FYI - in case someone else has had the same problem.

i basically tried all the suggestions i could find, nothing worked


I finally solved my problem...i uninstalled the new version of limewire and installed the original version that i had. the 4.12.14 version works for me, but the 4.16 version. not to sure why. nothing changed just the limewire version. you can download old versions of limewire from filehippo.com - Download Free Software.