Windows 7 builds upon this file sharing with the introduction of HomeGroups. Although some of these new file sharing features have been designed to work best between Windows 7 computers, you can still take advantage of most of them when using different versions of Windows. In only a short time you’ll be able to get Windows 7 and Windows Vista sharing files, folders, printers and more.

Step-by-step: Share your files

1 Connect the PCs to a home network
In order for your Windows 7 and Windows Vista computers to be able to communicate with each other, they need to be connected to the same network. You need a network router that connects your PCs to the network either by wires or through wireless connections.

2 Make sure the PCs are in the same workgroup
Your PCs also need to be in the same workgroup so they can see each other on the network. In both Windows 7 and Windows Vista, go to Start, right-click Computer and select Properties. In the Computer name, domain, and workgroup settings section, click Change settings.

3 Remember the name
In the System Properties window, click Change. Make sure Workgroup is selected and it says WORKGROUP in the box, or at least the same workgroup name, for each PC. Also take a note of each PC’s name in the Computer name: box, because this helps you identify which PC is which when connected to the network.

4 View your network
Once all your PCs are connected to the network, and you’ve made sure they’re on the same network, click the Start menu and type network into the search box. Select Network and you should see all the PCs and media devices (such as Xbox 360s) on your network. In Windows Vista, click Start and then Network.

5 Choose a folder to share in Windows 7
You can share an entire folder, giving PCs on your network access to all the files within. Right-click a folder and select Share with ➜ Specific people… Click the drop-down box and select Everyone, then click Add. If you want to let other PCs modify the file, under permission level click Read/Write, then click Share.

6 Choose a folder to share in Windows Vista
Sharing folders in Windows Vista is a similar process to sharing folders in Windows 7. Right-click the folder you want to share and select Share… Click the drop-down list, select Everyone (All users in this list) and click Add. To allow people on the other PCs to alter the files, change the permission to Contributor.

7 Share files
Both Windows Vista and Windows 7 come with shared folders that have been configured to share whatever is in them with other PCs on your network. If you want to share a file, you can drag and drop the file into these shared folders. Alternatively, you can right-click and share the files as you would a folder.

8 Access shared files and folders
Once you’ve shared the files and folders, you can access them on the other PCs by viewing your network again (see step 4) and double-clicking on the icon for the other computer. The shared files and folders are displayed. To get quick access to these shared folders, right-click on them and select Create shortcut.

9 Share a printer
To share a printer connected to one PC so you can print from another, click Start ➜ Devices and Printers. Right-click your printer then Properties ➜ Sharing ➜ Share this printer. To add a printer from another PC, click Add a printer ➜ Add a network, wireless or Bluetooth printer, select the printer then click Next.

10 Get sharing
Well done – you can now successfully share files and folders between your Windows 7 and Windows Vista computers! No matter which PC you’re currently working on, you can access your files and even print them out – saving you having to run between rooms with a USB stick.

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There’s no way you can talk about printers without mentioning digital photography. While printers stemmed from a time when there was no real concept of digital cameras, they’ve responded to the challenges that we’ve set them.

And they’ve responded well – the quality of your average printer is good at the least, while some printers are capable of producing photos that are indistinguishable from those processed in a lab.

So what makes a printer these days is what you’re going to use it for. Do you need to be able to plug memory cards straight into your printer? How about a scanner and fax? Do you want to be able to print in mono? To help make your mind up, here’s some reasonable printers at less than £100.

The portable photo lab – Epson PM240 (£100)

Miniaturisation has given the world some funky things and this compact, yet incredibly powerful, printer is definitely one of the best ways to prove that bigger isn’t necessarily better. There are more compact photo printers around and you could argue that there are more stylish models, too, but there’s something deeply charming about this little Epson.

The images this printer produced were sharp, bright and full of detail – in fact, they look every bit as good as anything you’d usually get from a professional service.

It’s worth mentioning a rather obvious negative with this printer, though: it’s too small for big prints. Being limited to 10 x 15cm (4 x 6in) prints is fine nearly all of the time, but when you take something you’d want to hang on your wall you’re going to need a bigger printer.

This is a truly standalone printer, though, with plenty of control over your images thanks to the LCD display. It’s incredibly versatile as far as accepting photos goes, too. Drop the flap on the front of the unit and you’ll find two ports awaiting the usual swathe of memory cards. Peer round the rear of the machine and you’ll discover a pair of USB ports – one for connecting the printer to your PC and the other for attaching your USB keys and external hard drives.

The latter option means you don’t need to have the printer in the same room as your PC, or even in the house – a battery option is also available if you need to take it on the road with you, making this a good choice for people who want instant prints when they’re out and about.

The multifunctional assistant – Canon MP510

Digital photography is all very clever and impressive, but if you’ve got a lot of old photographs hanging around, it can be tricky integrating them into your digitally orientated way of working. This is where a multifunction device slides into view, giving you the chance to convert everything you’ve ever snapped, on any camera, into a digital photo library.

Canon cunningly manages to push this integration one step further. Slide a memory card into the MP510 and elect to print a contact sheet. Tick the images you want to print out, load up your paper of choice and then scan in the filled-in contact sheet and the printer takes care of the rest, only producing the images you want. This is a really nice way of handling lots of photos, though it is environmentally questionable.

We found setting up the unit overly fiddly, despite the fact that it only has three coloured inks and an oversized black. A caddy is needed to hold the inks in place, although, bizarrely, this isn’t removable; instead, everything is inserted under the hood, which is pretty cramped – in normal lighting it can be hard to see what’s going on.

