Here's a pretty comprehensive list of why one would get the "network cable unplugged" message (taken from the Microsoft.Public.WindowsXP.network_web newsgroup:

1. The network cable really is unplugged.
2. The network cable is defective.
3. It's plugged in, but there's nothing connected to the other end.
4. It's plugged in and connected on both ends, but the device on the other end isn't turned on.
5. The cable is the wrong type.  Connecting two computers directly, without a hub, switch, or router, requires a crossover cable.  A regular cable won't work.
6. The cable is connected to the uplink port on a hub, switch, or router, instead of a regular port.
7. Some hubs, switches, and routers disable the port next to the uplink port when the uplink port is in use.
8. The network card driver program isn't working right.  Download and install the latest XP-compatible driver from the manufacturer's web site.
9. The network card is configured to automatically sense speed and duplex settings but isn't doing it correctly.  Set those options manually, as shown here: http://www.practicallynetworked.com/sharing/troubleshoot/networkcard.htm

Steve

The only one of those things it could possibly is the network cable is defective. I had the cable made locally a couple of years ago in an attempt to network my XP computer with my old Win95 computer. It never worked. Both that cable and the cable I have from my DSL modem to my XP machine say Cat 5 on them, but maybe the one I was trying to use was improperly constructed? I think it might be a crossover cable, and the guy just used a Cat 5 cable to construct the crossover? All this networking stuff is so foreign to me. I don’t have any routers or hubs, and my cable wouldn’t reach the 4600, so we always got the “Network Card Disconnected” message.