I got my network setup within 10 mins

Make sure both PC and Laptop have different names <my pc is called Buffy, my laptop is called Willow> and ensure that both PC's are on the same network <mine's called RS>. Once all this is done, and you've connected to the network, you can access both machines by clicking start -> run, then \\<name of the machine>

The only thing that should stop this is a firewall, or incorrectly setup network.