Problem with "My Network Places"

[hansel]

Here's the scenario:

Desktop computer:
Windows XP Professional

Laptop Computer:
Windows XP Professional

Router: Netgear 54 Mbps wireless router
Wireless card: Netgear 54 Mbps wireless card

I have my network set up between the desktop computer and the laptop computer. Everything worked fine. I can access internet from both computers, share files and share a printer.

The problem:

I was on my laptop and I wanted to get a file off of my desktop computer. So I clicked on "My Network Places" and none of the folders from my desktop computer is on there. Later on in the day, I check again and the folders are magically back!

Then today, I tried to transfer some files from my desktop computer to my laptop. I open "My Network Places" on the desktop computer and none of my laptop folders are in there! I check the laptop's "My Network Places" and all of the folders are still intact. So basically, I was able to transfer files from my laptop to the desktop computer but not vice versa. Then later on in the day, I check again and... the folders are all magically back in "My Network Places" on the desktop computer!

Can someone tell me what the problem is?

[ktkendall]

I've seen the same thing over the years and have never really figured out any rhyme or reason to it, seems like rebooting 1 of the PC's will fix it but next time it comes back. Win98 really seemed to quirky that way, I just tend to think that it is one of the downsides of a small peer to peer network verses a real client server based network.

[hansel]

So basically there's no way to fix this problem?

[ktkendall]

There may be but I sure never figured out the secret. And now you throw in the wireless part, and I'm finding I have to reboot my laptop or the router sometimes to get that to work, but found out after that I bought a bad model wireless router from Linksys.