Introduction

If you're looking for how to download the latest and greatest in Anime and other files, then you've come to right place.  This guide will explain how that otaku next door is getting the latest fan sub episodes without having to wait for a VHS tape to come in through the mail. This guide will tell you what you need to get started, how to configure the programs, and then wrap up with some advanced techniques on getting Anime even faster.

If you aren't familiar with watching Anime on your computer yet, then there are few things you'll need and need to know immediately.  Most importantly is a computer with at least a 350MHz processor and a significant amount of memory.  A 500MHz processor with 128MB of memory is recommended, but people do watch off a 300MHz with 64MB of memory.  The reason is DivX, a format that is quite comparable to MPEG-2 or DVD, requires quite a bit of processing power.  The bottom line is if you can watch DVDs, you should be able to watch DivX files.

The second thing you need the DivX codecs.  You can download them from http://www.divx.com/.  Without the codecs you cannot watch DivX files.

You should also have a lot of hard drive space, around 50 ~ 200 MB free for each episode downloaded.  You can always delete the files or burn them to CD, but if you intend to go crazy (like some of the staff members here), you will need a lot of hard drive space.  Two hour movies also require about four times more space than a single episode, so preparing for that woud be a good idea as well.

Lastly a good internet connection is needed.  Servers will sometimes require downloads to maintain a certain transfer rate, often just above what a 56K modem can handle.  ISDN, DSL, Cable Modem, or anything faster will suffice.

Meet the requirements? Then proceed!