Networking Notworking

I have -- again -- the beginnings of a hunch about why the networking between our desktop and laptop isn't working. The idea makes sense. Whether its true, and if so, how it leads to a fix, is something else again.

Whats weird is that I feel motivated on this because people in the book I am reading just solved a serious technical problem. That has absolutely no bearing on my real-world problem -- but it has that effect. I've noticed the same thing happens when I read books about people who've achieved something notable -- I feel that *I* could do something notable.

Strange.

But anyway -

The home laptop can ping the IP address of the router (192.168.0.1) , my work laptop (.3), itself (.4), and the desktop(.5). No idea what the missing .2 is, though it could be my wife's work laptop. And it can ping 127.0.0.1, aka the 'internal loopback adapter', whatever the heck that is.

The desktop can ping the IP address of the router, my work laptop, itself, but not the home laptop .

And just to round out the field, my work laptop can ping the router, itself, the desktop, but not the home laptop .

And nobody, zero, nada can address a 'friendly-name' aka DNS address for the network or its components-- mshome/library (the desktop), or mshome/ourlaptop (the laptop), or mshome/workpc (my work laptop) .

All of which kind of tells me that at least one serious problem must be with the home laptop , since no one can ping it at all, IP address or DNS. And that the problem must somehow be 'inbound', since it can ping out, but others can't ping in. And that the higher level networking functions- ie, the 'MSHOME network' itself - are kerflooey.

Why do I think of that scene in 2001?

"Dave, my mind is going. I can feel it."

Mine, too, HAL.