New notebook? No home network?

If you need an internet connection on your notebook (and you should, if only to update Windows), try hooking it up with firewire to your PC. Don't know if someone's recommended already but you can use firewire in place of a crossover network cable to set up a network between the two computers and you can enable internet connection sharing.

Plug firewire into desktop (with the internet connection) and the laptop
Go to My Computer->My Network Places-> Set up Home or Office Network
Select "this computer connects directly to the internet" on the desktop and "this computer connects through a gateway" on the laptop.
Select the appropriate connections when prompted, telling it to ignore the irrelevant ones.
Name the computers, MAKE SURE THE WORKGROUP IS THE SAME
Enable file/printer sharing if you want
Voila! If it works then you now have a home network

Weird thing though, can anyone help? Mine usually works but sometimes it decides not to, file/printer sharing will work but the Internet won't. It's working now, but...any ideas?