Ultimate Edition 2.5 download?

[Lynwood]

I'm having a terrible time downloading Ultimate Edition 2.5. Whether I download from Sourceforge or the Tampa mirror, on my Windows box or my Ubuntu 8.10 box, I get never more than 93 kb/s and usually in the 60s and 70s. That's *k*bps, not mbps! And, if that isn't bad enough, it keeps just stopping--constantly, after only a few minutes.

What does it take to get a good download of this!? Can't Sourceforge and/or its mirrors do better than that? If not, can I get a premade DVD of it?

Also, what's the current state of Ultimate Edition's development?

[JOHNNYG]

Wow jrphorbin ! You sure look a lot like MARTY FELDMAN ! Yes we need more info ! Lynwood, Thanks ! AS far as The state of Ultimate Edition development ! TheeMahn and the team are constantly working on new and better ways to make Ultimate Edition " The Cutting Edge " With 10.4 Lucid coming out, Much will change, TheeMahn and the rest of the team are on that as we speak ! Ultimate Edition 2.6 will be based on 10.4 Lucid ! The best is and will continue, To only get better !

[Moebius]

And, if that isn't bad enough, it keeps just stopping--constantly, after only a few minutes.

Just throwing it out there, but are you using any form of download accelerator? If so, switch it off and try again. I have been on sites that will not allow you to have multiple connections for download acceleration and will kick you off after a few minutes/seconds.

Cheers.

[Lynwood]

I'm sorry for the delay in responding to all your help. I'm working on getting that spec-ified signature.

[Lynwood]

Hello, again,

Sorry for the long delay in responding to all your very helpful responses. I've been too busy to be able to follow up on this.

First, here are my current system specs:
Two white boxes

Main unit
Kubuntu 8.10 with Gnome DE metadata & Xfce metadata installed; using Gnome nearly exclusively
MB: Biostar M7VIG Pro
Processor: Athlon 2700+, 1800-1900 (?) MHz
Memory: 1 GB: 2 512 DDR DSRAM
Two hard drives:
Fujitsu MAN3367MP, SCSI, 40 GB: partitioned; 1st contains current OS, Ubuntu 9.10; 2nd empty, soon to contain
64-bit Ultimate Edition 2.5.
Seagate SX4464524, SCSI, ~36 GB: data
Video card: ATI Radeon 7000 (32 MB ram)

Backup unit
Windows XP Pro, SP3 w nearly all updates, FAT 32
MB: PCChips M812LMR (?)
Processor: Athlon XP, 1533 MHz,
RAM: 1 GB: 2 512 DDR SDRAM
Maxtor 2B020H1, ~20 GB
Video card: ATI 3D Rage LT Pro

Modem: Zyxel EQ-660R ADSL Router
Router: Netgear MR814 v3

I'm not making this my signature because it looks now like I'll be replacing my main computer with new castoff guts, after which the guts of my current main computer will become those of my backup computer. This is a week or two away, if all works well. If it goes as planned, then, after I've gotten it fully working, I'll make a specs signature. Happy to do this.

It looks like my new main computer will have an Athlon XP 64 3200+ processor and 1 or 2 gigs of ram (not sure whether it'll be DDR or DDR2; I'll almost certainly have to buy the latter, and that's a lot of money for me). I'll keep my hdds, the OS one of which now has U 9.10 only on it and a second partition for Ultimate Edition 2.5. The other one holds my data. I've just downloaded the 64-bit version of Ultimate Edition 2.5, and it went flawlessly! Fantastic (see next paragraph).

Second, apparently my problem is solved, though I don't know what it was. First, I was wrong about the download speed. It is kBps, not kbps, which is exactly right for the download speed I've bought. Second, whatever the problem was seems to have been solved, either because of time (?) or because I've installed Ubuntu 9.10 over my previous Kubuntu (with the Gnome and Xfce metapackages installed, together with sundry other software).

Finally, I do still have a problem with my main computer. I think it's minor, but it does seem to cause some problems, though I can do normal OS/apps and 'net work. Two knowledgeable people I know think that the problem is the video card driver (ATI Radeon 7000 (32 MB ram). Here are the problems:
1. When I try to display the System Monitor, I get a wavy-lined display the size of the SM. If I click in the upper, right corner, it goes away, just as it would if the window-control buttons were visible. Thank heavens.
2. At various times, normally when I press any key in Abiword, the processor goes into some kind of loop, effectively locking it up for ~5 seconds. And, when I'm in a graphics-heavy portal site, similarly, it goes into that lockup loop when I click on a link. This can last from 5 to 15 seconds.

