Are file shearing programs ilegal?

The programs themselves are not illegal...yet. But similar to a gun, it's how they are used that can get you in trouble. We can only hope that file sharing apps will be able to prove a majority of the end users have legitimate purposes for these applications, or we can expect that one day they will become illegal.

Your comparison with guns is even more correct...in some countries they are illegal (atleast, owning them is).

Check out some threads in this forum for more information, this question has been discussed several times...and you have been around long enough to be able to find your way around here...wouldn't hurt you to put in a little effort of your own...and/or make your question more specific

Eh. Owning an illegal program isn't like owning a gun. Even if they are eventually declared illegal, the vast majority of the users won't give two hoots and will keep using them.

....until they get caught. I understand your point though. Indeed, even if guns are made illegal or as Tax mentions, in some places they are today, then there will still be people that will keep using them. Whether it's a vast majority in either case, guns or programs, I can't say.

However, what I was referring to of course, was using a product in a way that it was not designed or at least intended by the manufacturer, that through the misuse, one could expose them-self to a legal action. In this respect at least, it seemed quite similar to me.

The fact is that the vast majority of p2p users are using them to download copyrighted material. The programmers can say all they want, but anybody who just takes a quick peek through any DC hub can see that. There are, of course, people who just use them to download linux distributions, indie music, free movies and whatnot, but they are not the majority.
Hell, it's what p2p programs were born for. Later on, with bittorrent, people started realizing they are also a good way to spread legal content for people who can't afford the bandwidth cost of a server, but the primary goal of Napster (which, as far as I know, was the first serious worldwide p2p app) was to allow people to trade music they couldn't download from the net.
The programmers are, legally, right in saying it's the user's fault if they download copyrighted stuff, but they aren't kidding anyone. It's like those companies that make parts for tuning cars, motorbikes or scooters; they print on their ads "only to be used in competitions, use on public roads is prohibited", but they are perfectly aware most of those parts will end up being installed in vehicles that will be used on public roads.
Still, nobody's ever gotten any of them to shut down on the grounds of that, so hopefully the problem of p2p legality will go the same way.

Well, since I use them to find copyrighted material, just funny owned pics and stuff, I dont think its illegal. But, correct me if Im wrong.

I think you left the word "don't" out.. so see this as a correction..

Freudian slip?

Yeah, unconscious processes caused it