Explorer should be able to do that for you already. To use it you need to enable File and Printer Sharing for your network adapter and then create a Workgroup and log each computer into it. WindowsXP has a Network Setup Wizard that can handle these settings for you, and if not every computer has WinXP the wizard will give you the option to create a setup disk to use in the older systems. After that you can share any directory or disk drive on your computer by changing its properties. Unfortunatly, you can't use shortcuts, the actual file has to be copied into the shared directory. Once copied the file can be accessed remotely through My Network Places (or Network Neighborhood in older versions of Windows).
You shouldn't need the ability to transfer from multiple sources on a LAN as long as you make sure that every network card and hub in your network is connected at their maximum speeds in full duplex mode. The file will transfer at full speed from one source, assuming the network hardware and wiring are all in healthy condition.
Can you handle setting up the netowork this way? If not I can help you with the specifics. Good luck, and welcome to Napsterites.
