I'm trying to download a file really fast and it has over 500 users, but the **** thing is only going at 21 fricking KB/s! Please, what can I do?

Details:
Cable/DSL (156 KB/s upload speed)
Download Bandwidth: 100%

It's nice to give your upload speed but what about your download speed?
A file might have 500 sources in all but how many sources does the version you're downloading have??

You can only download as fast as your connection & the host(s) connection will allow.

Oh yeah, whoops!

My download speed is 1276 Kbps.
The version I'm downloading has 500+ sources (It also says 'T3 or Higher' under speed). There are many versions, but I'm getting the one with the most users. For some reason it's only downloading from around 6-8, and never 10.
My speed has been excellent before, getting up to and well over 100 KB/s, so why is it doing this now? Thanks.

There are loads of fake files around now & these typically show with heaps of sources. 500 sources for a file is a bit of a danger signal!!!! So...at a guess, you're downloading from a few ligitimate sources for that file.
Also, just because a host shows as T3 or higher... doesn't mean they actually have that speed. Fakes aside, you wouldn't believe how many idiots up their speed settings to try & get a faster download speed

Try doing a new search, & go for a file with 10 sources or less. Modem sources are usually pretty good but if you're after a fast download then that's not going to happen! You haven't said what type of file you're trying to download...video or audio. Check the link below anyway, it has tips for both

http://www.gnutellaforums.com/showpo...33&postcount=2

I know for a fact that the file is not fake, as I have checked it.
I suppose getting a file with 10 or less makes sense, as you can never download from more than that many. Doesn't having more sources make it more likely that you will get a fast download?
And it is a video .avi file, 348MB.

Did you check the file with Bitzi? 500 sources is massive & I'd be surprised if most of those sources weren't fake.

The more real sources you download from, the better chance you have of a faster download. Depending on your speed, host(s) speed, the amount of upload slots they have open etc.

Yes, the comments said it was perfect. I don't think the file is fake, it seemed fine when I previewed it. Please, I just need to find out what tweaks I can do to make the speed get up towards at least 80 or 100 KB/s! Thanks.

Check out the link below for tips on optimising LW's performance.
Configuring LW for best performance

A lot really does depend on the people you're downloading from - their bandwidth & how they have their LW options set. All you can really do is set your LW up to perform at it's best.

I've read that guide many many times before, and it didn't help that much. What should I do with my upload settings, for example? Is it best to have the bandwidth set low or high, and how many users should I put it at?

You mean over 500 hosts showed up in the search, but how many are you "actually" downloading from? (there's a maximum no. of how many you can download from at one time.) A % of those you won't connect to because they are busy or just difficult to connect to. Keep in mind some of these hosts may be offering partial sharing, so they don't have the whole of the file themselves. They just share portions of it as they are downloading the file themselves but might not be still actively downlding it at that time. So they'll drop off over time. Some of those sharing the file may be modem dial up users, so you may only get a fraction of speed from each.

Search the topic periodically so you can try to find more sources. Browse hosts. This can sometimes result in finding the extra odd source.

Sharing similar material helps. I'm not a high speed user so I can't advise on optimal settings for high speed users.