Editing LimeWire (section)

== Version history ==
Until October 2010, Lime Wire LLC, the New York City based developer of LimeWire, distributed two versions of the program: a basic free version, and an enhanced version, LimeWire PRO, which sold for a fee of $21.95 with 6 months of updates, or around $35.00 with 1 year of updates. The company claimed the paid version provides faster downloads and 66% better search results. This is accomplished by facilitating direct connection with up to 10 hosts of an identical searched file at any one time, whereas the gratis version is limited to a maximum of 8 hosts.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://youtubemusicsucks.com/history-of-limewire-p2p-file-sharing-software-2000s/ |title=The History of LimeWire - A P2P File Sharing Software of the 2000s |date=March 13, 2018 |website=Youtube Music Sucks |language=en-US |access-date=June 26, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://computer.howstuffworks.com/limewire.htm |title=How LimeWire Works |date=January 25, 2008 |website=HowStuffWorks |language=en |access-date=June 26, 2019}}</ref>
[[File:LimeWire2.PNG|thumb|LimeWire 2]]
Being [[free software]], LimeWire has spawned [[fork (software development)|forks]], including LionShare, an experimental software development project at [[Penn State University]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://cultureandcommunication.org/deadmedia/index.php/Limewire#LionShare |title=Limewire - Dead Media Archive |website=cultureandcommunication.org |access-date=June 26, 2019}}</ref> and Acquisition, a [[Mac OS X]]-based gnutella client with a proprietary interface.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.blogsdna.com/923/top-20-best-peer-2-peer-p2p-file-sharing-programs-applications-software.htm |title=Top 20 Best Peer to Peer P2P File Sharing Programs and Applications |date=January 1, 2019 |website=BlogsDNA |language=en-US |access-date=June 26, 2019}}</ref> Researchers at [[Cornell University]] developed a reputation management add-in called [[Credence (reputation management scheme)|Credence]] that allows users to distinguish between "genuine" and "suspect" files before downloading them.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.cs.cornell.edu/people/egs/credence/ |title=Credence - Thwarting P2P Pollution |website=cornell.edu |access-date=June 26, 2018}}</ref> An October 12, 2005, report states that some of LimeWire's contributors have forked the project and called it [[FrostWire]].<ref>[http://www.slyck.com/news.php?story=954 "FrostWire Beta Released"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311092718/http://www.slyck.com/news.php?story=954 |date=March 11, 2007 }}, from [[Slyck.com]].</ref>

LimeWire was the second file sharing program after FrostWire to support firewall-to-firewall file transfers, a feature introduced in version 4.2, which was released in November 2004. LimeWire also now includes [[BitTorrent (protocol)|BitTorrent]] support, but is limited to three torrent uploads and three torrent downloads, which coexist with ordinary downloads. LimeWire 5.0 added an instant messenger that uses the [[XMPP]] Protocol, a free software communication protocol. Users can chat and share files with individuals or a group of friends in their buddy list.
[[File:Limewire 5 0 11 beta.png|thumb|A screenshot of Limewire 5 0 11 beta
]]
From version 5.5.1, LimeWire has added a key activation, which requires the user to enter the unique key before activating the "Pro" version of the software. This has stopped people from using downloaded "Pro" versions without authorization. However, there are still ways to bypass this security feature, which was done when creating the "Pirate Edition". For example, cracked versions of LimeWire were available on the Internet (including on LimeWire itself), and people could continue using the LimeWire Pro 5.5.1 Beta, which also includes [[AVG (software)|AVG]] for LimeWire and is the first version to include AVG. The most recent stable version of LimeWire is 5.5.16.

Versions of LimeWire prior to 5.5.10 can still connect to the Gnutella network and users of these versions are still able to download files, even though a message is displayed concerning the injunction during the startup process of the software. LimeWire versions 5.5.11 and newer feature an auto-update feature that allowed Lime Wire LLC to disable newer versions of the LimeWire software. Older versions of LimeWire prior to version 5.5.11, however, do not include the auto-update feature and are still fully functional. As a result, neither the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) nor Lime Wire LLC have the ability to disable older versions of LimeWire, unless the user chooses to upgrade to a newer version of LimeWire.<ref name="pcmag2" />

On November 10, 2010, a secret group of developers called the "Secret Dev Team" sought to keep the application working by releasing the "LimeWire Pirate Edition".<ref name="Limewire Info">{{cite web |url=http://limewireinfo.com/limewire-brought-back-to-life-by-secret-dev-team/ |title=Limewire Brought Back to Life by Secret Dev Team |date=November 21, 2010 |work=Limewire Info |access-date=November 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110302093249/http://limewireinfo.com/limewire-brought-back-to-life-by-secret-dev-team/ |archive-date=March 2, 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The software is based on LimeWire 5.6 Beta, and is aimed to allow Windows versions to still work and remove the threat of spyware or adware. The exclusive features in LimeWire PRO were also unlocked, and all security features installed by Lime Wire LLC were removed.<ref>Andrew Lyle. [http://www.neowin.net/news/limewire-resurrected-by-secret-dev-team ''LimeWire resurrected by Secret Dev Team'']. Neowin.net. Retrieved November 10, 2010. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20101111163213/http://www.neowin.net/news/limewire-resurrected-by-secret-dev-team archive])</ref><ref>enigmax. [http://torrentfreak.com/limewire-resurrected-by-secret-dev-team-101108/ Torrentfreak %28Torrentfreak%29 LimeWire Resurrected By Secret Dev Team]. TorrentFreak. Retrieved November 10, 2010. ([https://web.archive.org/web/20101111012618/http://torrentfreak.com/limewire-resurrected-by-secret-dev-team-101108/ archive])</ref>