No one need offer help on this since I'm expecting to change computer guts shortly. I'll either get local help for this problem or simply wait for the new hardware. I will need it to be solved, however, since I think I'll be using the same hardware in the backup computer, and I intend to dump Windows as soon as I become comfortable with GNU/Linux, including running my few Windows programs on it.

Now I'll answer as many of your questions as I can.

I'm wired on both computers but broadcasting a wireless signal, which I could receive on either computer (both have receivers). I don't believe I have download acceleration. In my new 9.10, I have and use Fx 3.5.7, Chrome, presumably current, and Opera 10.10 (current), so far, usually in that order. But, unless I can get Fx 3.6 soon, I can see myself using Chrome more often than Fx. I generally use Opera for downloads, as I love its download manager.

Not seeing any of your other posts, I'll have to make another post to answer the remaining questions.

Thanks for your considerate, attentive responsiveness. I look forward to exploring Ultimate Edition 2.5, and I'm sure I'll have questions, likely plenty of them. The biggest one that occurs to me now is whether I'll have to reinstall each update version or can simply update it over the 'net, especially when new versions come out.

[Lynwood]

Well, I guess there is no further question to answer. So, this is it for now.

[TexasMike]

Lynwood,
It looks as if you are on the road to getting yourself a "newer" computer, and have finally gotten the Ultimate Edition 2.5 downloaded. I want to remind you to verify the MD5SUM of the downloaded file with the one shown in the download link on the Ultimate Edition web page. Also, be sure you burn to DVD at 4X or slower, if possible - some newer burners will no longer write at that low speed. However, be sure to pick the slowest speed your burner supports, if you cannot go all the way down to 4X.
These two issues are responsible for many installation headaches experienced by new users.
We are here to assist you should you need assistance... and Welcome to Ultimate Edition!!

[Lynwood]

Thanks, Mike,

My local computer guru has told me exactly what you've told me. I did verify the iso in my earlier download; it was perfect. In fact, I checked it with at least the MD5Sum. I can't remember whether I checked it with the Sha1 and a third such test. I've been trying to check the 64-bit version of 2.5 but without success. I remember that doing it--once I learned how!--was a piece of cake. Now I can't remember how I did it, but I'll get it.

And, yes, I burned it at 4x, although I think my burner bumped it up to 8x, its minimum. Still, I'll do the same with all such burnings.

Thanks, again.

Lynwood

[Lynwood]

Hello, all,

A general statement about how pleased I am with your helpfulness. This forum's responsiveness has greatly impressed me. I don't usually get such good help so quickly. I'm impressed. Thanks.

Also, I'm wondering why TheeMahn, I assume, wanted to create a kitchen-sink version of Ubuntu. Surely, it isn't necessary for gaming; why couldn't one use whichever DE s/he most liked? Isn't the hardware what's most important for that purpose? For whatever the reason, I appreciate it. I've wanted a SuSE-like, Ubuntu (Debian)-based distro for a long time so I could log out of a DE and then into another one so as to compare them and their native apps at will without having to reboot into an entirely other distro, taking up that extra space. So, Ultimate Edition appears to have turned out to be just what I've wanted.

My only remaining question is how well integrated it is. SUSE has done a magnificent job. But Kubuntu is a mess from what I've heard/read. So, Ub's being a Gnome-based distro from the start and Canonical's not supporting KDE, at least directly, Kubuntu has struggled from its inception and remains pretty far behind in its integratiion. And I've read that the new, 4 series of KDE still has development problems itself, making a really functional KDE-based distro that much harder to make really functional and stable. Hence my wondering how well it plays in Ultimate Edition. And Xfce? Is LXDE included?

Lynwood

[Moebius]

Hi Lynwood,
Please don't take offense as none is intended, but I had to have a bit of a giggle as it seems to me you have answered your own questions in your post.

Also, I'm wondering why TheeMahn, I assume, wanted to create a kitchen-sink version of Ubuntu.

It could be because users find...

Ultimate Edition appears to have turned out to be just what I've wanted.

With regard to the balance of your post, be aware that not every release of U.E comes with multiple desktop environments. Up to now, Gnome has been the backbone D.E. of U.E releases. Will it remain so? only TheeMahn can answer that. As to how well integrated each D.E is, well that is basically up to the developers of each D.E. It will only work as well as they have created it. What I have personally noticed is that it seems to me that most of the work on Ultimate Edition seems to be focused on Gnome (eye candy etc..) which I prefer as I'm not a fan of KDE.

Hope this helps somewhat. (sorry for the wait in replying)