This is a noisy beast while it’s in operation – even when you select quiet mode it clunks and clanks its way through the whole printing process. This, coupled with an interface that errs on the side of frustration, makes the MP510 an option that only the patient should tackle. Those buyers who do take the plunge, however, will be rewarded with fantastic prints.

The budget office companion – Lexmark X5470

Before we say anything about this printer, it’s worth clarifying something about the price – look around and you can pick this up for as little as £45. There’s no guarantee you’ll be able to find it for that, but then you may be able to find it even cheaper with a little digging. Either way, this is a budget option with surprising capabilities way beyond what you’d normally consider the remit of the small office printer.

If you’re looking for a printer that’s just as happy printing out your boring black-and-white documents as it is producing colour photographs, then there’s a lot to offer here. In testing we witnessed the printer churn out text documents at a rate of roughly 10 per minute, which isn’t at all bad for the low price. Laser printers have the edge here, but you’ll need to print out a lot to justify the expense of going down that route.

The quality of colour prints isn’t quite in the same league as some of those produced by other printers we’ve looked at here, with photos lacking sharp detail and vivid colours. This is a multifunction device, though, so if you’re primarily looking for a way of scanning your photos, it’s to be commended – it’s speedy and the quality is excellent.

The package also includes OCR software, which works really well, and a fax, making it all the more impressive for the money.

However, corners have had to be cut in order to keep the price down, and an obvious thing to get the chop here is the colour LCD screen. This makes printing straight from memory cards a hit and miss affair – or at least it does if you’re trying to use this as a standalone device. Hook it up to your PC and things are much more straightforward, enabling you to see more clearly what’s going on, although you can’t really get away from the relatively lowquality prints, and that could be the clincher for photographers.

The uncompromising photo printer- HP Photosmart D7160

While other manufacturers look at bolting scanners, fax machines or other doodads on to their printers, HP has concentrated on what people are most likely to do with a photo printer – print photos. In order to produce pictures in the best way possible, the manufacturer has elected to go down the six-ink route. This is a boon on two levels: the quality of the fi nal print is higher with a six-ink process, and it also makes replacing inks more economical.

As there’s little in the way of bells and whistles here, the Photosmart can only really be judged on its ability to produce decent prints and, luckily for HP, the results are generally very impressive. Colour rendering and saturation are good, and there’s lots of detail, too, although this was only after changing the quality to the highest settings – the default option produced somewhat grainy images, although the print speed is breathtaking for an inkjet.

There is a slight clanking to the paper feed, but the machine is much quieter than the Canon when it’s actually printing. The LCD screen makes using the system as a standalone device easy; indeed, it’s second only to Epson’s PM240 in the ease of use stakes (with the added advantage that comes with being able to print on paper up to A4 – decent sized contact sheets, so you can see your thumbnails more clearly).

We did find that Epson’s machine produced slightly brighter prints, but this could be down to the paper quality rather than anything else. The prints did seem a little tacky, although enough care and attention should mean that this isn’t a real problem – take care of the quality prints as they come out of this printer, and they’ll be fine.

Our only real criticism of the D7160 is that the screen is a little small, but that’s not enough to put us off.

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Whilst a lot of us now live in a paperless world, there’s some things you just need in print. As an added bonus, most printers now come with all kinds of additional features, incorporating scanning, photocopying and faxing into their ever growing list of features. If you’re in the market for a new one, here’s what we recommend.

10. Sagem Photo Easy 110

A very reasonable dye-sublimation printer at a very affordable price. It produces quality single-sized images with much better durability than any done by an ink-jet printer

9. Lexmark X9350

The X9350 is a great home office all-in-one, complete with Wi-Fi, Ethernet connection, fax capabilities and an LCD display.

Price £211 (Get it at microwarehouse)

8. HP Photosmart 375

With a big screen and wireless printing support, this HP is a good choice if you want a feature-packed photo printer on a budget.

7. Epson Stylus DX6000

A great all-in-one design that packs in a high-resolution scanner and PictBridge support so you can print straight from the camera. Print quality is excellent, though it isn’t the quickest around.

Price £89 (Get it at technoworld)

6. Xerox WorkCentre 3119

An above average 3-in-1 office scanner, printer and copier; this one’s black and white only, but what it does it does very well.

Price £139 (Get it at insight)

5. HP PhotoSmart 325

The 325’s results are astounding, offering great colour and good sharpness. The HP is one of the few models on the market to offer the option of battery power, although the battery does cost extra.

Price £129 (Get it at Computerwebstore)

4. Canon PIXMA Mini 260

From subtle skin tones to vivid, high-contrast detail, the 260 delivers great results every time, and doesn’t make you spend a fortune on ink and paper.

Price £90 (Get it at shop-com)

3. Epson Stylus Photo R360

A basic photo printer that prints great photographic images for the price. Text printing isn’t bad either, though it is slower than most dedicated text printers.

Price £67 (Get it at ebuyer)

2. TallyGenicom 8108N Colour Laser Printer

Gone are the days when a colour laser printer would cost you way over a grand. This budget beige box is perfect for any home office and it’s extremely impressive considering the price.

Price £149 (Get it at Insight)

1. Canon PIXMA iP6600d

With two paper trays and a huge screen, this is a superb all-round printer that’s particularly suited to printing directly from a digital camera – just preview your snaps on the screen and send them straight to the page. Like many photo printers, though, it’s far less impressive at printing text.

Price £109 (Get it at Curry\’s Online)

Agree with us? Or disagree? Post it in our comments section!

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