Nevertheless the situation improves dramatically after having "Prefer AutoConnect" disabled. This way I get connected to three times as many hosts and files. Is this really due to the change in the way LimeWire handles messages now?

PS: I am curious. What is the difference between LimeWire 1.4 and 1.4b ? I couldn't fins anything about 1.4b anywhere on the LimeWire WebSite or on the net. However, I've noticed the NativeLauncher.dll vanishing and i'm quite glad about this (pure java shall rule).