RetroShare is a free open source anonymous P2P file sharing/messaging program that uses Tor to transfer files/messages.
I've been wanting to make this post ever since BBW-Chan went down, but never found the time until now.
We can use this to share our collections without MAB, and we'll still be able to keep in touch if BBW-Chan goes down again.
I'm currently sharing 1.8 TB of content including 354 GB of TMC videos, 245 GB of archived DeviantArt galleries, 456 GB of BBW-Chan threads (including files that were lost when the site went down), 71.1 GB of gofile videos, and 273 GB of other videos.
How to set up RetroShare:
1. Download RetroShare for your OS from retroshare.cc. There are builds on their site for Windows, Mac, Linux, and FreeBSD.
2. Install or open it, which should give something like the first screenshot. If this isn't your first time and you want to make a new profile anyway, see "How to create an additional profile".
3. Click on "Node type" and select "Hidden node (over Tor)", this is important or you won't be able to connect. You could technically also use "Hidden node (Tor/I2P - Manually configured)" but that's a lot harder to set up.
4. Make a username and password, move your mouse a lot to generate the entropy for your key until the percent has a checkmark next to it, then click the "Go!" button that appears. If everything worked correctly, you should see a screen like the second screenshot.
How to add friends on RetroShare:
5. Copy your RetroShare certificate and paste it in this thread.
6. Add friends by clicking "Add friend" and pasting a cert from this thread into the box. Click the "Next" button, then click the "Finish" button.
Make sure to add everyone's certs so we can all connect to eachother. They need to add yours from the thread before you can connect to them, though.
How to share your files on RetroShare:
7. Click the "Files" button on the top bar, then click the "My files" tab.
8. Click "Configure shared directories" (see third screenshot).
9. Use the Add button to add a directory, then set all the share flags for it using the three colored squares next to the directory.
10. Click Apply & Close.
How to browse files on RetroShare:
11. To browse friends files, click the "Files" button on the top bar, then click the "Friends files" tab. There should be a list of folders, one for each friend who has at least one folder shared with you. You can search through these with the search box or with the "Search" tab.
12. To search the entire network or do an advanced search, use the "Search" tab. It works exactly like you would expect, but you have the option to choose between just friends files or including distant files up to 6 hops away.
How to communicate on RetroShare:
Dropping the numbers for this one.
13. You can subscribe to chat, forums, channels, or boards by right-clicking them and clicking "Subscribe".
14. Mail works like a normal email client.
15. Right-clicking in the message box and clicking "Paste my certificate link" adds a clickable link to your message with your certificate, and is the preferred way to share certificates in RetroShare.
16. Check out the chat rooms, you can hover over their names to see how many people are in them before subscribing. Chatserver EN is fairly active right now.
17. To create a chat room, channel, forum, or board, use the plus sign above the list.
How to create an additional profile:
This is especially useful if you accidentally made a standard node instead of a Tor node.
If you see the login screen, click the little "New Profile/Node" link at the bottom-right of the window.
If it's skipping the login screen entirely, go to Preferences, then disable Auto Login. It should be the fourth checkbox down under General. Restart RetroShare, then follow the previous directions for the login screen.
Bonus tips:
I mentioned this in the beginning but I just want to say it again: RetroShare isn't just for file sharing. It also does chat, mail, forums, channels, and boards. With the right plugins, you can even do VOIP and chess.
Many users migrated from 8chan's /hypno/, so you'll find a *lot* of hypno audio here. They don't seem to socialize much outside of sharing keys in their forum.
You can use key exchange chat rooms, channels, and forums if you want to connect to the rest of the RetroShare network.
My cert:
ABApWX7DsFZAE/HL1j9ZUStDAxRVhmibJVER6JT0j8QOH4KVFQIBRwESV2lkZVNpbmRlckJsaXNzaWxlkEQAAAACJpZsemZqZHQy
cG9vbGloajdmMzNwamN5Zm1ldHFmcGpoeHVub2p4dXVhdWlnZ250dXY3eWlwbDJhZC5vbmlvbgQD1Kz0