.... for us these days is getting stuff to print to our HP printer.
We have two computers at home (one in the kitchen and one in my study, where I work daily) - they are both connected to a wireless router in my home office. The office is also where the HP printer sits - it's not on the network - it only has a USB cable attached, so I physically have to connect my laptop to it to print (annoying) but it works most of the time.
We need to print from the kitchen computer quite often so I got this bright idea that since both machines are connected to the same router I should be able to SHARE the printer that's connected to my office laptop that can fairly easily be connected to the HP printer (a.k.a. Boat Anchor). Wrong!
On my office laptop (WindXP PRO) I shared out the Printer definition, trimmed security to nothing (such that group 'Everyone' can pretty much destroy everything on my machine, except apparently Print a simple document). I had to install File Serving and Sharing Service in my Network definition settings (fun) and turn OFF my Firewall. I noted the host name and the ShareName then went to the other machine.
On the VistaHOME computer, I attempted to create a definition to the Shared printer on my WinXP laptop like this:
Add Printer... Local Printer... Create New Port.... type Local... port name: \\HOSTNAME_of_my_WinXP Machine\ShareName. Clicked Enter, and after a lot of 'thinking' an error message comes up that states that I don't have the proper Login credentials.
Obviously it wants to login to my WinXP machine and can't - but where the heck do you provide the Login credentials I have no idea....
Oh, Microsoft Networking -- what Joooooooooooooooooy it is to work with.
I feel like calling Bill Gates and asking for help with this exceedingly difficult, if not impossible task!
UPDATE: just ordered a PrintServer for my network - and the heck with it....