Trouble networking iBook G4 to Windows XP PC

Question

I'm a little ignorant on the subject of networking, but I've been trying/struggling to network (via a single cross-over Ethernet cable) my iBook G4 with my Windows XP desktop PC. Both computers tell me that the network connection is there, but I can't seem to get beyond that. My goal for now is just to be able to share files (maybe share the PC's internet connection at a later date).
Of course, I've selected "Personal File Sharing" and "Windows Sharing" on the Mac. I've also tried disabling Firewalls on both computers, but still no luck.
1) I know I'm really displaying my ignorance here, but I don't need any additional software to pull this off, do I? I've read enough to get the impression that I should be able to do it without any.
2) Also, I know I'm supposed to designate one of the computers to be the server and the other one the client, but I'm not sure how to tell if I've done this properly or not. I used the PC's "Network Set-Up Wizard" and I think I've got the PC se up as the server.
On the Mac: When I try to use "Connect to Server" (under the Finder's "Go" button) it says "No response from the server. Please try again." Am i correct in assuming that this means the Mac has successfully reached the PC, but the PC isn't responding (maybe still set up incorrectly)?
On the PC: When I try to locate the Mac from the PC, I search in "My Network Places", then "Entire Network", then "Microsoft Windows Network", then "MSHOME" (this is the workgroup name I've set up on BOTH computers). When I click on "MSHOME" I get the following error message: "Mshome is not accessible. You might not have permission to use this network resource. Contact the administrator of this server to find out if you have access permissions...The list of servers for this workgroup is not currently available."
I AM, of course, the administrator of my would-be 2-computer home network, so no help there. Any ideas as to why I, the sole owner/administrator of my PC would NOT have permission to use my own workgroup? I'm thinking that if I did have permission to use it, then the Mac would be able to access it too.
One other silly question:
When I see the recommendation for these SMB formats:
smb://DNSname/sharename or...
\\DNSname\sharename
does "sharename" mean the computer's network name or the name of the folder I'm trying to share, or what? My DNS name is currently set up to be the same as my PC's IP address - is that a problem at all?
ANY help on ANY of the questions I've asked would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
iBook G4   Mac OS X (10.3.2)   Windows XP PC

Answer 1

iFelix -
Thanks for the tips. The step-by-step advice on the website: http://www.ifelix.co.uk/tech/3020.html is great! I’m actually running Mac OS X 10.3.2, but I found the corresponding page for 10.3.x and read through it too. I had already taken all the steps indicated on that page 6 or 7 times, but I tried them again – still no luck.
Regarding connecting from the Mac using “Connect to Server”:
Typing in: \\PC’s IP Address\PC’s name or…
\\PC’s IP Address\Desired PC sharefolder
Gets me the following error message:
“No response from the Server. Please try again.”
Typing in: smb://IP Address of PC (recommended on your help site)
(Or ANY combination that has “smb” in it)
Makes the computer search for about 3 full minutes then I get the following error
report:
“The Finder cannot complete the operation because some data in smb://192.168.0.1 could not be read or written. (Error code – 36).
Regarding connecting from the PC using “My Network Places” then “Add a Network Place”:
Typing in \\Mac’s IP address\short name (this is the address that the Mac says Windows
users can access the Mac from) gets me the error message:
“The folder you entered does not appear to be valid. Please try another.”
So basically, I can’t access either computer from the other one. I know that makes it sound like the problem is with the LAN connection, but my PC tells me that the Local Area Connection status is: “Connected.”
I haven’t yet tried ICS for internet sharing, but I’ll let you know how that goes.
Once again, thanks for the advice. If you or anyone else has any other ideas, I'd love to hear them.
iBook G4   Mac OS X (10.3.2)   Windows XP PC