Celestia Forums

Anyone else here using Vista who has been able to successfully download any of the large (1.5GB-2.3GB) files from the NASA server?

Have run into strange problems trying to download the base files needed in order to use Dr. Schrempp's F-TexTools, Nmtools, and other VT routines. Has anyone else been able to download these texture packages successfully? If so, how? I have tried Firefox right-click and save, and lose about 300MB from the end of each file. Have also tried using Firefox add-on, DownloadThemAll with no success as BPS drop to 7k/sec after about 1.15GB. Also tried to use Explorer via right-click and save, and had to cancel the download after 3.5GB's were download.

Anyone else doing this stuff successfully. If so, how? Any advice appreciated.

EDIT: Also tried removing Firefox DownloadThemAll extension, and LEFT-clicking on the BMNG file I wanted for June. Got a total of 2,147,483,648 bytes before the download simply ended. No errors, and no indication that anything was wrong. This is about 300 MB short of the full download. Still looking for answers here. Have tried WGET, a command line download utility, also with no effect.

Will continue to research and try things until I can figure out why I can't get the files downloaded correctly.
Have also tried "The Geek's" solution, which involved running a command line instruction to change Vista's handling of the NET's properties, also to no effect.

Just so other Vista users know about it, there seems to be a disconnection problem when downloading very LARGE files in Vista. I tried using Firefox, Explorer, and the Firefox extension called "DownloadThemAll" with NO success. I finally used a trial version of a the GetRight Software package which DID work, and allowed me to obtain the very large VT base files I needed. I post this information ONLY so that others who may run into the same problem can obtain some of these very large files.

What was happening was a disconnection from NASA's server when I reached the "magic" number of 2048MB during a download. In all cases, except for the software I mentioned above, the download software assumed that the download was finished, and ended the process. This, even though the file had NOT been completely downloaded.

Again, just FYI here.

Thanks, Tired and Brain-Dead Bob

Bob,

did I get you right that downloads of the nmtools and F-TexTools archives work OK ? These are pretty small archives. I just made sure that all the tools download properly with my machine via the links you gave in your CM Tutorial.

Did you have trouble downloading the multi-GB raw data files from the NASA server?

From these links I get my theoretically maximal download speed of ~ 700 KB/sec with dtaOneClick of Firefox:

http://mirrors.arsc.edu/nasa/world_big/ ... 200.bin.gz
http://mirrors.arsc.edu/nasa/landmask/w ... 200.bin.gz
http://mirrors.arsc.edu/nasa/topography ... 200.bin.gz

The official watermask should best be replaced by cartrite's much better one.

I noted on this occasion that you linked to nmtools-1.01. This is OK, but I would highly recommend that people should use my latest nmtools-1.5pre1 version. There are no new bugfixes, but version 1.5 runs about a factor of TWO faster and has improved output etc.!

You find the latest tool links in the dedicated thread here

http://forum.celestialmatters.org/viewtopic.php?t=70

The source archives contain also the binaries for Linux, MAC-OS (universal) and Windows.

A special binary installer version is also available for Windows.

Cheers,
Fridger

Edit: Bob, as a cross check, I specially downloaded the 2.6 GB world.200406.3x86400x43200.bin.gz file down, with 700KB/s ~ 1h, from the above-given link. The file is in perfect condition as always.

See my edits to the posts on CM Forum, Fridger. All are downloaded okay now.
For whatever reason. though, I simply cannot download these files using the Firefox add-ons.

Also, and just for your further information, ALL of your files and Cartrite's files were downloaded
fine and with NO troubles whatsoever. My step-by-step tutorial on the CM clearly states where my
progress has gotten me to.

The ONLY file I could not download was the large 2.3GB NASA base texture, but that too has now
been downloaded to my machine in a good state. Still do NOT know why this file caused problems
with EVERY download procedure except the one I finally found which worked. <shrug>

Again, I post this information ONLY for other Vista users who may run into the same problem.

Okay, just a bit more information for the un-enlightened concerning the downloading of LARGE files...

From the NASA server:

When the Visible Earth relaunched in 2005, all imagery on the site was available for immediate HTTP download. Unfortunately, this started to generate maintenance problems, as folks downloading the larger Blue Marble imagery (~400M) would be connected to the server for a very long time. Frequently they would be forcibly disconnected for maintenance, causing their downloads to abort. When Blue Marble: Next Generation launched, we had a large influx of files of equal, and LARGER, sizes. Since this would require more people to be dropped regularly, we decided to look for other ways of resolving the download options.

As noted here, the maintenance from the server was causing my downloads to abort at 2048MB. To get the files, your software needs to be able to resume the download after any disconnection.

Just FYI...

Thanks, Brain-Dead

BobHegwood wrote:Okay, just a bit more information for the un-enlightened concerning the downloading of LARGE files...

From the NASA server:

When the Visible Earth relaunched in 2005, all imagery on the site was available for immediate HTTP download. Unfortunately, this started to generate maintenance problems, as folks downloading the larger Blue Marble imagery (~400M) would be connected to the server for a very long time. Frequently they would be forcibly disconnected for maintenance, causing their downloads to abort. When Blue Marble: Next Generation launched, we had a large influx of files of equal, and LARGER, sizes. Since this would require more people to be dropped regularly, we decided to look for other ways of resolving the download options.

As noted here, the maintenance from the server was causing my downloads to abort at 2048MB. To get the files, your software needs to be able to resume the download after any disconnection.

Just FYI...

Thanks, Brain-Dead

But the "DownThemAll" plugin in Firefox does precisely this...(reconnecting). Since I downloaded with "dTa Once Click" the big file was chopped into 10 small chunks for download.

Anyway I had NO respective problems.

Fridger

t00fri wrote:But the "DownThemAll" plugin in Firefox does precisely this...(reconnecting). Since I downloaded with "dTa Once Click" the big file was chopped into 10 small chunks for download.

Anyway I had NO respective problems.

Fridger

Did NOT do that on my system Doctor, but then again, you know how Brain-Dead I am.
Perhaps, I needed to set this up and just didn't get it accomplished. <shrug>

At any rate, I have software that DOES do this for me now.

Thanks, Bob