Each new version of Windows has made significant improvements in the operating system's networking capabilities. Back in the days of Windows 95 and Windows 98, networking was a complicated affair for technical experts only; you could set up and configure a network from within Windows, but it took a lot of work. Things got much better with Windows XP, where networking became more or less a plug-and-play operation—albeit one that required a lot of user interaction and didn't always work as promised.

With Windows Vista, things again have changed for the better. Microsoft completely rewrote the networking stack in Vista, which means that networking not only is more reliable, it's also much easier to set up. In fact, in most instances you don't have to do much setup at all; Windows Vista recognizes your network and equipment, and automatically configures the system as necessary. (At least theoretically; networking in Vista can still be counterintuitive at times, and occasionally things don't work quite as promised.)

This is good news if you're setting up a new network for your Vista-based computers—but also useful if you're connecting a Vista PC to an existing network or Wi-Fi hot spot.