Open source networking software to rival Network Magic?

January 2, 2008 10:15 AM

Are there any free, open source alternatives to Network Magic from Pure Networks?

Network Magic has made networking my home pc's and sharing files easy, but my subscription is almost finished and I'm not in great financial shape to be throwing good money around willy-nilly.

posted by cameron.case to computers & internet (10 comments total)

So use the free version.
posted by rhizome at 10:56 AM on January 2, 2008

The free version doesn't have all the features I need rhizome.
posted by cameron.case at 11:01 AM on January 2, 2008

Which features do you most need? Quickly looking at the feature list of Network Magic Essentials, I don't see anything - other than the Network Map - that Windows doesn't already do, though maybe not as simply as Network Magic does. I assume you're using this on Windows.
posted by dammitjim at 11:10 AM on January 2, 2008

Wait, I just paid $25 for what I thought was a license. That was a subscription? You sure?
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 11:10 AM on January 2, 2008

What I meant to say was: Verify that your "subscription" is "expiring." If you're a basic home user, the current license is $30 straight up and their website trumpets "no annual or monthly fees" -- so you might be OK after all.
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 11:12 AM on January 2, 2008

@stupidsexyFlanders: Oh heck, I think you're right. I thought it was a year subscription, and they even sent me an email a few days ago to purchase NM again (a few days before my year was up).
posted by cameron.case at 11:28 AM on January 2, 2008

Network Magic used to be subscription only, paid by the year or month to month. I dropped them a year or so ago, and it sounds like they have changed pricing in the meantime.

You may need to call them to see if you license is expiring, and if they changed pricing since you bought, maybe they have a license conversion plan.
posted by ewagoner at 1:41 PM on January 2, 2008

Ok, from the Network Magic website:

Question
Does Network Magic require a subscription?

Answer
Network Magic no longer requires a subscription.

Network Magic is a one-time purchase and all Network Magic product keys have been converted to permanent.

Thanks ewagoner.
posted by cameron.case at 2:04 PM on January 2, 2008

I've been considering buying NM. Does it really let me share a (non-network) laser printer across a wireless network? Or does it have to be a network printer after all? TIA.
posted by wordwhiz at 7:35 PM on January 2, 2008

Yes, it does that, as long as the printer is hooked up to one of the computers on the network. That's why I bought it. Sharing the printer just didn't work for me but NM made it happen right away.
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 7:36 AM on January 3, 2008