How to connect wireless laptop to wired PC

[#1]

My pc currently has a wired connection via a Voyager 210 router.  Without changing the equipment - but adding new items as necessary - can I easily connect a wireless laptop to it?  Any advice would be appreciated.  I do have an unused Belkin WAP - would that be of any use? 

[#2]

what do you want to achieve Internet connection or just to connect to the other pc?
The simple way is to setup the second pc to use the USB connection on the router assuming the other one is using ethernet. This would be simple to do and no cost it would give you Internet and a connection to the other pc.
To add wireless would be more complicated as you would have to get a wireless adapter for the pc and connect via the pc which means the other pc would have to be on in order to connect to the internet.
The best way if you need wireless is to buy a new router which would make the job simple. They can be bought cheap on Ebay and may not cost much more than getting an adapter for the pc but a lot less agro.

[#3]

@jolyco - I don't know how many ports you've got on your router and Access Point, but in principle:
Connect AP to Router & configure.
Connect wirelessly to AP
Connect PC to spare port on AP or router if available, if not get a wireless adapter.

[#4]

Thanks for the reply.  More questions arise.  As I understand your response I could connect a flying lead to the USB port on the router and then connect the laptop to this as and when internet access to the laptop is needed. This could then be unplugged when the laptop is to be used in other parts of the house for offline activities. At no time would both the laptop and PC need to be online simultaneously.  Is my understanding of that part correct?
Should this be so another question arises (bear with me!)  Currently, as a result of querying a short term desperately low connection speed problem, Plusnet tells me I am experiencing several disconnections per day.  My connection speed is now OK and I have never actually experienced a disconnection but line checking is still continuing at their request.  If I use the router USB port for connecting the laptop as and when needed for Internet connectivity will I run the risk of causing the line to think these are genuine disconnections and hence (as it were) say "the line is unreliable so we'll lower the connection speed".  I obviously don't want this to happen!
I'm perfectly happy with my wired PC connection and don't really want to go to the expense of replacing the Voyager 210 unnecessarily - perhaps I'm mean..........

[#5]

Connecting the laptop wont effect the line. If you dont need both on together you could just unplug the pc and use the network cable on the laptop. This is a lot better as its faster and doesn't need any drivers. You could get a cheap £10 switch so you dont have to unplug thee pc all the time

[#6]

What exact model is your Belkin unit and how many ethernet ports does it have?

[#7]

Thanks again for replies - I'm grateful.  The Belkin is Model F5D6130 and it has one LAN socket.  This afternoon my wife bit the bullet and has now obtained the laptop so I'm committed to doing something.......

[#8]

Right....
First, I don't recommend using the Ethernet and USB connections on your Voyager simultaner simultaeni together, in fact most router manufacturers specifically forbid it.
There are two solutions, the cheapest and the easiest....
Cheapest - get a cheap Ethernet switch (if you shop around you can get them indecently cheaply, like this one ), connect the Voyager router, the PC and the Belkin WAP to it, configure the WAP and your good lady's new shiny accordingly, job done.  The Belkin isn't the best WAP in the world and can be a bit of a b*tch to configure, but it'll work.
Easiest - chuck the lot away and get a decent 4-port wireless modem/router, like a Netgear DG834G or similar.  That'll provide everything you need in one reliable, easy to configure box.  Connect the PC to it via one of the Ethernet ports and the lappy via the wireless network.
Sorted. 

[#9]

Seconded.

[#10]

You did not tell us if your desktop PC has a wireless PCI card.  You may want to consider this as it is a more flexible option, which would cater for all use cases.  You may need to get a WiFi PCI card or WiFi USB adapter compatible with 802.11b (since your Belkin WAP won't do 802.11a, g, or n) for your desktop - if it does not already have one.  Then you will use the ethernet port on your voyager to connect to it the Belkin.  Use the USB port on the Voyager to login using a browser and configure both the voyager and belkin.  Then disconnect the USB from the Voyager and configure the two wireless clients (laptop and PC) to use your Belkin WAP.  Don't forget to set up encryption WPA/WPA2 (assuming that the Belkin can do that).
Once configured as above you'll be able to connect to the Internet from both machines simultaneously.  Your wife will also have the freedom to move around the house and not lose the connection, assuming that the WiFi signal is strong enough.
You could of course try to sell them both on ebay and buy yourself a modern wireless router which has enough LAN ports for hard wiring both machines to it, as well as more modern WiFi options.  If your line suffers disconnections I would not recommend a Netgear.  A Speedtouch 585 (or perhaps Billion BiPAC 5200) would do a better job holding the line at higher speeds on a long or noisy connection.
Hope this helps.

[#11]

Quote from: Loombucket

Right.... First, I don't recommend using the Ethernet and USB connections on your Voyager simultaner simultaeni together, in fact most router manufacturers specifically forbid it.

Totally wrong... if the router supports USB and Ethernet connections and the manual indicates both can be used then it was designed to allow both to be connected at the same time - in fact all the single port routers I have used or know about which have Ethernet & USB ports support both being used at the same time. The Voyager 210 does allow both to be used at the same time...
To OP,
However, normally I would not recommend using USB but in this case, as you don't want to change the router that is your only option.
The cost of wireless routers really has come down in recent years so are not as expensive as you might think and would be the best way to go as it frees up the laptop to be used anywhere in the house rather than next to the router as you would need to do now. Also if you are on one of the new Broadband Your Way products and have not taken any hardware from PlusNet you could get a wireless router free (subject to being on a product that supplies such a unit).

[#12]

I have been away for the past three days so have not kept up with all the replies  - I'm grateful for the interest shown.  Will now peruse them all .  Many thanks.