@mrker1234 said in Is anyone on PrEP? Any side effects?:

@bi4smooth The CDC report, which tries to be the most stringent source, also states "Some health departments in the United States and some health organizations in Europe and Canada are offering guidance for “on-demand” PrEP as an alternative to daily PrEP for gay and bisexual men at risk for HIV."

Sometimes it is simple math. I'm older and have sex very occasionally. I wouldn't go on PrEP if it meant taking 365 pills a year instead of the 40 I use for the 10 weekends I may have sex. That amount of chemicals being ingested unnecessarily seems to be even riskier than depending on just condoms.

Obviously everyone's mileage may vary. I'm looking at almost a 90% reduction of chemicals in my body. Someone having sex every week or several times a month, will have significantly less benefit to going "on demand".

Please don't take my comments wrongly: PrEP - no matter how you take it - is doing something to protect one's self, and I APPLAUD that! It's wonderful that we have options, and the science is continuing!

I agree that the CDC often takes an overly cautious tone - but it's the opinions of the FDA that matter here: they control the ability of physicians to prescribe the medications. (Two very separate federal agencies, with different goals, methods, and agendas!)

I choose to continue to take my PrEP daily - even though I've been in a monogamous relationship for a little over 2-years now. It's not that I don't trust my partner, it's that I'm unwilling to risk HIV - either with him or anyone else - period! I'm 58... and I presume I'll take daily PrEP until my dick falls off and my ass closes up! (Always the optimist!)

There are people here.. the forum isn't as popular as the torrents, but I suspect there may just not have been a lot of interest in this particular fetish...

@di3di3di3 said in is gaytorrents net shut down?:

@john32123666 ohh whats this lifehack? thank u

They purposefully don't keep a "front page" web page - keep out the non-members by appearing to not even exist.

@cub2263
I agree with @bc22 on this one:
Your risk depends on what you're torrenting... porn alone, solely on private trackers? Less so than downloading current, high-value content from public trackers.

So, there was a while there, a few years ago, when studios like Corbin Fisher were pretty aggressive in seeking out people illegally uploading or downloading their content. Other porn studios followed suit, but in the end it turned out to be a lose-lose proposition for them. (Kind of like how some retailers - like Walmart and Amazon - are now telling some people who want to return an item to just "keep it" vs. trying to ship it back!)

That said, the major studios in Hollywood - esp. the streaming companies like HBO Max, Netflix, and to a lesser extent, CBS - are continuing to battle the illegal sharing of their content.

So, if you're looking to download "Star Trek Voyager", you're far less likely to be "targeted" than if you're trying to get the latest "Snowpiercer".

On the other hand, if you value your privacy, a VPN can help you keep the fact that you like "spanking videos" or "tiny cocks" out of the hands of your ISP! Choosing a VPN that does NOT LOG - at all - is important though. And even then, change the VPN server you're using REGULARLY.

Just my suggestions... you're ALWAYS taking a RISK (that new video you just downloaded MIGHT be a trojan, after all!)... how much risk you're willing to assume is an extremely personal decision.

For What Its Worth: I pay for my VPN in "large chunks" (3-years at a time) using a pre-paid VISA card. Not saying they CAN'T track my ID down, only that I don't make it EASY!

@bennyjetter said in Need help with qBittorrent please:

I had to move a lot of files on my hard drives because I was running out of space. I moved all my downloaded files. Now while zBititorrent is running I'm getting error messages from zBittorrent saying "I/O Error, An I'O Error occured <torrent details>"

Does anyone know if it's possible to link the toorrent and the files up again sso zBittorrent can find them?

Or alternatively how would I go about finding someone who could answer that question for me?

CHeers
Benny

No worries - so long as you moved all the files "together", just right click the TORRENT (not the content) in qBitTorrent and select "Location" -- point the system to the FOLDER that contains the CONTENTS, and click OK.

It may be necessary to then again right-click the torrent and this time choose "Force recheck"

God luck!

@zellwes2

Rule 1: All hard drives fail. ALL OF THEM!
Rule 2: 100% of hard drives fail. ALL OF THEM!
Rule 3: ALL hard drives fail. ALL OF THEM!

The only way to protect your data locally is by using something called RAID (it's a computer acronym for Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks). While there are DAS (Direct-Attached-Storage) RAID devices, unless it's USB 3, I would go with a NAS (Network-Attached-Storage) device. The issue is SPEED. (You can also backup your data [porn collection?] in the cloud, but that's a monthly cost...)

There are low-end NAS RAID arrays out there for $200-300. I have used inexpensive models from QNAP and Synology - both have worked well for me and my clients. (My own porn collection is on a QNAP 4-drive NAS device).

But, a few caveats:

• There is a considerable up-front cost to a RAID device: the RAID box itself doesn't have any storage (drives), so you have to "populate" the box with hard drives... multiple drives!
• You have to routinely check the system to ensure that the inevitable drive failures are detected and the failing/failed devices are replaced quickly.

So some quick computerese technology stuff... There are multiple "levels" of RAID:

• RAID 0 simply spreads your data across multiple drives, but offers NO PROTECTION! (if ONE drive fails, you may lose ALL of your data!) -- NOT RECOMMENDED!
• RAID 1 (called a mirror) copies whatever is on one disk to a 2nd disk. Thus, if you lose a disk, there is a complete copy right there! (BEST PROTECTION, HIGHEST COST: buy 2 4TB drives and store up to 4TB of data!)
• RAID 5 (most common) spreads your data across all of your drives, but sets aside storage too for a "checksum". The amount of storage "lost" for the checksum is determined by the number of drives in the array: use just 3 drives, and you lose 1/3 of the raw storage to data protection.

