I still use (and love) my Audiotron.  The facts that it accesses files via SMB and does not require a TV to operate it are the chief reasons.  Setting up the Audiotron can be an epic task.  Here's a checklist to try when you get "Error accessing share" when you search for files:

  1. Check that the user ID and password at http://audiotron/filecfg.asp match the ID and password you set up on your server.
  2. Check to see if you can access the server from ANOTHER computer using the ID/password you assigned at http://audiotron/filecfg.asp
  3. Share 1 at http://audiotron/shares.asp should be \\SERVERNAME\SHARENAME\RADIO.XML
  4. Share 2 at http://audiotron/shares.asp should be \\SERVERNAME\SHARENAME
  5. "Search all folders in shared folders listed below" should be selected at http://audiotron/shares.asp
  6. Go to Control Panel/Administrative Tools/Locas Security Settings and make sure "Microsoft network server: Digitally sign communications (always)" is DISabled.
  7. Turn OFF your firewall on your PC.
  8. Does your server have more than one NIC? 
    1. Try disabling all NICs except for the one you want the Audiotron to use.  This fixed it for me one time.  The Audiotron software was written in a time when multiple NIC home PCs were rare.
    2. If disabling the other NICs fixed it, but you need to use them: right-click on the other NIC, select Properties/Internet Protocol(TIP/IP)/Properties/Advanced/WINS and DISable NetBIOS over TCP/IP for the NICs you don't want the Audiotron to use.  You have to do this on all the non-NetBIOS NICs, and you may have to reboot both the PC and the Audiotron to get it to "take."
    3. According to http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/audiotron/message/594 :
      1. The AT broadcasts a NETBIOS query to find the address of the host.
      2. The PC responds with ALL of its IP addresses.
      3. The Audiotron chooses the first address, regardless of whether it is for the subnet the Audiotron is on.
    4. Dunno whether the XP PC sends too many addresses or it should send the right subnet first, or whether the Audiotron is at fault for not choosing the right one.
    5. Note: It is currently taking about 45 seconds for the AT to locate the RADIO.XML file.  I wish I had a network monitor so I could see what is taking all that extra time.
  9. If you have VMWare (or VirtualBox or AndLinux or Colinux or Microsoft Virtual PC or Xen or...) then your virtual NICs count as NICs.  See the "Does your server have more than one NIC" entry above.
  10. Special note for using an Audiotron with Mac OS X (Leopard).  I was getting eDSAuthFailed in /var/log/samba/log.smbd when the Audiotron did a file search.  I changed the user-ID that the Audiotron uses to access the share to an invalid user name (one that does not exist on the Mac), and it successfully accessed the share as "nobody".
  11. To create a TOC (table-of-contents) file: http://audiotron/apidumptoc.asp?share=\\boxtop\mp3
    1. "audiotron" should be the IP name or address of your audiotron.  Mine really is DNS-name "audiotron".  \\boxtop\mp3 should be the server and share name of you music.