With the open source nature of the eMule client, things can occur that proprietary software wouldn’t dream of allowing.
Note: This is an article I wrote that was published elsewhere first. It has been republished here for archival purposes
In an eMule mod for instance, developers can modify the software code and publish their own version of the client for users to enjoy thanks to the GPL (General Public License). Because of the GPL license, the source code of the mods must also be released which enables other developers to make additional derivatives. This is the case with ScarAngel, one of many eMule mods that has been built on a mod. ScarAngel (Not to be confused with MagicAngel) is another eMule mod that recently released an update. This client is based off of the MorphXT eMule mod.
ScarAngel started with two main developers, Max and Stulle. They co-developed the mod all the way up to June 2006 when Max retired for personal reasons. At that point, Stulle became the only developer for the client. It has now been a year since Max’s retirement and development is still continuing with the help of many others along the way.
The current version of ScarAngel is based off of the XTreme eMule Mod. It implements several features while incorporating a few features from MorphXT, StulleMule and other mods. The developer says on the main webpage that some of the features that were developed on ScarAngel were later implemented into other mod clients.
ScarAngel has a number of main features. One feature is the “Relax on start-up” feature which tells the client to skip some start-up tasks when it’s launched. This allows users to save on system resources during start-up.
Another particularly interesting feature is the ability to switch between 10 different credit systems. Some of the credit systems supported are: Official, lovelace, Ratio, Pawcio, EastShare, sivka, S.W.A.T., Xtreme.
According to the change log, the latest version has added a KAD (Kademlia network) Vista fix, safe KAD, emulate other clients, and recognize ‘MLDonkey XS Answer’, among other things.
You can download the latest ScarAngel here. eMule forum members can view the complete changelog here.
Drew Wilson on Twitter: @icecube85 and Google+.
