SMB

SMB is a protocol that lets Windows machines share files with one another, so that Williams student can make their pictures, documents, music, and movies public. SMB stands for "server message block," and more about the protocol is available at Wikipedia:Server message block.

Back in the old days of 2002, WSO set up a service called Phynd. This was a tool that efficiently indexed and searched a Windows network using only Windows networking protocols. It lasted about three months before the recording industry sued another college campus and WSO took it down as an act of self-preservation.

Searching the network for media

Luckily, as mentioned above, Phynd used only default Windows networking protocols. The upshot is that you can still search the Williams network for media. Here's how:

1. Open My Computer
2. Click the Search button on the toolbar
3. When the annoying little dude pops up, click the link labelled Pictures, music, or video
4. Click Use advanced search options
5. Specify what type of media you want to search for
   1. Check one or more boxes to stipulate picture, music, or video files
   2. Enter all part of the file name if desired--leave this box blank to search for all media
6. Click on the drop-down box labelled Look in: and select Browse
   1. Select My Network Places > Entire Network > Microsoft Windows Network
7. Click Search!

Note that this search is highly inefficient and will take a long time. You might want to start it up before class on Friday so that your computer generates a list of music/movies for the weekend that will be ready when you return. A good tip is to remember the name of the computer where you find a lot of stuff. You can access computers on the network by name by opening My Computer and typing \\computername in the Address Bar. It's also possible to connect to a PC from Mac OS X.

Please note - this did not work for me - i got no results.

Note again - Getting no results is fairly common. Try it again, and maybe a third time. Eventually it'll work.

This is one way to find Lost episodes on the network.