I have several Linux machines on my network, each serving a different purpose. I frequently need to transfer files back and forth between them, and I'd rather not do so via a cloud service, email, or ...

I want to transfer a large file, from a linux system to a windows vista system. how can I do this? If I connected them directly to each other with an ethernet cable, could it work?

You don't need to upload files to the cloud just to access them on your other devices.