Powerbook and PC Connecting

[brentandkelley]

I have a Powerbook G3 Bronze and I also have a PC desktop. I was wondering if there was a way I could connect the two together to transfer files. My Powerbook has an ethernet port, usbs, modem line, and no fire wire. My PC just has usbs, and modem line. The pc does not have an ethernet port. So I was wondering if I could connect them somehow using usb or the modem line? Thanks in adavance.

God Bless,
Brent Roberts

 

[Kwyjibo]

They do have uSb Crossover cables but USb is very very slow 11Mb/s. The cables arelike $20 i think and can be found anywhere like Best Buy. Apple even seels a package called Move2Mac which includes such a package. As for direct modem connection I'm not sure. Truth be told tho, I suggest you pic up a NIC (pci card with ethernet port) they are cheap for like 5-10 bucks and a piece of ethernet crossover cable and then connect them that way. Its fast up to 100/10 mB/s and it will be the easiest and most universal.

 

[steeleclipse]

if you are running OS X, just install an ethernet card in the PC, network the computers (ie: hub) and turn on apple talk. Thats how my Mac talks to my windoze boxes.

Setup is a little more tricky than that, however there is SEVERAL Apple care documents on it.

 

[topicolo]

Forget about the hub, just get a $5 crossover cable and a $10 network card for the pc and you'll be able to make them "talk to each other"

 

[steeleclipse]

Originally posted by topicolo
Forget about the hub, just get a $5 crossover cable and a $10 network card for the pc and you'll be able to make them "talk to each other"

Thats true, except if he wants to use the internet as well... Then you could constantly keep them connected, however without a hub, you can't...

Trust me... I think before I type

 

[topicolo]

True, but you can always set up Internet Connection Sharing on the PC and you would still be able to share a broadband internet connection.

 

[brentandkelley]

The pci card sounds like a cheap and easy idea to me. I don't know a lot about networking so could someone explain what a hub does and when I would need it? How does it affect internet connections? My home pc has dial up and so does my powerbook. I take my powerbook to school with me sometimes and hook into their network so I can download things much faster. Would a hub mess up anything that I am presently using my powerbook for? How much is a hub? And one last question: when getting a pci ethernet card for my pc, do I have to get a certain one to fit my pc? Thanks in advance.

 

[Kwyjibo]

OK, a Pci Card is a specific standard so it fits almost every modern computer. If your only connecting two computers you don't really need a hub, all you need is a Cat5 crossover cable. Then all you do is plug the two in and in the finder click Command K and connect to the PC, it is very simple and youll probably spend an hour at the most if you don't get it at first. It wil not mess with the settings on your dialup connection or the settings for your school. The etherent crossover cable is your best bet . If you ever have an trouble you can always run a quick serach here on Macrumors and a billion threads will popup about the software interface. good luck

 

[topicolo]

Yeah, I think it's the best choice, since you don't have to spend another $20-40 for a new hub. The hub is only useful if you have 3 or more computers or if you want to share a cable/dsl/satellite connection with your entire network. In that case, the best thing would be to get a router.

Anyway, for your situation, you just need the crossover cable and the network card. If you do decide to get another computer, you can just buy a router and two normal cat5 ethernet cables.