So I found a great utility called synergy that allows you to use one keyboard and mouse for multiple computers.
My problem lies in that my laptop (server computer, just means that the KB and mouse are attached to it physically) is connected to my friends wireless network for internet. The desktop (client) is connected to a wired router here with me. This means that I must switch between the two networks if I need to use the other computer, and switch back to use the net. This is only a mild inconvenience, but one I'd rather do without. I am thinking that when a wired connection is plugged in, the laptop disables the wifi. If anyone can give me a breakdown on how to run the wired and wireless in tandem it would be greatly appreciated.
Laptop
Acer aspire 4720z on windows 7 64
Broadcom NetLink Gigabit wired
Broadcom 802.11g network adapter
router/modem Arris DG950
You should be able to do this simply by manually setting the wired connection with a static IP and leaving the gateway blank. That way the laptop will use the gateway from the wireless connection for the internet and you can still connect to it from the wired network. You may need to use the IP address rather than the name of the server to connect to it, or you can manually add it to your router's DNS if you have the option.
Another option is to set some static routes on the server, something like using the wireless network's gateway as the default gateway and your router as the gateway for the wired network's subnet. to do that make sure that the the two networks are not on the same subnet, and that the wireless network is working as the default gateway. Then open command prompt and type: route -p ADD “network” MASK “subnet mask” “gateway ip”, so for example something like this: route -p ADD 10.1.1.0 MASK 255.255.255.0 10.1.1.3, where network is the subnet of your network, mask is the subnet mask (usually 255.255.255.0) and gateway is the ip address of your router.
thanks for taking the time Kane, worked out great.