help me securing up my dlink based wirelees network

hi all, i'm just having problems when trying to secure a 2 pc (1 desktop 1 laptop) based network, the destop is connected to a dlink D!-524 wireless router via ethernet, and the laptop via wireless network card dlink di524,
the desktop is winxp sp2 IE6 all latest udates installed, and the laptop has win98SE and all patches installed , the problem is when i try to secure the wireless, so only the laptop can access lan and internet, i have tried setting up a SSID password form router, which is identical to the laptop utility for the wireless card, but when i do this, the laptop gets disconected from any network functions, even if i reboot the system and the only way to get the laptop networking back is to restore all router security settings to defaults, i have cheched an double checked SSID letters and numbers to be identical for both wireless router and card utilities but no luck, i have tried enabling and moving different WEP values with no luck, so i just expect some help from anyone
thanks.

You need to set security in the wireless router by wired connection. It is never a good idea to use a wireless for setup.

I use cut in paste to insert security codes from a note pad. I get them from a random generator at www.grc.com, all printable chr 64 length. Then randomly copy what ever length I need.