The most common small-business (or, in my case personal) array is a 4-drive unit, with all 4 drives populated. Assume you purchase 4 5TB drives... you will store data on 3/4 of the total storage area, and 1/4 will be used for data protection. The math, then, is that your 4 5TB drives will allow you to store AND PROTECT 15TB of data (the last 5TB of data is used to provide protection).

Now, you can see why there is a large up-front cost:

• $200-300 for the RAID device
• $100 EACH for 4TB Seagate IronWolf drives TIMES 4!

That's $600-700!

BUT, if you make that investment, you won't ever have to start over again (so long as you keep an eye on it! Drives fail - and so long as you lose only ONE DRIVE, your RAID ARRAY will keep your data safe!

[NOTE: I'm a computer consultant - I've glossed over lots of technical details, but included enough to help you get started. Feel free to email me on here of you want additional help.)

@mdx8472 said in Anyone having trouble getting on gay-torrents.net?:

It seems that there's a 404 error problem with gay-torrents.net and if you try any of the workarounds, you are prompted that your username/password is incorrect.

Does anyone have any word from mods or admins from there about it?

If you go to gay-torrents.net "wrongly" (that is: without the https or just to the main site) you will sometimes get errors - and that's on purpose! The site owners don't WANT to be so easily found (or discovered)...

Use the full URL to the torrent part of the site: https://www.gay-torrents.net/latest/ and use your login information... you should get in without a problem...

But don't forget: these torrent sites are really part of the "dark web" you see on the news! We're sharing - mostly in violation of copyright - files that we have no real right to share! As such, the site owners have to balance:

• attracting new members (which means new content)
• NOT attracting accidental, copyright-holder, or law-enforcement members (who want to stop the sharing)

In other words: make the site easy to get to if you know where you're going, not so easy if you're just looking around!

@blablarg18

I use NordVPN - which officially not only supports P2P (peer to peer) connections, it has special servers setup for it!

I have found that, while using NordVPN, so long as my "advertised" port is open (the port in your torrent client), I have no trouble seeding.

@teefup

You are right to be concerned - however, I have also seen this happen with some AV systems (specifically, Avast)

The point is that the AV system doesn't think you're using SSL, and so they're trying to force you to use SSL - THEIR SSL - and that's not the way SSL works (actually, technically, SSL is dead - it's really TLS, but everyone still SAYS SSL even when they mean TLS)

So, yes - you're seeing a man-in-the-middle warning, and it won't work because that's one of the things SSL is SUPPOSED to protect you from!

To solve the issue, you need to find the cause...

@eobox91103 said in Which external hard drive to get?:

1. All hard drives will, at some point, fail.
2. Every hard drive is going to fail.
3. When (not if) a hard drive fails, it's not always possible to get your data back even if you spend a fortune for data recovery.

I used to say that hard drives were not unlike tires (on a car)?

What percentage of automobile tires fail?

• 100% (which is why you seek to replace them BEFORE they fail!)

What percentage of hard drives fail?

• 100% (which is why you backup your data - before they fail!)

@teefup said in Security and safety of VPN torrenting - "couldn't establish secure connection" on NordVPN Windows client:

@bi4smooth ye i mean i have clients that have deprecated sslv3 in lieu of tls 1.2 at this point and i think there's a 1.3 so i get that part. i just am concerned with the cert attempt that almost seems like a reverse proxy. like i said idk where it came from. i scan exes and shit by hash since like 2012 and dont use antivirus and windows defender is the most i deal with. most compromises are done by people back dooring or phishing, not getting you to start some random executable these days. but in any case, im new to vpns and a bit wary even taking precaution bc i have my doubts.

I have used NORDVpn for years... Their SOCKS5 proxy systems appear to have been largely disabled, but if you're in Windows and use the App, it does a nice job of being all-but transparent.

I know from comments they've made that some staffers use NordVPN as well: raphjd and WikiDude come to mind.

If you're using the NordVPN client, then limiting your qBittorrent to the NordVPN "adapter" is a good idea, but you shouldn't need any other special setings. (ASSUMING you've already hardcoded your DNS to a system like CloudFlare's 1.1.1.1 & 1.0.0.1)

@jsl76 said in Which external hard drive to get?:

I think @bi4smooth nailed it, with the NAS option. I use a four-bay NAS in a RAID5 setup and love it.

That said, 2 TB of space on Google Drive is US$10/mo. If I ever used a stand-alone local drive that wasn't in a RAID array, I'd sync all the contents to a cloud service.

Funny thing about Google Drive, they don't seem to care about having copyrighted content, but they DO care if a hash match pops up on a DMCA request and you are actively sharing that content.

Suggestion to avoid that:

• Download the HandBrake tool... and re-code your movies! If you want, you can re-code them to consistent size and/or codec...

Anyway you slice it, the re-coded movie won't match anyone's hashes! DMCA just got a lot harder for them!

The reason your laptop fans get so loud is because the fans are inside the laptop - where space is at a premium... tiny fans have to spin VERY fast to move a lot of air.

Consider a laptop "cooling pad" - it's basically a "stand" you put your laptop on that has vents and rather large fans underneath... more air flow at higher air speeds, but at slower FAN speeds means a cooler laptop with much much less noise!

Most office supply stores carry them, as does Amazon (what don't they carry?)