WinMX - This is the brand spanking new version of WinMX that some of us have been waiting for, for years. I wasn't that big of a fan of WinMX from the start, mainly due to its cluttered-looking interface and unreliable downloads, but I did find quite a bit of use for it over the months to download mainly MP3s, some of which were rare. And to be honest, I wasn't really impressed with this new version by any means - the interface remains pretty much as it was, but there is the much-needed feature (finally) of multi-source downloading capability.

Anyways, onto the basics. Connection to the network happens as soon as you start the program. The connection window has changed from the last version. Whereas before it displayed an entire list of all the servers its connecting to, this time they've made it look a lot more user-friendly simply by telling you when the program has connected to a server so you can being searching for media (see screenshot). The more advanced interface for the connection window has, of course, been retained though on a separate tab. Here you can connect to the OpenNap network by adding in the address yourself. Thing is though, by doing this, you need to remember that the OpenNap servers do not allow multi-source downloading (for whatever reason).

Like I said, the interface does remain pretty much the same as the last version - something which I really wished they'd change. Navigation around WinMX is pretty easy enough - the normal tabbed toolbar running across the top makes it easy to find your way around. However, once you delve into these separate tabs, especially the search tab, you'll realise how cluttered the interface feels. There are buttons pretty much everywhere, and, while this does allow you to have all the options at your fingertips, it would have been good to see the developers of WinMX at least try to organise the interface a bit better. That said, it is an improvement from the last version so I'll give them credit for that.

And like I mentioned, the search window is completely packed with options by which you can search by. You can search for simply Audio / Video / Pictures, or you can be more specific in what you are looking for and search for MP3 Audio (any bitrate), or MP3 Audio (specified bitrate), or ANY file (with any bitrate) - it's all very customisable (see screenshot) However, the fact that most of these search options are only available on a single drop-down menu, it does make the interface look further cluttered. I do like WinMX's search options however, maybe even so over KaZaA's, as it does seem more "free" then that of other programs alternatives and there are far more options then you can shake a very large stick at. Other features - such as infinite multiple searches - are also present, which is rather handy.

The results are displayed fairly quickly after you make a search, and there is quite a bit of information available on the searched files, i.e. bitrate and all. Other information which WinMX now also displays in its search results (which it didn't before) is any incomplete files which are currently in the process of being downloaded by other users. This information is displayed in the size (or bytes) list as a percentage of the complete size which I thought was a rather cool feature. There is also a column on the left which shows the status of the user you are going to download a file off - for example, whether they have got other people downloading off them so you'll be queued when you start your own download. Because of the new feature of multi-source downloading, it does make it a bit confusing as to what users are in queues etc. It displays info. as (for example): "4+2 available 0 + 0 marginal" which I have pretty much no clue what it means...

The way my downloads have been going with this new version seems to have been much more reliable and essentially faster then previously. This most probably is down to the multi-source downloading feature. There are still the pitfalls of having to wait in queue much of the time when trying to download certain files, but hey, that's part of life I guess. For other sources of the download you are trying to find, you can search for them yourself simply by right-clicking the file and pressing "Search For Alternatives". This will then take you back to the search window where you can choose which user you want to download from also. The multi-source downloads do work pretty effectively too to get you a good download speed, but I think that, with WinMX, its more about the reliability of the transfer that is the real advantage gained over anything else (see screenshot) . It still doesn't seem to be as effective to increase downloads speeds as much as the FastTrack clients do, but hey... Oh and broken downloads are also easier to resume then before for various reasons I can't be pissed to explain now...

Other features (...yes, there's more) include chatting facilities, a bandwidth monitor, and even a hotlist. The hotlist feature isn't as useful as the one was in Napster however, for reasons explained in the last review (see the link above for more on this). A feature lacking in WinMX is an internal player, but I don't believe this would have served any real purpose as its probably better for your external players to run any downloaded files to try to cut down on the overcrowded interface.

That pretty much covers about all of it. This is a nice update to an already well-established file-sharing program, and I guess I will be more provoked to use WinMX as opposed to KaZaA to get my MP3s and maybe other files such as music videos too. However, whether this is a better then KaZaA overall or not..........hmm......I'm not sure. WinMX isn't a great program for new file-sharers due to all the advanced features it has at your fingertips, and its cluttered interface which makes for hard navigation. I don't think that this version will ever be as popular as KaZaA, but the fact that this client has no spyware, no hidden stealth software, no banner ads etc. (like KaZaA DOES have), there's no reason why it shouldn't be.

SUMMARY: This new version of WinMX isn't a MAJOR improvement over the previous one, but I'm glad to finally see the multi-source downloading feature implemented into the client. This makes the transfers far more reliable, and essentially faster - although I can't say it's as effective as the multi-source downloading of the FastTrack clients which is a shame. But, anyways, WinMX, a great client to use to get high-bitrate MP3s, which is what I'll be mainly using it for. The one part of WinMX which I really wished they'd have improved was the overly-cluttered interface, but the developers seem to be happy with it.

Pros : Lots of files - Lots of options - Multiple searches - Good search facility - Multi-source downloading!! - Many advanced features

Cons : Interface is (still) unorganised and cluttered - Not one for the newbie's - Constant queuing - Slightly confusing at times

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