I have an Irish BroadBand connection which comes into my desktop via wired ethernet. In the same desktop I have also a wireless card which has turned my PC into a router as such.

Activate ICS (internet Connection Sharing) and with four mouse clicks on the desktop my connection is now available locally via wireless.

Then switch on my laptop and configure the wireless connection same as my desktop, and away I go. Very easy to do once you have a basic understanding of IP etc etc.

my .02cents.