plug crossover cable into nic of both computers.
after that, wait a couple min. go grab a drink or something
then on laptop, go to start > run, type cmd and click OK
at command prompt type ipconfig and hit enter
make note of IP Address (ex: 169.15.1.15)

on computer, go to start > run
type \\IP address of laptop\c$ (ex: \\169.15.1.15\c$) and click OK
you should then be able to browse thru your laptop's files. ...assuming everything is on the C:\ of your laptop.