Windows 7: Networking For Dummies

As some may have surmised by my recent questions regarding networking, I have a lot to learn and dislike asking questions every time one pops into my head. I've been looking for a comprehensive text geared for a beginner, and have even checked the tutorials here. So far, I have not found anything that fits the bill, except possibly some books by the title name, which may or may not be what I want, and I greatly dislike paying for something that doesn't do the job for me. Therefore, I'm hoping that someone can point me to an online guide or ebook which is free, so that I can resolve my questions, without hassling everyone here.

Windows 7 or General? I ask because you have many OS listed.

Since my RMA drive is supposed to arrive today, and I will install Windows 7 on it, I would be happy to just focus on Windows 7. When I say networking, I'm not just talking about settings within the OSs though. In fact, the things that seem murkiest to me are all of the router settings. If I could get a handle on this, along with OS settings, I think I could learn to adapt as necessary for the other OSs. I'm not thinking in terms of just getting the network functional, because I already have that, but to tweak it in a fashion to maximize performance and security.

When I look at the possible settings in the router setup, my mind tends to either spin or go blank. I have a vague understanding, but not enough to venture changing anything.

Humm, that is difficult, I have spent years learning networking and still have not got it all. I will look to see if I have some PDFs that fit if not I can recommend some good books.