Laptop Internet Connection HelpFollow

Hi. Anyway, I hope I am in the right forum, as this deals with a technical question, and is not related to any particular game. Come to think of it, there are probably a million different sources I could go to for this that would be more appropriate, but since I am already here, I thought I might as well give this a shot. Anyway, I came home from college for the summer, but found that my mom's computer is unable to run my latest addiction, FFXI. So, I figure, "no problem, I will just hook up my laptop. Sure, it can barely run the game, but it can at least actually _run_ it."
Unfortunately, although the connection I took from my mom's computer and hooked up to my laptop allowed me to "send" packets, I was unable to recieve any (thus essentially rendering me without net access). Our ISP is Road Runner via cable hookup with Time Warner. I put in the startup disc for Road Runner (in my laptop) and everything went fine until it said that it was not able to establish a connection because the ISP or IP address was misconfigured or something (prolly should have written down the exact message ><).
So, is there anyone that can understand this VERY cryptic bit of information I have provided, and possibly tell me something that will guide me in the right direction? I understand that my description is vague at best, and that it will be unlikely that anyone will be able to tell me what to do. Essentially, I guess my question boils down to this: is there a way to use an internet connection (Broadband) that is normally used for a PC and switch it to a laptop at will? Also, let me know if there is any information I could provide that would give any of you a better idea of the problem I am facing. Many thanks if anyone can answer this, and if not, thanks for reading this far. Have a nice day all!

Edited, Tue Jun 1 12:54:42 2004 by Darkflame

It sounds like to me that you've got an IP specified on your laptop where you should be letting it detect the IP automatically.

However, There are a LOT of things it could be.

Here's the simple solution: call Roadrunner and tell them you can't get a connection. Don't tell them you're hooking up a the laptop in the place of the regular PC or anything like that. Just tell them you have no connection. That's all they need to know to get into troubleshooting mode. Their tech support people will walk you through all of the settings on the laptop until you get going.

The Roadrunner people in my area are very much on top of tech support and could have you going in usually under 5 minutes - reboot time on the laptop. Hope they're that way in your area as well.