I have a brand new HP laptop with XP and everything works fine except when I unplug the computer from the powersource, the network connection goes out and says unplugged.  Wireless works fine, but I want to connect with my wired dsl.  So basically when the computer is plugged in the wired internet works, but unplugging the power kills the connection. I cant find anything under the network tab that seems to address this problem  your help is appreciated. Thanks

Well... who cares? If you're using a wired internet connection why can't you use a power supply at the same time? Really difficult to plug that extra plug in?

Possibly related to this:

http://forums11.itrc.hp.com/service/forums/bizsupport/questionanswer.do?admit=109447626+1245036376405+28353475&threadId=1081508

Thanks for the help and that awesome smart ass comment.  It actually turns out my cable is missing a piece that holds it into the computer so it comes loose and I didnt know this when I posted.

You may have it set so that your wireless card turns off when not plugged in under your current power plan.  Go to your power settings and switch to high performance.  You can also go in and check individual settings for each power plan.

ETA - I should have finished reading first.  

ETA 2 - Find your network adapter in device manager, go to power mgmt tab, and uncheck the box labeled "allow the computer to turn off to save power."