Assuming you have a workgroup created, you'll set up Windows 8 networking just like you did with Windows 8. The quickest way is to press Windows-D to get to the desktop, then press Windows-C. The Charms bar in the desktop is slightly different than in the Start screen in one important way: Clicking on Settings will present you with a pop-out that looks like the one you see in the Start menu but happens to list the Control Panel, Personalization and other desktop-centric settings. At this point, you can run the Control Panel, and then manage network settings there.

Windows 8 supports HomeGroups, so you can also connect your PC to the Windows Homegroup, provided you know the password. Homegroup settings, including entering or changing the HomeGroup password, reside in PC Settings. Press Windows-C and select , and then select  and navigate to the HomeGroup menu entry.

Note that you may have been asked to connect to the HomeGroup during the Windows setup. If you've taken care of that chore already, then you're good to go. But this screen is also handy for changing sharing settings.

User management in Windows 8 works similarly to the way it did in Windows 7. However, you now have two ways to manage users. The old way, through the user Control Panel, still exists. Remember, getting to the Control Panel is easy: Press Windows-X to bring up the Simple Start menu and click on the menu entry. There's one new entry in the legacy Control Panel user-account-management screen, however.