Rah,

This will probably seem like a really stoopid question to all you guys however please indulge me!

Ok I have a windows PC and a MAC, and I want a fairly large hard drive that I can back things up from both PCs on and also to put all my itunes on and share between mine and the other halfs ipods.

Im guessing just an ordinary wireless hard drive will be fine for this?

When I have it will I just be able to see it on the network from either of the PCs and put stuff on it etc?

 :whoops:

Me and Nimrod have a Linksys NSLU2 with a usb drive on it. You can get wireless jobbies although not sure how reliable.

Seagate drives are meant to be the sh!t at the moment.

Cheers
Tongy

just get a wired NAS box, forget wireless, the datarate isnt good enough for sustained usage.  Box plugs directly into the router, and you have wireless access through that.  

Another vote for NAS, its the best way forward. watch out though, I saw a NASish box recently that looked exactly perfect until I realised you have to be running Windoze to access it. Make sure its a real NAS which you can access via TCP/IP and you should be able to see it from Windows/Mac/Linux/Whatever

Quote from: wizbit Ã,©This will probably seem like a really stoopid question to all you guys however please indulge me!

/blokes all line up for some indulgence...

If you need cheap then just use a USB2 drive, you can buy the box empty and shove an older drive you arent using into it. I currently have one with a 40gb 2.5" drive and all I have to do is plug it in and play. I can use it by plugging it directly into a TV and it will play films too.

Otherwise use a NAS box connected to your router with a cable, they are a lot less hassle. Their throughput should be greater too as the router can access it through the normal cable leaving the wi-fi free for it to talk to your compys Remember to set up protection so others cant access your files too, especially if you are using wi-fi. A NAS box will be on all the time so will use more power if you are feeling greenish.

get yourself a nas box.... and if you can get one that doef ftp.... then youll defo be able to access it from both systems   (there about the same price as non ftp ones!)

Ive got one like that.... it makes backing up much easier too... you can tell it to copy a folder over and itll skip copying any files which are idential to the ones on the box... unlike windows which leaves you clicking no a million times !!

p.s. could be cheaper to buy an empty nas box (hard to find, but plenty in ebay shops) and putting a hard drive in it.... or even better if youve already got an old one you can use

ok thank you people

Just been looking at those NAS wotsits, I think theyre a bit expensive for me right now but its definitely on the list!

If youve got an old pc, something like even a p200, you can set that up to be a NAS box, so all it will cost to set up is the price of the hard disk, and maybe slightly more effort than a dedicated (expensive) box you can buy.

Quote from: wizbit Ã,©ok thank you people

Just been looking at those NAS wotsits, I think theyre a bit expensive for me right now but its definitely on the list!

eh ?

I just got one for Ã,£40 wihtout a hard drive.... and if you buy one with a hard drive there normally only harddrive money + about Ã,£20

me thinks youve been loking all the wrong places.

EDIT:
the one I just bought.... Ã,£36 (best one I could find without a hard drive that runs as an ftp server too)

and heresa  load to choose from...
http://search.ebay.co.uk/search/search.dll?ht=1&from=R4&saatc=3&salic=3%26saatc%3D-1&satitle=nas&sacat=58058%26catref%3DC6

If things wont fit on my 1GB pendrive I use my 30GB 2.5" drive in a usb caddy.  If you need larger than possibly a 3.5" caddy with suitable size can be had for about Ã,£80.  Keep your eye on Arias web specials, they frequently have 250GB on offer.

2.5" caddys have the benefit of not requiring an external powersupply.  

Ah yes I think I was looking at the wrong things completely (Ã,£500+)  :whoops:

I have a spare PC which I had setup specifically for this with a 300GB hard drive but as some of you may remember I posted a while back because the PC kept switching off randomly, I tried all your suggestions (bought a new PSU, ran some software kindly given to me) but it didnt fix it so I thought Id try something else.

I guess I could buy the box and try the 300GB hdd that I already have in it.

I hate PCs.

Quote from: wizbit Ã,©I hate PCs.

Join the club

Quote from: wizbit Ã,©I guess I could buy the box and try the 300GB hdd that I already have in it.

there good, Ive just ordered my 3rd

plug em in, quick 2 min setup, then forget about it

Quote from: wizbit Ã,©I guess I could buy the box and try the 300GB hdd that I already have in it.

Would be a good idea.

http://www.hotukdeals.com/deal/8192/wd-netcenter-160gb-network-hdd-nas-