A yellow pad is fine for me. A Teachers' Space can also provide a great home for all that software and hardware you don't use anymore. Plug in your laptop, transfer files, and print hard copies. Your old 486 is now a dedicated print and file server, freeing up the other three computers. It also has a modem and tape backup drive, which are harmoniously shared.
Redundancy is the key to long life and happiness with computers.
Small networks make a lot of sense. The simplest network links two computers, such as your desktop and notebook. All you need are two Ethernet cards and a crossover cable CAT 5 cable. Install the cards, configure Windows, hook up the cable, and you are done. First, make sure you get Plug and Play hardware.