Tablet on an Intranet - possible?

[briley]

I have just got an Asus Trnasformer tablet running Android Jelly bean 4.2 and I want to use it in the same way I use my portable.

I have a few computers on Windows XP, they are all on the same network and I can use explorer to look, copy, delete, change, use etc files on any machine from any machine - it is very easy.

But the tablet needs me to use an app (trying total commander and airdroid at the moment) and then start firefox and then I can just copy files between the two machines. This is too complicated for me and my wife.

She wants to be in the kitchen with the tablet and look at a recipy on one of the other computers - not copy it over. We definately do not want to use 'cloud' computing - just the WiFi link.

Everything I look at talks about MDF (something like that) that then requires you to use MS media player, but that is for video etc and I do not use media player anyway.

How can we open a pdf reader on the Android tablet and use it to open a file on the Win XP portable?

[jpinx]

I am contemplating going over to an android smartphone and want a connection similar to what you're talking about - but my laptop runs linux. The android chatroom was not very helpful and I am stuck at the moment. I will try the wifi hotspot app in the phone and see what that allows me to do, but not sure if it will actually mount the filesystem in the way you obviously need.

[Totster]

I have used logmein before with good results, they do have an Android app (it's a bit expensive)

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.logmein.ignitionpro.android&hl=en

https://secure.logmein.com/AU/products/Ignition/android/

totster

[briley]

jpinx -

No, making it a hotspot does not make it possible to have the tablet (and I assume phone) as part of the network.

As a hotspot you can connect your Linux box to the phone as you would a router, but you can not see the files on the phone.

I did once find an option to mount a filing system, after I plugged in a USB flash drive and that allowed me to copy the files on and off the flash drive but pluging the USB lead into the computer always brings up about the MTP thing (media transfer protocol) that seems to be a MS media player specific protocol.

I've come here to ask the question after going to the android web sites, they all seem so full of highly complex solutions and I though some of us down to earth people might have a sensible answer.

PS - why doesn't firefox's spell checker work and where has Thai Visa's spell checker gone?????

[thaimite]

If it is just for PDFs or eBooks then the easy way is the free calibre library installed on your PC (any OS) and a free app on your Android / iPhone. (http://calibre-ebook.com/) This lets you browse / download your ebook catalogue using your wif-fi and could be set up for Internet use if you wanted.

If you wish access to more files, I use Ubuntu and remote desktop to my Android using VNC There is an excellent easy to follow article in the Full Circle Magazine issue 74 Page 26 to get this working. All software required is free and easy to use. Failng that there is always TeamViewer which is also free and works for any OS.

Edited July 19, 2013 by thaimite

[Chicog]

Splashtop Streamer gives you remote access to another desktop.

But I think this is what you want. Share the folder on the Windows PC and don't password protect it (shouldn't be an issue on your home network as long as it's properly protected from the outside world).

http://www.guidingtech.com/10885/access-shared-windows-folders-android-wifi/

ES File Explorer uses SMB, so I would imagine you can tweak it for Linux as well.

Edited July 19, 2013 by Chicog

[jpinx]

Thanks for the input. These solutions appear to be designed for a situation where there is a wifi router somewhere, but my situation is that I want to use the hotspot app in android and connect my linux laptop to the android device to use it as a modem to connect to the internet over the mobile connection. Any hints on how to sort that out ?

[jpinx]

If it is just for PDFs or eBooks then the easy way is the free calibre library installed on your PC (any OS) and a free app on your Android / iPhone. (http://calibre-ebook.com/) This lets you browse / download your ebook catalogue using your wif-fi and could be set up for Internet use if you wanted.

If you wish access to more files, I use Ubuntu and remote desktop to my Android using VNC There is an excellent easy to follow article in the Full Circle Magazine issue 74 Page 26 to get this working. All software required is free and easy to use. Failng that there is always TeamViewer which is also free and works for any OS.

Thanks for the hint, but I can not access that magazine - for whatever reason...

[thaimite]

If it is just for PDFs or eBooks then the easy way is the free calibre library installed on your PC (any OS) and a free app on your Android / iPhone. (http://calibre-ebook.com/) This lets you browse / download your ebook catalogue using your wif-fi and could be set up for Internet use if you wanted.

If you wish access to more files, I use Ubuntu and remote desktop to my Android using VNC There is an excellent easy to follow article in the Full Circle Magazine issue 74 Page 26 to get this working. All software required is free and easy to use. Failng that there is always TeamViewer which is also free and works for any OS.

Thanks for the hint, but I can not access that magazine - for whatever reason...

