Friendliness of Linux networking

[Rob Williams]

Long story short. I had a group of files on a Windows laptop that I needed to get to my Windows desktop, so that I could benchmark a thumb drive for an upcoming review. So, I set up the network, shared the folders... all that good stuff. I rebooted both PC's, expecting them to see each other, which they did not.

This makes no sense to me, even now, because I've set them up that way before and it's worked fine. The only option I had was to copy the files to a thumb drive and then copy them off until I had all the files I needed.

Well, since I use a Linux machine primarily, I figured the "easiest" way would be to just grab the files I needed off the Windows laptop and copy it to my Linux machine, and then from the Linux machine, move it to it's final destination. Doesn't it seem strange that Linux picked up on both PC's just fine, but Windows was clueless?

Anyways, here came the fun part... something I was not even sure could be done. I right-clicked the files on the laptop (through Linux) and then went to the Windows desktop PC and pasted them there. Sure enough, Linux commanded the lead and copied the files directly from the laptop to the desktop, without it first having to be passed through the Linux desktop.

All I have to say is... cool.

 

[BlindMonk]

Ha, that's pretty neat. I can't shake this image of the two Windows machines as inhabitants of Edwin Abbott's story Flatland, where they exist on a two-dimensional, horizontal plane and can't fathom the workings of a spherical being who slips into their landscape in an up-and-down manner and manipulates the situation.

On an aside, when I get a chance I think I'm going to try making the switch over to using Linux. I'll move my data over to a lesser machine and devote it to my day-to-day operations and internet-related items, and then streamline the current Windows rig I'm on now for exclusive gaming or video-editing. Bought a KVM switch that I haven't really used yet, so I think it'd work out pretty swell.

 

[moon111]

Using a thumb drive to go from one computer to another. Even the old 'sneaker-net' has been updated!