I just found out that there is a new linux mirror project, http://tlm-project.org , that is dedicated to improving access to distro downloads. They started up less than a month ago and probably could use all the support/help they can get. I haven't tried a download yet, but it looks like they have knoppix, mandrake, slackware and fedora so far. It's a work in progress but deserving of a look-see. Hope this is interesting/useful to some of you out there.