hello! I'am trying to network my winxp and win98 pcs. both have one network card each and both have one cable modem each. the modem uses USB. I used dlink ethernet cards. the comps dont see each other. Is it true that win xp and win98 can't be linked via direct connection cos the protocols are different? someone said i need a switch. Reply greatly appreciated!

For a direct connection make sure you are using a CAT5 CROSSOVER cable and not a regular straight thru patch cable. In the windows 98 machine's network connection properties add the "Client for Microsoft Networks" so you can log on to the 98 machine using an existing account (username and password) that matches one on the XP box. Lastly, since each machine has its own DSL connection, I would install either the IPX/SPX protocol or netBEUI protocol on both network connections and bind these to "file and print sharing" of your network cards.