XBOX live through my laptop's wireless

well, i have wireless 802.11 on my laptop, and I was wondering if there was a way I could plug in my xbox into the laptops ethernet, and then use the laptops wireless connection to my netowork to get on live.

It's possible. I used to do that for my tivo to get updates over the net, but I finally just ran a cat5 cable. XP has a feature that allows you to share you internet connection through a pc, and there are a couple of proxy/NAT programs that will accomplish this for you too.

I'll be honest though, it took forever to get it to work, and it was very frustrating. It can be done though.

are there any guides on the net about this, or maybe programs that could do it for you.

Yeah.....don't know of any off hand, and I can't say I see the point of doing your ground work for you. If I were you, I'd start at http//www.google.com and type in something like "NAT Programs" or "Internet Connection Sharing" and hit that little button that says "Google Search" )

I was also interested in doing this in the past so I googled and found this

You most certainly can.

With Windows XP on the Laptop, you can either create a Bridge between the two network connectons (wireless and Ethernet) or you can enable Internet Connection Sharing on the Wireless adapter.

For a Bridge

goto Network Connections, highlight both connections, and right-click, then left-click Bridge Connections.

This will make a network Bridge. The Desktop will behave as if the laptop never existed, and will get it's DHCP/Internet Address from your Internet Provider.

Your laptop will be able to access the net normally through the Bridged device as well, and will get it's own IP.

For Internet Connection Sharing

Goto Network Connections, right-click the Wireless connection, and goto Properties. hit Advanced, and click Internet Connection Sharing. I recommend unchecking the only option for this (if you have SP2, it should be 'Allow Network Users to Turn this Connection on and off').

That's it!

I recommend using a REAL firewall on both units, no matter what you do. I use Sygate Pro for my systems, which costs $$, but you can get Sygate Personal for free.

In terms of cable, use a cross-over. Most NICs (network cards) do not support Auto MDI-X, which is the cable detection thing, and a cross over is the guaranteed way to hook up two NIC's together. I guess you can try a straight-through first if you have one lying around, but it may not work.

Good luck!