined: 14 Jun 2003
Posts: 60

PostPosted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 6:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Stephen Jones wrote:

I am pleased to know you got bittorrent to download anything. I gave up after numerous attempts.


Stephen,

I'm not sure why you would have trouble with bit torrent. The first thing you should know is that it is better to search for torrents on external sites such as mininova.org. Find the torrent you are looking for there and then just click on the little green button next to it. You'll get a pop-up asking you to save or open the torrent file. Just click open and it should automatically start the download in bittorent. Don't click save. Then you'll have to manually activate the torrent.

Also try E-Mule. This is a great all in one torrent application. The search feature works great and you just double click the torrents you find and they start automatically. No pop-ups. E-mule is great for music, but not quite as good for movies.

Cheers
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Stephen Jones



Joined: 21 Feb 2003
Posts: 4124

PostPosted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 2:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I suspect the fault was with the torrent server unless the college has blacklisted torrent. I was trying to download some Mozart but never succeeded.
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