Sounds to me like you are trying to copy a program to the laptop so you want to use it there. As you stated your disks are old. If you are trying to copy programs, you cannot do that and expect them to work. This is due to the fact that when you install a program from a set of installation discs, the setup program installs files to multiple areas, and then it makes entries into the registry. You can move the programs files, but the helper files, Dll's, ini's and such may be in a different folder and the program will not run without them. It is also Illegal to put copies of many programs on more than one machine. There are several programs that allow you to have a copy on your pc and laptop.
How networking generally works is that you create a network between 2 machines. By sharing the folders that contain your documents, you can access the documents from multiple locations. The downfall to that is if you have lets say a Microsoft Word file, ending in .doc, then you have to have a licensed copy of Microsoft Word on each machine. In Microsoft Words scenario, you can buy Microsoft Office Home and Student and can place it on up to 3 pc's
Like I told you out at Walmart, just call me when your ready and I can not only set up the network but I can show you how to use it.
