It's actually not that big of a deal to 'fish' the cable through the walls and such. you can even drop in the nice finish plates if the idea of having a wire sticking out of a hole in the wall is un-apealing to you or yours.
AND when you sell the house, at some point later, you can say "It's got cat5 cable run from one end to the other" that's good for a couple thousand dollars in gained equity. all for the cost of $20 worth of wires and hardware from home depot...
or, a wireless router is about $120, if you prefer the non-invasive network type. (not nearly as fast though)
-RuskiFace the Pirate