LinuxQuestions.org - how to make my linux box a member of a workgroup

As the workgroup concept isn't a strict membership you can browse any workgroup available on your physical LAN.
Using the smbclient program you can set the workgroup from session to session.
When browsing the workgroups available through the file browser you can enter any of the workgroups transparently.

The way most people get to know networking, through windows file sharing, gives the idea that file sharing is the network. Borderless and without servers protocols and other crucial parts.

The way Samba is implemented for linux it is divided in two parts, the client part and the server part.
You can take gain access to shared files using the client without installing and sharing files your self. To share files you would have to install the server part as well.
These connections made between different computers to fetch/put files are short session based connection. Opened and closed all the time, not a constant connection.

Hope none of this above have offended you in any way. Just wanted to shed some light on the wonderful world of networking, carefully obscured by Microsoft.