Home Networking with Microsoft Windows XP Step by Step

Heather Galioto is a technical writer and UA manager in the Connected Home Business Unit of Microsoft. She has many years of technical writing experience at Microsoft, the last two of which have been focused on home networking.

What s New with Networking in Microsoft Windows XP vii Getting Help ix Conventions and Features xi 1: Introduction to Home Networking 1 The Emergence of Home Networks 1 Advantages of Home Networking 2 Home Networking with Windows XP 4 2: Connecting Your Computers Together 6 Choosing a Type of Network 7 Installing a Network Adapter 16 Connecting Two Computers Directly 21 Considering Internet Security 21 3: Connecting to the Internet 24 Setting Up a New Internet Account 27 Transferring an Existing Internet Account 32 Setting Up a Broadband Connection 36 4: Installing the Home Networking Software 40 Setting Up Your Windows XP Computer for Home Networking 42 Adding a Windows Computer to Your Home Network 47 Adding a Windows 95 Computer to Your Home Network 50 Adding a Windows 2000 Professional Computer to Your Home Network 56 Adding a Macintosh Computer to Your Home Network 58 Adding a Windows XP Computer to an Existing Windows Network 59 Adding Users to Your Windows XP Computer 67 5: Securing Your Home Network 70 How a Firewall Works 72 Enabling the Internet Connection Firewall 73 Protecting Against Viruses 78 Scanning Your Computer for Viruses 79 Setting Up Security Zones in Internet Explorer 80 Protecting Your Privacy 81 6: Sharing Data on the Network 86 Sharing a File on Your Windows XP Computer 88 Sharing a Folder on Your Windows XP Computer 91 Sharing Music on Your Network 94 Sharing Pictures on Your Network 97 Gaining Access to a Shared Folder on the Network 99 Creating Shortcuts to Folders on Your Network and the Internet 101 Restricting Access to a Shared Folder on Your Windows XP Computer 104 Mapping a Network Drive 107 Stopping Folder Sharing 109 7: Sharing Printers and Other Peripherals 112 Sharing a Printer 114 Installing Additional Drivers 118 Printing to a Shared Printer 120 Disabling Printer Sharing 123 Sharing a Removable Disk Drive 124 8: Communicating and Collaborating with Others on Your Network 126 Using Windows Messenger to Communicate with Others 128 Using Windows Messenger with Voice and Video 137 Using Windows Messenger to Transfer a File 142 Using Windows Messenger to Share Applications 146 Using Remote Assistance to Help Another Person 150 Taking Advantage of MSN Explorer 153 Using MSN Explorer with Earlier Versions of Windows 155 GLOSSARY 159 INDEX 167