Need step-by-step installation of DIRECT2PC - in layman's terms, please

I have a home network set up (windows XP version 2002 service pack 3 on both desktop and laptop) and lots of pictures I want to display on my TV. Just got a new HD DVR receiver (HR24/100) and I am using a 100-foot Ethernet cable I hooked up to my router. I downloaded the software from Directv and seems to work ok. I have the latest Windows Media Player and I have set it up to the 'media sharing' option. So far, so good. Now the problems: When I try to watch a show on my PC from the 'my playlist', I either get 'your receiver is not connected' or if I happen to get lucky after re-booting a few times, and start showing the show on the PC, the picture freezes and/or the audio gets distorted. So, something must be wrong with the configuration of my Windows Media Player, you think?..... Next, on my TV, when I display the menu, I should see the entry "Music, photos and more' below the Manage Recordings entry. I could never get this new entry to appear. Everything looks good when I went to the system setup. Tested the connection on the TV and shows that it is connected to the internet.

Here's what I like to know: Obviously I need to 'tweak' the WMP to view movies on my PC. Also, how do I get the TV to 'ping' to my computer to display pictures from my computer's picture folder?

Any help on these issues will be greatly appreciated. I will continue checking the troubleshooting sections, as I already have been to no success.

Thanks!

DrJV