Ever wonder what's going on under the hood of your network connections? There are a number of arcane, difficult to use command line tools, but who really wants to mess with those? If we wanted to mess with that stuff we would use Linux and really get a headache! Windows XP includes a cool graphical tool that allows you to learn about your machine's network configuration and see what's really going on. Try this:

1. Click Start and then click on Help and Support.
2. In the Help and Support Center, click on the Use Tools to view your computer information and diagnose problems link.
3. In the left side of the Help and Support Center window, click on the Network Diagnostics link.
4. Click on the Set scanning options link. Put a checkmark in the all the checkboxes, then click on the Scan your system link.
5. It will take a few minutes to complete the tests. When the utility is done, you'll know more than you ever wanted to about your network configuration! Pay special attention to the areas that failed. They might give you a clue about problems you've been having with your network or Internet connections.