Once again I come bearing questions that will reveal my techological idiocy to the boards. I have Verizon high speed internet. I had been using my laptop to connect to the net (plugged the ethernet cable right into the laptop). I decided to move my desktop computer into the office and just finished setting everything up. I plugged the ethernet cable into the back of the desktop computer and...almost everything works fine. I can access the net. I can log in to different web sites and post stuff. However, AOLIM doesn't load at all, and I am unable to connect to any of my e-mail sites (hotmail, gmail or my work e-mail, which is an https connection). Oh wise techno people: What's I screw up? Thanks!
I'm not familiar with Verizon, but I assume that there is some kind of line that comes into your home which is plugged into a modem which has an Ethernet line out. If so, turn off or unplug the modem for a full minute and try again. This kind of thing happens to me as well - regular web stuff works when I plug in a new machine but certain applications (like VPN which I use for work) doesn't until the modem is reset. To get around this, get a router (not a switch or a hub). Then you can plug and unplug things without any problem. I have a Lynksys Wireless-G which works fine and is pretty cheap.
Better yet, why not get a wireless router? The desktop computer can be physically wired to the router, which in turn, is wired to the modem. Using a wireless card which can be inserted into the laptop, you can connect the laptop to the internet and have the advantage of mobility.