Apparently the beta 4.9.3 has some bugs. Try the newer beta 4.9.7 I think the final release will be version 5 but it could be a while before that happens. They're still ironing out issues with the beta & trying out new things.
http://www.limewire.com/english/content/beta.shtml
By the way, how did you lose all your downlds? If you use the LW uninstaller (start menu>Programs>uninstall), then it will only remove the LW program & the program folder. Not a good idea to make the LW program folder the downld folder as well. Default location is generally C:\Documents and Settings\"your account name"\Shared
You could also try deleting LW's preferences whilst LW is closed; instructions:
Fixes for Limewire