Networking via Ethernet when on Wireless

I have been wondering the same thing for a while now.

On the same sort of topic last night i was setting up my new APE without an internet connection. I was hoping to network my MBP on the wireless, with my 12" PB connected via the LAN port, but i couldn't get my PB to connect to the network because the network wasn't connected to the internet. In the network preferences the little light next to ethernet was yellow saying something along the lines of the ethernet cable is connected but may not be able to connect to the internet. The kicker is that the "connect" button was inactive. My hopes were to share the data off the HD of the PB through the network, and possibly connecting one of my external drives to the PB to have a little more space to put stuff on the network. I don't really feel like using the usb port for the drive, because i haven't heard great things about the speed when the drives are connected via the usb port.

Any idea on how to fix the connecting problem on my PB or just another way to achieve a file sharing set up with the computers and HD's that i have described above?

Sorry about slightly highjacking the thread MacMyDay.

J