Transferring large files from Mac to PC
by Dominic Deacon
on
Aug 29, 2009 at 12:23:57 am
Hi, I hope this is the right place to ask this question. Basically I have a 17gig file on my Mac that I desperately need to transfer to a PC now. It's too big for a dvd or a flash drive. An external hard drive would be no good either as the file format that can be used for both pcs and macs won't take files over five gigs in size. So what do I do?
I've googled for an answer but the responses are too complex for me. I don't speak computer. Basically I can't believe there's not an easy solution for this. Does anyone have one?
Re: Transferring large files from Mac to PC by Tim Wilson on Aug 29, 2009 at 1:27:01 pm
This is a problem that can be solved for somewhere between $40 and free. Probably both.
As you've already figured out, you need some way for your drive architectures to speak to each other. Here are the solutions.
IMPORTANT: If you are going to work with video or other large files on both platforms, you need these. No getting around them.
For Mac to PC: MacFuse allows you to mount NTFS drives on your Mac. It's free, and easy to use. You can find it here. Ignore all the developer stuff. Just install the DMG, and it works.
Note that IT DOES NOT WORK WITH SNOW LEOPARD. It's also not commercial software (it's Open Source), so any issues take a long time to fix.
That said, I've been using it on Leopard for a couple of years with no issues. It works. I don't even know it's there.
There's a commercial solution that you may find more helpful: a real company to turn to for support, and regular updates: Paragon Software NTFS for Mac. $40, seamless. You'll never know it's there.
For PC to Mac: MediaFour MacDrive. It costs more at the developer website, but available for $40 at all the online stores.
Also, absolutely seamless, precisely zero issues.
I use both, and wouldn't want to live without them.
Re: Transferring large files from Mac to PC by Russell Lasson on Aug 29, 2009 at 9:23:45 pm
You can also network a mac and pc together. This is actually pretty easy and fast because you only have copy the file once and often you can use gigabit ethernet, which is faster than firewire or usb.
Check out how to do it at the bottom of this article:
