Not using Windows 7 yet? You can accomplish the same thing in Windows Vista, XP, and even OS X—the Windows Vista method is almost identical to Windows 7, but XP requires a few more steps.
Before we begin, you should make sure that you've got a laptop or desktop with a wireless card that isn't currently connected—if your laptop is connected to the wired network, your wireless card should be free, and we can use it to allow access to the internet. Note that you have to be plugged into a wired connection in order to share the connection wirelessly with others, or have a second wireless card. Readers should also note that this won't work on (some) work networks that use group policies to enforce TPS report cover sheet boredom and prevent you from having any fun at all.
You'll be prompted with a wizard that allows you to connect to VPNs, dial-up, or create a new ad hoc wireless network, which is what we want to do. You can easily use an ad hoc network to share files back and forth between two computers, but today we'll be using it for sharing the internet connection.
You'll need to give your network a name and choose some security options—remember that WEP is extremely easy to crack—and you'll want to make sure to use at least a decent sized key even for WPA2. The really important option on this page is to remember to check the box for "Save this network".
At this point your ad hoc network should be running and ready to start connecting your devices, but you'll want to hold off just a minute.
At this point, you should be able to connect any wireless device to your new ad hoc network and access the internet, or even share files directly with your laptop.
Have you been able to successfully get your wireless device connected to your PC? Tell us about your experience in the comments.
