Presario 1800 reformat/update?

I've just been handed down my son's Compaq Presario 1800 laptop. (I bought
him a replacement.)

This Presario has never been able to tap into our home network for printing
or file sharing (since I installed Win XPPro on it summer 2002. However it
can use DSL through our router. This last week I have tried furiously to
solve the networking problem, with lots of advice on the Dell message
boards, but nothing works.

It looks like I will have to reformat the hard drive and reinstall Win XPPro
to have any hope of networking it.

Has anyone made a fresh start on a a Presario 1800 with XP? Was it difficult
to find drivers etc to make it work? I'm not finding what I need, so far, on
the web site; it only lists Win Me and 2000.

(We did purchase an extended warranty in July 2001... Any chance Compaq
would provide support of the type I need by phone?)

Nan