Is Rendezvous Sharing More Than You'd Like?

Gropo asks: "I just got an email from my father who has just recently upgraded from OS 9 to Mac OS X on his PowerMac. He's connected to the 'net via Adelphia Cable and shares his TCP connection with my Mother's iMac via Software Base Station. He got a call from his neighbor (also running Mac OS X) who noticed 'My Father's Computer' show up on his network. My first thought was: 'He's picking up your AirPort signal' - alas the neighbor has no AirPort card. The neighbor *does* however also have an Adelphia cable modem. I asked him to scan for available afp:// servers and sure enough, a foreign machine showed up. What's the easiest way (if at all possible) to enable auto-detection for the local wireless LAN (useful for file and printer sharing within the household) yet remain invisible to other people also behind the cable companies' local DHCP box?"

Comments

Erm.

[Atzanteol]

Firewall? Isn't this the same issue one would have with Windows file-sharing?

Re:Passwords

[Anonymous Coward]

I don't understand why someone wouldn't install a NAT box (technically not a firewall). They are easy to install and cost almost nothing. Why take the risk?

Re:Leaving the blinds open...

[sebi]

Maybe, just maybe, the machine was not literally 'My Father's Computer'. It could have been 'Gropo senior's Computer' or 'Name withheld from public slashdot discussions' Computer'. You pick.

Re:Talk about unlikely...

[sg3000]

> Two guys, neighbors, both running Jaguar, both on the
> same cable modem subnet.

> I mean, what are the odds?

I was thinking the same thing. I think the odds are better that one has two convicted sex offenders on the same subnet than two Jaguar users.

However, I think this is starting to change. At work, in my immediate area, the number of people buying new Macintoshes is starting to increase. The top cited reasons? In no particular order:

1. The new iMac
2. The fact that it "just works." It's funny to see a new Mac user who's been using Windows for years get kind of a confused look on their face, and say, "I can't explain it, but it just works."
3. Mac OS X and its Unix underpinnings -- this seems to influence the more technical people
4. Microsoft's copy restrictions in Windows XP. It surprises me how many people are turned off by this. Not that they're out pirating software or music or anything, but they mention that they just don't like it.

Re:Buy him a router

[Mikey-San]

If you're on broadband, I say you should buy a router anyway.

There's nothing like a hardware firewall and your own private subnet as a line of defense, and there's nothing like being cracked and raped until you'r raw. I'll take the former, thankyouverymuch. :-)

-/-

Old news? for me at least

[revitup.org]

I have seen this behavior ever since OS X Public Beta. At the time, I was on Charter Communications cable internet service, and slowly but surely I started to see other people's computers available in the 'Connect To Server?" dialogue.

At first it was only one person's computer, but as other releases of OS X came out (1.x, etc.) there were more and more people visible on the network.

That said, this was well before Rendezvous entered the picture, so it's probable that it is AppleTalk related.

But, I am pretty sure that if you have your users password protected, people can't access info from your computer - unless it's in your public folder.

Maybe a Firewall would help?