t’s not all that long since we took a look at a free tool called AnySend that can be used to send large files to people without the need to use email attachments. Now we’re going to show you another tool that has almost the same name but works in a slightly different way. This time, this focus is on transferring files from PC to PC that are connected to the same network.

Any Send (this time featuring an all-important space in the name!) is a great little tool that makes it easy to transfer files between computers over a WiFi connection, and it’s available for Windows, OS X and Android (an iOS version is promised for some time in the near future).

Things are very similar in the PC and Mac versions of the app, and for the purposes of this article we’re going to focus on Windows and Android – transferring between devices running the same OS, and also between platforms.

Start by visiting the AnySend website, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the Windows logo followed by the “Windows” button. Save the zip file to a folder of your choice and then extract the contents.

In the folder, you’ll find setup files for the 32- and 64-bit versions of the app, so make sure you work with the right one according to the version of Windows you have installed.

Run through the installer. There’s nothing unusual here, but you will need to install Bonjour alongside the app itself. Once the installation is complete, launch the program.

As Any Send requires access to the internet, you’ll find that a Windows Security Alert pops up asking whether the app should be allowed network access. The software is safe, so click “Allow access”.

You’ll then be greeted by a brief tutorial which you are free to work through or skip as you see fit. It’s a good idea to play through the tutorial as when you reach the end you’ll not only have a better idea of how the program works, but you can also opt to have it run at system startup – you can change this setting later as well, so don’t worry if you miss it.

Now you will need to install the app on another computer that is connected to the same network as your first one. Run through the same installation process again. Once you are up and running, it’s a good time to look at some preferences.

Right click the system tray icon for the program and select the “Preferences” option.

You may decide that you don’t want to change many, or any, of the settings here, but you can make your computer easier to identify on the network by assigning it a meaningful name. If you haven’t done so already, you can also opt to have the program start automatically with Windows, and decide whether or not sound be played.

The process of actually copying files from one computer to another is very simple. Select the file you would like to send and copy it to the clipboard by pressing “Ctrl + c” (or right click and select “Copy”). Click the Any Send icon and then select the computer you would like to send to – that’s all there is to it!

You can easily access any files that are sent in this way by clicking the small folder icon in the Any Send popup menu – this will take you directly to the transfer folder

While Any Send is great for sending files between computers, it is also great for transferring files between your computer and phone or tablet. The Android version of Any Send can be downloaded from Google Play free of charge.

The mobile app works in much the same way as the desktop version, and once you have it installed, you will notice that your phone or tablet appears in the list of available devices.

When you want to send a file from your Android to your computer, things are done in the reverse order. Launch the app and select the computer you would like to send to. You can then choose from a number of available apps and use this list to choose the data or files you would like to transfer.

This is a simple app, but it is a great alternative to fiddling with cables or using sync software to move files from one place to another.