So after all this, it's the wifi I'm on that won't allow the hostname to connect. Well it looks like I will stick to the IP address then. Thanks for all of the help.
Seems like you said you are in college network and are being assigned internet addressable IP's. First off I would get myself a home router (Linksys, Asus, Netgear, etc). Separate your stuff from the college network adding a layer of security. This way the router will get the addressable IP and your internal machines will get non-addressable IP's (192.168.X.X, 10.X.X.X). Then you have control over what IP your internal machine has INSIDE your, assuming dorm room, then you can name them, assign an ip, etc. Depending on the router you can then assign static IPs to certain devices so you can get to them by IP or name, this can be further helped by using the C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts file. (Kind of like a local DNS style address book for your internal network).
This is how most home networks are set up. College networks being what they are, are full of "curious" students roaming the network looking for things to get into. So you would benefit fromt he extra separation. Of course this is based on whether or not it is NOT against TOS for your particular college.
Start by following OutsourcedGuru's reply in this post:
Then on your main PC goto C:\Windows\System32\drivers\etc\hosts and assign names to IP's.
Just my $1.50 on the subject.
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I would definitely try that, but yes, I am not allowed a separate router in my room unfortunately.