thanks for your reply, i didn't actually know that using uppercase A was kind of a different command, however i done a bit of digging round and solved the prob which seems to boil down to my os, this i what i found....

1991 » NBTSTAT -a <ComputerName> returns Host not found?
When the <ComputerName> of the remote computer is resolved by DNS, NBTSTAT -a <ComputerName> returns Host not found because it is broken.
The workaround is:

1. Ping <ComputerName>

2. nbtstat -A <IP address returned by step 1>

NOTE: The problem exists through Service Pack 6a, and may not be fixed in subsequent Service Packs.

NOTE: The problem does not exist in Windows 2000.


unforunatley the guy was using a dial up connection and appeared to have gone offline by the time i found it, the reason i'd have liked his name is beacuse me and my friend are part of an online gaming community and i suspected the offender was from within the community and it would have been nice to be able to positivley identify him...really appreciate your input on this though, ty.