Don’t go down the route of sharing internet with your neighbours, it’ll just bite you in the bum one way or the other.

If you get a router, make sure to enable “WPA” security, and NOT “WEP”. And when you enable WPA, make the pbumcode long, using A_Z, a-z, 0-9, and at least one alt. symbol on your keyboard (e.g. !@*&^%$). WPA can only be hacked through either knowing the code (dumpsterdiving/social engineering), or brute force, hence the long code. Mine is around 20 characters long – just make it a sentence.

Also, Wireless Zero Config is, IIRC, installed by default on Windows systems – so checking for it is irrelevant – and through my experience, wireless adapters that are USB are iffy at best. Then again, I used a D-link one that crapped out, and a friend’s Linksys one worked wonders – so I suppose it’s what means more to you, money or opening your computer to do a (very) simple install. Most internal desktop cards have detailed instructions on how to install for the user who doesn’t know how to do it.