I just downloaded limewire, and every time I try to connect I get this message:

It appears your machine does not have a valid internet connection or a firewall is preventing...

It connects at poor quality for a few seconds then disconnects.
I have a cable modem and I do not have a firewall. I tried deleting the preferences thing, but it didn't work.
Any suggestions?

There is the remote possibility of your router or your provider blocking LimeWire...

Are you using an ISP provided by a school ?
Is this a new and first time installation of LimeWire, or an up-grade ?
Have you been able to successfully use any other p2p 'client' with the exact same connection ?

Try clicking on the

Port :6346 - Test If It Is 'Blocked' link in my 'sig' below...

Let us know what, if anything, you see...

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I clicked the link and I got "this page cannot be displayed." Yes I am at a school, but Kazaa worked fine here.

OK...
Port :6346 is blocked by your school ISP administrator.
So, next...

Look at the

Alternate PORTS link in my 'sig' and after studying the info, try some different ports.

btw, you have not said whether or not you have installed LimeWire for the first time on the machine you are using or if it is an 'upgrade'. You also did not say if you have had any success with a different Gnutella Network based p2p client.

Kazaa is a very different system and uses different ports, as well...

Hey, don't be shy with the info about your system and all... The more you explain in the beginning, the fewer posts needed to clarify your 'situation'... = Faster solving of your problem !

Ok, I changed the port and so far I haven't got the error message yet. I do have one more question though. How long does it usually take Limewire to download a song from cable modem to cable modem and how often (on average) are more sources needed. It seems that every song I try to download needs more sources.

FYI
This is the first time I've downloaded any Gnutella product, so I haven't had any other p2p stuff before.

Thanks!

Oooops, Ooooops... Treble OOOOOOOps !!!

Sorry...

Now, who could have made such a stupid mistake on that link ????????
Duh...

Anyway, try it again !
And, thanks for letting me know...

btw, it's in the "Tips & Tricks" forum...

I changed the port and so far I haven't got the error message yet. I do have one more question though. How long does it usually take Limewire to download a song from cable modem to cable modem and how often (on average) are more sources needed. It seems that every song I try to download needs more sources.

That depends, the more sources you find for a song, the faster and more reliable it will download. I would advise you to use as fine searches as possible (eg. "band name song title" ) That way you get only the results you want. Then I would choose the result with the most sources and an acceptable bitrate and download it. Sometimes you're out of luck, then you have try another result and another one. Downloading in p2p isn't always very reliable because people connect & disconnect all the time.

Is LimeWire actually running now and not indicating any connection problems ???

As far as your latest questions, they are very, very difficult to answer with any degree of accuracy or 'meaning' as there are so many variables involved...
But, as a starter, the reality is that the connection 'capacity' does NOT impart automatic high-performance...
All file transfers are ultimately governed by the vagaries of the users involved in the transfer...

Just noticed that trap_jaw has also responded to you...
What he says is all true... There are many more points that could be made about 'performance', but you should first have a read around the forums in order to pick up a better idea of what others experience.

c u