Network Locations
My Network Places is a thing of a past since Windows XP. But I actually find these quite useful, as I already have a lot of drives mapped.
You can now do it in Windows 7 by just going to (My) Computer and right clicking in a blank area and selecting 'Add a network location'.
This is all well and good, but the icon is a bit generic. Changing the icon is easier said than done. As when you try and change the properties of the shortcut there is a missing tab which you'd normally use for setting icons etc.
This is because the shortcut is actually a directory with some special attribute and files inside. What you need to do is load up a Command Prompt and use "cd" to navigate to:
C:/Users/[username]/AppData/Roaming/Microsoft/Windows/Network Shortcuts/
If you list the directories (dir) you'll see that your shortcut is there listed as a directory. Change into your directory with "cd" and then do:
rename desktop.ini desktop.bak
Your shortcut will now morph into a standard folder in Windows, containing a shortcut called target. Set the icon properties on this shortcut and then go back to your command prompt and type:
rename desktop.bak desktop.ini
This should refresh the shortcut with the icon you've selected.