From your geeky roommates who eat up your internet connection at all hours of the night to your luddite family members, nearly everyone knows what BitTorrent is nowadays. They might not be able to describe how it works, or even legal ways they can use it, but they know it exists. (If you’re a little geekier, you probably also know that peer-to-peer networking can even power processes like like Windows operating system updates, Chromebook updates, and Android app installations.)

Sharing files over the internet is nothing new, but the process has evolved since the halcyon days of finicky FTP servers and dodgy P2P programs. Now, it’s easy to send large files with a simple web app or cloud service, like Dropbox, and the latter is planning to make this even easier with a new, free file transfer service called Dropbox Transfer.

Wave goodbye to "Back to My Mac." As of macOS Mojave, Apple is officially removing the helpful file and screen-sharing utility baked directly into the operating system. And while Apple has a few suggestions about what you can now use instead of Back to my Mac, they're less practical, especially since one "solution" is going to set you back a lot of money. Pfft.

There are more BitTorrent clients than we could possibly compare, but some of the most popular -- and best -- have been under the spotlight lately for sleazy ads and bad behaviour. It's time to check in on a few of our favourites to see how they fare, which deserves your downloads and which ones you can trust.

There's no shortage of file-sharing apps to choose from. You have Dropbox, Google Drive and OneNote for sharing just about anything on the cloud, for example, and Pushbullet is awesome for sharing files between your own devices. Simple.Savr lets you share files and text across your Wi-Fi network, and it has a simple, easy-to-use interface.

Windows: Transmission is one of our favourite BitTorrent clients that has unfortunately been limited to Mac and Linux users for a long time. Now, it's finally available for Windows.

Searching for your Google Drive files got a whole lot easier today with an update that offers an easier way to open your advanced search options, quicker ways to access files on iOS, and more options to narrow your searches.

When it comes to sharing files on BitTorrent and Usenet, it doesn't get any better than private trackers and indexers. But by definition, they're very exclusive, so you can't just waltz in the front door. Here's how to get access to the best private file sharing communities.

Android/iOS: While Google Drive is great for sharing files, it's always been a little more cumbersome than it needs to be on mobile. Now that's changing, with sharing notifications and more mobile features.

Peer-to-peer file sharing services like BitTorrent Sync are great ways to share large files without paying for third-party cloud storage, but they still require you to download software. FilePizza shares files using peer-to-peer right in your browser.

Mac: We're fans of Jumpshare because it makes sharing files as easy as dragging and dropping them, and today they have updated the Mac version of the app with a slew of new features, including support for screencasts, screenshots, notes, and a ton more.

Dropbox (and similar cloud services) are awesome, but they don't give you that much control, security or privacy over your files. If you want to take control into your own hands without losing the features of cloud syncing services, BitTorrent Sync is the service for you. Here's how to use it.

Chrome: Dropbox released the beta for its new Chrome extension, Dropbox for Gmail today. As the name suggests, the extension makes it easy to instantly add a link to a Dropbox file directly from the Gmail web app.

Windows/Mac/Chrome: Encrypted cloud storage services aren't difficult to find, but when you need to send a file to someone else and you want to make sure you keep some control over it (and it stays encrypted), you have fewer options. Peerio is a new free service that wants to make that whole process easy.

Android: Join is a unique file sharing app that lets you share audio and photo files in real time with a single tap. It's awesome for sharing slideshows on your friends' devices, or just sharing your new favourite song.

Bittorrent Sync may not be the perfect Dropbox replacement, but today it gets a lot better. In addition to a new interface, users can now share quick links to your folders with anyone.

If you use Google Drive to collaborate as often as we do around here, you probably don't have time to go back and clean up permissions or old files when you're through with them. WhoHasAccess is a web app that shows you all of the people and permissions you've granted so you can tighten up your security.

Chrome: There are a million ways to share files on the internet, but not all of them are secure. While encrypted file transfers exist, Minilock provides one of the simplest methods for doing so.

Android/iOS/Windows: Sometimes, you'd like to share a file without actually letting someone else have access to it permanently. Digify steps up, letting you give others temporary access to files -- including those in Dropbox -- that automatically expires.