1. you have just finished installing a network adapter and booted up the system, installing the drivers. you open file explorer on a remote computer and don’t see the computer on which you installed the new nic. what is the first thing you check? the second thing?

Check network discovery settings, check file sharing and firewall settings.

Explanation:

The first thing to check would be if the computer has network discovery active. Otherwise, even with a valid and working NIC, you won't be able to see it in any other computer across the network.

If that option is active, and the computer is not showing up, you can check the firewall settings, and if it's preventing you from accessing the network.

A third thing you could check on would be if the 2 computers are connected over wifi, you can try plugging them both via ethernet cable to your router, and test if there is an issue with wireless connectivity.