Newbie question: vacillating download speeds
 

I've read the documentation and FAQs and understand the limitations on download/upload speeds, but I can't figure out why these speeds vary so violently.

I've been trying (unsuccessfully) to download a large mpeg for the last few days. I've seen download speeds vary from 0.5 KB/s up to 30.0 KB/s and back down again in less than 60 sec. At the same time my upload spends remain a fairly consistent 3 to 5 KB/s.

What causes this vacillation?

Anyway to improve download speeds?

Happy Thanksgiving.

The remote host may have other transfers finishing and starting, which raises and then lowers your download speed. Also if someone is actively using the remote host then the speeds may fluctuate depending on how busy that computer is.