Gnutella is one of the many peer-to-peer file-sharing protocols which emerged in the wake of Napster. Unlike Napster, there is no central server and no single company in control. Because Gnutella is completely decentralized, it is legally and technologically challenging to shut down. But it can also be difficult to locate and download specific music; searches can take a long time to return results, and downloads sometimes grind to a halt before they can finish.

These shortcomings of Gnutella are exactly what fascinates me most about the network. Even when I cannot find music I am searching for, the search process itself is interesting; the network constantly surprises me with what it finds. And even if files do not download quickly, completely, and reliably, I find the download process itself captivating; the wildly varying download speeds reflect the chaotic nature of the network itself. In many ways, using Gnutella reminds me of the early days of the World Wide Web, before the big media companies and retailers took over. The process of searching, of serendipitous discovery, can be as engaging as the content itself.