I am not sure why you cannot access the link. Try http://fullcirclemagazine.org if not PM me and I will email you a dropBox link to the magazine in question.

Using the Android as a hotspot to connect to the Internet. I am using Ubuntu and a Galaxy S3. All I do is turn on the Hotspot on the Android, Select it from my Wi-Fi connect and enter the password, and then I am set to go. It does not allow you to browse the files on the phone or share files between the phone and the computer. For that remote desktop solution will do what you want, but you will need to set up a direct P2P connection and not a normal connection which would be through a wireless router

[jpinx]

If it is just for PDFs or eBooks then the easy way is the free calibre library installed on your PC (any OS) and a free app on your Android / iPhone. (http://calibre-ebook.com/) This lets you browse / download your ebook catalogue using your wif-fi and could be set up for Internet use if you wanted.

If you wish access to more files, I use Ubuntu and remote desktop to my Android using VNC There is an excellent easy to follow article in the Full Circle Magazine issue 74 Page 26 to get this working. All software required is free and easy to use. Failng that there is always TeamViewer which is also free and works for any OS.

Thanks for the hint, but I can not access that magazine - for whatever reason...

I am not sure why you cannot access the link. Try http://fullcirclemagazine.org if not PM me and I will email you a dropBox link to the magazine in question.

Using the Android as a hotspot to connect to the Internet. I am using Ubuntu and a Galaxy S3. All I do is turn on the Hotspot on the Android, Select it from my Wi-Fi connect and enter the password, and then I am set to go. It does not allow you to browse the files on the phone or share files between the phone and the computer. For that remote desktop solution will do what you want, but you will need to set up a direct P2P connection and not a normal connection which would be through a wireless router

Sorry for being a dummy - but I eventually found this link amongst all that http://issuu.com/fullcirclemagazine/docs/fullcircle-issue74-eng

but it is a blank black screen

[briley]

Thanks for the hints and ideas.

I got ES file manager. Opened it up and selected LAN and add a new server. Put in the internal network IP address (192.168 etc) of my desktop and lo and behold the tablet can now see all of the desktop files. Double click the pdf file I want and it opened up on the tablet. Just what I wanted. Note that you have to share the files in windows to make it work.

I've gone into the router and been able to tell it that I wanted the same IP address for each of my computers so that is now fixed.

Logmein at some $30 or so was rather expensive to see if it worked and the reviews were not that good!

Teamviewer seemed to want me to use the internet for the transfer and I would have to run a program on both computers.

Splashtop might work - but I haven't tried it.

I had problems opening full cicle magazine including getting a blank screen - but succeded in the end. Again VNC seems to upload to the internet and then you can download, too much effort for me!

Some of these ideas are good for using anywhere in the world, but I only want it to work in my little room.

[jpinx]

Thanks for the hints and ideas.

I got ES file manager. Opened it up and selected LAN and add a new server. Put in the internal network IP address (192.168 etc) of my desktop and lo and behold the tablet can now see all of the desktop files. Double click the pdf file I want and it opened up on the tablet. Just what I wanted. Note that you have to share the files in windows to make it work.

I've gone into the router and been able to tell it that I wanted the same IP address for each of my computers so that is now fixed.

Logmein at some $30 or so was rather expensive to see if it worked and the reviews were not that good!

Teamviewer seemed to want me to use the internet for the transfer and I would have to run a program on both computers.

Splashtop might work - but I haven't tried it.

I had problems opening full cicle magazine including getting a blank screen - but succeded in the end. Again VNC seems to upload to the internet and then you can download, too much effort for me!

Some of these ideas are good for using anywhere in the world, but I only want it to work in my little room.

Congratulations for getting it done !

As a matter of interest - can you see the android device files from your PC?

[RKASA]

I am contemplating going over to an android smartphone and want a connection similar to what you're talking about - but my laptop runs linux. The android chatroom was not very helpful and I am stuck at the moment. I will try the wifi hotspot app in the phone and see what that allows me to do, but not sure if it will actually mount the filesystem in the way you obviously need.

If your linux is running samba then the ES file manager on tablet etc will see the same thing as if it was a windows PC - it is an SMB emulator. Just make the folders (dir) on linux shared to the same workgroup as you would a windows PC. If you have a LAN then the windows uses SMB and linux uses Samba but they talk to each other in the workgroup so the tablet or phone should not know the difference.

[briley]

jpinx -

Took a little while to be certain, no I can not see the tablet from my windows XP desktop.

Nor can I get the tablet to open the folder I want from windows, it insists on opening, suppose it would be 'my computer' so I can then choose the drive, folder etc etc

Not a big problem for me so I think I'll stop where I am.