Have you ever found yourself in a position where you have the only Internet connection on your laptop and have friends or colleagues who would like to share that connection? If you have a wireless card or built-in WLAN on your notebook and all the other laptops all have WiFi (stands for Wireless Fidelity), the solution is both easy and free.
You would need to turn your laptop into a mobile hotspot, and the other laptops need to have WLAN support. Most new laptops do come with built-in WLAN support (also known as 802.11b or 802.11g), but if you aren't sure whether the laptops do, then there are inexpensive PCMCIA cards or bus devices that could be purchased to connect to a wireless network.
Please note that these steps apply only to Windows Vista. If your laptop runs Windows XP, please go this article.
Step 1:
To start setting up your mobile hotspot, go to Start -> Control Panel -> Network and Sharing Center and click on “Set up a connection or network.”
Step 2:
On the next dialog, select “Set up a wireless ad-hoc network.”
Step 3:
Enter a name for your new network, select WEP privacy, and set a password. Then click “Save this network." Let your friends know the name of your network, and the password to access it.
A word about the Security type – WEP is an older protocol and is not the most secure. I suggest selecting WEP rather than a stronger protocol because it will allow older laptops and handhelds to connect to your network. WEP is better in a mixed environment, and ad-hoc networks are intended to be networks of convenience, or in other words, temporary. If you have a permanent need to share an Internet connection, it would be more sensible to buy a WIFI router.