Fun with networking...[oh god help me]

[MasterSwordUltima]

So I bought a decent 5 port router, so I can connect my step-brother's computer [running Windows ME] with mine, [running XP Home Edition]. Now, it didn't come with any CD to install any drivers or anything, so I'm thinking, alright, this is pretty simple, awesome.

[History: We had a router before when we had DSL, but for some reason we left DSL for this rad dial-up internet...-_-', so I'm just saying, we were connected via router before].

So I've been trying all sorts of things, from setting up my own Network via Network Connection Wizard, to just making it so my computer is the host, and all that crap. Totally lost. Anyone know anything about effing networks?
It would be a huge help to someone who's at an absolute loss.

[fatcatfan]

Well... it's not clear exactly what the problem is. Can both computers connect to the router's config page?

[MasterSwordUltima]

Jim = Knows like, pretty much nothing about routers. Masamune is IMing me, I tried to connect to 192.68.1.1 or something, and that didn't work at all [Page Cannot Be Displayed or whatever, 404 basically]. So he tells me to look in the manual [which is a whole like, 8 pages long] for the IP of the router, and I'm not finding it at all, after going through it multiple times...

[fatcatfan]

It varies from router to router. maybe 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.0.100 or 192.168.1.100 or 192.168.100.1 (though for me that connects to the cable modem)

[AtmaWeapon]

The IP of the router is typically one of the following:

http://192.168.0.1
or
http://192.168.1.1 (I've only seen this in Linksys so far)

I don't believe you would have had to run the Network Setup Wizard to connect to the router; default TCP/IP settings should have you set up to obtain an IP address through DHCP automatically.

This leaves another hurdle: both PCs must be in the same Windows workgroup to share files. Windows ME is probably not so good for this task, and XP Home doesn't have as good support for networking as Pro does. I can't give you dialog box walkthroughs for either since XP Home uses different dialogs than Pro and I'm proud to say I haven't owned a ME box in years.

Your router manual has the default IP of the router in it, I promise.

Really, this isn't an easy problem to fix over the internet, but if you keep posting details we might eventually get it.

[vegeta1215]

If I understand your question, you use one of the computers to connect to a dial-up connection, and want to have the other computer share that connection, right?

If that's correct, it would definitely be a lot easier if you still had DSL. With DSL you could use the router to "dial-up" and keep your DSL connection alive, and then just plug the computers you want to connect to the internet into the router. But since you have dial-up, one computer has to do the regular dial-up thing, and then the other computer has to tap into your computers connection somehow (I think) - I'm not sure if a router is the right thing for that. Anyone else?

[MasterSwordUltima]

I mean, the reason I got the router is so both computers can be directly connected to one-another, so we can play ZSNES together, and VBA, and Starcraft, and all that greatness. If theres a way to directly connect two computers [like a crossover wire, dunno how to connect them though].

Having one computer dial-up, and the other 'feed' off of that connection via a direct connection to the first computer is what I was eventually going to try to do. Have my computer be the middleman of sorts, yeah.

But the main thing I just want to do is to connect my computer on XP with the puter downstairs running ME...I mean, if theres a non-router way to do it, like if I can just plug the router cable from one computer into the other, and have it work, great. I'll send the router back :D

[Also, strangly enough, no, the IP Address of the router is not in the manual. Theres a whole eight pages, and I looked through it a bunch of times, and nothing. It is a Linksys though...].

[fatcatfan]

But the main thing I just want to do is to connect my computer on XP with the puter downstairs running ME...I mean, if theres a non-router way to do it, like if I can just plug the router cable from one computer into the other, and have it work, great. I'll send the router back :D

If only two computer are involved, yes, you can just use a crossover cable to directly connect the two ethernet ports.

[MasterSwordUltima]

Awesome. Could you please help me out as to how to like...set up a connection [like, do I need to do anything in Network Connections or anything?]