Hello. I've just purchased an Apple Powerbook, and I want to find a
way to transfer several GB of data from my Dell PC laptop to it as
quickly as possible. Both machines have Firewire ports, so I'm hoping
that there is an easy way to use that to move the data over,
alternatively, they both have WLAN cards in them, so that might work
as well - or is there another way? The PC is a Dell C840 Latitude with
Win XP Pro, the Mac is the new 15" Powerbook with OS X (v10.2). Links
to 'How to' web sites would be great, or shareware software that will
solve the problem. Any suggestions that involve burning CD's won't be
helpful (too much stuff!) and I do'nt have access to a DVD burner.
Cheers, Dave

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Request for Question Clarification by livioflores-ga on 16 Sep 2003 08:40 PDT

Are both computers set up for Ethernet and can be linked with crossover cable?

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Clarification of Question by dave76-ga on 18 Sep 2003 03:10 PDT

Both computers have a live Ethernet port, and I have plenty of network
cables - but is a cross over cable different? I can probably get one
from our IT guys if that is what is required.
Hope that helps,
Dave

Hi dave76!!

I think that I found the information that you need. 

"Sharing files between a Mac and a PC connected with a crossover
cable":
This step-by-step guide will teach you how to configure your Macintosh
to access shared files on a PC running Windows XP, just download the
following document, it is in pdf format; you can read it using Acrobat
Reader:
http://pdf.euro.apple.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/applepdf.woa/wa/document?country=uk&pn=macpc_cab


You can download the Acrobat Reader at this page:
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html


You also will find valuable information related in the following
pages:
"Mac & PC - The tutorials": 
'The tutorials below are designed to provide step-by-step instructions
on how to accomplish some common integration tasks in a cross-platform
context.'
http://www.apple.com/uk/smallbusiness/mac_pc/tutorials.html 
 

At the "AppleCare Knoledge Base Documents" pages you will see the
following documents:
-"Macintosh: Networking With a Windows PC": 
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=19652 
 
-"Mac OS X: Sharing With Non-Apple Operating Systems": 
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106660 
 
-"Mac OS X: About File Sharing": 
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106461 
 
-"Mac OS X 10.2: How to Set Up Windows File Sharing": 
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=107083 
 
-"Mac OS X 10.1 or later: How to Connect to Windows File Sharing
(SMB)":
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=106471 


Visit also the following page:
"MacWindows Tutorials - Tutorials for Macintosh-Windows Integration":
http://www.macwindows.com/tutorial.html


Related to crossover cables you can build one or you can buy one; see
the following pages for more references:
"Setting up a Crossover Ethernet Network":
http://www.atpm.com/network/setup/ethernet_crossover.html

"How can I build or buy a crossover Ethernet cable ?":
http://www.saintrochtree.com/zones/it/articles/2000-01-01-07.htm

"Ethernet Crossover Cables Explained" (with a link to cable prices):
http://www.homenethelp.com/web/explain/about-ethernet-crossover.asp



If you want to try with the Firewire ports I found a software that can
be usefull:
-FireNet-
"FireNet™ software is the fast and yet affordable way of networking
two or more PCs via their FireWire ports. Compatible with all PCs,
FireNet™ is the ultimate software to replace standard 10/100 Ethernet
networking."
"FireNet™ is a full Ethernet emulation network and works seamlessly
with all existing Ethernet-compatible software and hardware.
FireNet™ supports all of the standard Ethernet protocols, including
TCP/IP, NetBEUI, IPX/SPX, and AppleTalk. It is a cross-platform
networking solution, meaning that it supports both Windows and
Macintosh OS, operating smoothly regardless of the platform(s) in use.
Of course, mixed (PC and MAC) networks are supported.
FireNet™ Software can be shipped together with FireBoards (Unibrain’s
FireWire PCI adapters or CardBus cards) as well as with FireWire
cables (available in 2m, 4,5m and 10m lengths) and repeaters."
From "FireWire Networking Software for PC":
http://www.unibrain.com/1394_products/1394_networking/firenet_pc.htm

More info here:
"FireWire Networking Software for Mac":
http://www.unibrain.com/1394_products/1394_networking/firenet_mac.htm

"The Many Faces of FireWire":
http://www.unibrain.com/reviews/peachpit/Peachpit%20Press%20%20Features%20The%20Many%20Faces%20of%20FireWire.htm

Before purchase this FireNet read carefully this page:
"Unibrain's Support - FAQ Networking":
http://www.unibrain.com/support/networking/networking.htm


Search strategy:
KEYWORDS:
networking Mac OS X windows xp
crossover ethernet cable
firewire networking mac pc
SEARCH ENGINE: Google
www.google.com

I hope this helps you; and please feel free to request for further
assistance if you need it using the request for an answer
clarification feature before rate my answer. Also let me know how this
answer works, your feedback is a valuable tool for giving a better
service to you.

Best regards.
livioflores-ga

I hope itīs helpfully:

Open a Network Connection
Macs can connect to the same networks as PCs and share files over the
network using the SMB/CIFS file sharing protocol. This means you can
connect one Mac to one PC using an Ethernet cable or connect a Mac
into a large, managed corporate network and exchange files with others
in your company. If you have wired or wireless home networking
equipment, you can move files, such as digital photos or video
footage, between your Mac and your other connected PCs. If you need to
access your work files when you're away from the office, you can use
Mac OS X's built-in VPN client to connect remotely to your employer’s
network.

Accessing SMB Servers
Using SMB is the most flexible way to access non-Mac file server
networks. You don’t need any special software running on the Windows
server — to the server, your Mac is just another PC on the network.
Because of this, you can also access PC workstations that have file
sharing turned on.


How di I access windows file Servers:
Before you start, you’ll need to have TCP/IP set up in Mac OS X.
You’ll also need to be listed as a user on the server with the
appropriate permissions to access the PC.

Browsing the Network
To log onto an SMB server, open the Go menu from the Finder and select
“Connect to Server:”

The Connect to Server dialog box will open. Any servers you’ve
previously connected to will appear in the pop-up menu at the top of
the dialog for easy access.

Available Windows servers will appear in the left column. To connect
for the first time, select the server, then press the Connect button.

A login screen will appear. Here you’ll type in your user name,
password and domain (smaller networks may not have a domain).

When you click Connect, the server volume will mount on your desktop
and appear in the Computer view of the Finder. (It looks like a globe
sitting on an external hard drive.) Double clicking opens a Finder
window, which you can use to drag-and-drop files between the server
volume and your hard disk.

Connecting Manually
You can also connect manually to a server using its URL in the Address
field. Unlike URLs for the Web, which start with http://, you’ll use a
URL starting with smb://. The most basic URL form is this:
smb://ServerName/ShareName/

The “share” is the folder or hard disk being shared on the Windows
server or workstation.

The server name can also be an IP
address:smb://192.428.26.101/ShareName/ or a DNS
name:smb://username@ServerName/ShareName/

On some networks, you may need the workgroup name. You can add this
before the server name with a semicolon separator, as
in:smb://workgroup;servername/ShareName

On smaller networks, or if you’re accessing a PC with file sharing
turned on, you may be able to skip the share name, as
in:smb://ServerName/

After you type in the URL, click the Connect button.