All I need to do is share a directory on either computer with the other so I can freely pass data back and forth.

I have tried to do this on my Mandrake box by setting up Samba via the Mandrake control center, but the WinXP box can't connect to the directory. It doesn't even seem to see the other box at all.

I tried sharing a directory from WinXP using their network doodad, but when I try to set up a mount point on my Mandrake box it can't find my other box.

I cannot ping the WinXP box from my Mandrake one.

I searched this forum for helpful stuff first, and found a reference to a registry patch for WinXP that should be somewhere on my Mandrake box, but a search of my entire filesystem using Konquerer didn't find it.

I have known good network cards in both machines, and the cable I have is the proper type for a PC to PC connection. I have used these cards and cable successfully to connect two Mandrake machines.

I'm still pretty much a clueless newbie, please set BIGWORDS=off

Thanks in advance!