Windows

Your laptop has the power etc - no problem

Basically what you need is
1) Wireless hub (just the one to start with) - plenty on market; will come with basic instructions
2) Wireless PCMCIA card, will come with drivers for all O/S for the laptop
3) Wireles network card for any other PC type device. I assume you have more than 1 laptop otherwise what is the point of creating a network.

I've setup a few of these in my days. It is really quite simple.

1. First, I recommend Linksys. Support is good too. Go down to your local computer store and pickup the "Cable/DSL router with 4-port switch".

2. Pick up 1 or more of the linksys wireless notebook cards. Make sure that they are of the 2.4GHZ variety(ask the sales people for help if needed)

3. Make sure that you have a network interface card installed in at least one machine and a RJ45 cable handy. This is needed to log into the router and enable wireless.

If you follow the detailed instructions, you can have your wireless network up and running within 1 hour.

Did I mention that Linksys support is 24HRS via toll free call?

Good luck and enjoy wireless.

Thanks all for your advice. But I also need to know how much it would cost for the set up and wonder if there is any maintenance fees. many thanks

You're looking about 250 for the router and 2 wireless nics. The only fees you will need to pay are those of your ISP if you need Internet Access. This usually runs between $39.00-$59.00 per month for high-speed access.