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Chapter 17: Mastering Dial-Up, Broadband, and On-the-Go Networking
The Network and Sharing Center houses the main features for managing your com-
puter’s networking capabilities. When you need to create, connect, or manage your
network, this console offers you the ability to handle all of the management aspects
available in Windows Vista.
You can determine the network devices and connections associated with your cur-
rent network and personalize them by following these steps:
1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. In the Control Panel, under the Networking and Internet heading, click “View
network status and tasks.”
3. If you have a valid connection to a network, click Customize under Network
Details.
4. Use the options in the Set Network Location dialog box to set the network
name, location type, and network icon. Click Next and then click Finish.
In the Network and Sharing Center, you can create network connections by clicking
“Set up a connection or network” in the left pane. This opens the “Set up a connec-
tion or network” Wizard, shown in Figure 17-2. You can use this wizard to create
connections to the Internet and set up wireless networks and access points, ad hoc
wireless networks, dial-up connections, and VPN connections to your workplace.
Creating Dial-up Connections
In the Network and Sharing Center, you can set up a dial-up connection by follow-
ing these steps:
1. Click “Set up a connection or network” in the left pane. This opens the “Set up a
connection or network” Wizard.
2. In the wizard, click “Set up a dial-up connection,” and click the Next button.
3. The “Set up a dial-up connection” window appears and asks for specific infor-
mation to configure your dial-up connection. See Figure 17-3 for an example.
4. In the “Dial-up phone number” text box, type the telephone number provided
by your ISP or network administrator.
5. In the “User name” text box, type the username provided by your ISP or net-
work administrator.
6. In the Password text box, type the password provided by your ISP or network
administrator.
7. As necessary, select the “Show characters” checkbox when you are typing your
password to view your entry. This will help eliminate any typing mistakes. Also,
uncheck this selection after you confirm the correct spelling of your password to
eliminate the possibility of anyone else seeing your password later.