Is your network card up and running? Try typing ifconfig at the command line(or xterm if you are in xwindows) Look for an entry called eth0 -> if it is there then it is running, you may need to set the ip address and subnet mask. (In order for this to work you need to be root > type su at the prompt and enter your root password)
Hopefully the machine has a network card that is compatible with linux. If the card is not running type ifconfig eth0 up ,or something like that I am not at my linux machine so I can't verify the commands (I'll verify them when I get home).
Now, the easiest way to configure your network card would be to use DrakConf at the command prompt. This will bring up a graphical menu in xwindows. Choose the linux config option, then find the networking options and find eth0. All you have to do is fill in the necessary information there. AS far as novel goes I am not sure what changes have to be made to linux.
AS far as being able to see other computers from linux like in the network neighborhood box in windows I am not sure how to do this. To be able to see linux from windows in that manor you will need to setup samba.
I would recommend going to
as it contains much more information and guite a few FAQs on linux and networking.
Good Luck....
If you need more info then post a reply here and I will try to clarify what I said and maybe add some more detail to the information that I presented.