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That's pretty dangerous if you don't have a WEP or similar password protected WiFi network - anyone can just step right onto you network and steal/implant viruses onto your notebook. It's also dangerous that two notebooks that have had contact with the same network can network with each other with out a host router - very dangerous as there is no saftey protcol to stop the linkage.
Possible, although Windows does differentiate Ad-hoc (peer-to-peer) and Infrastucture (access point) networks. I'd think that it would automatically try to connect to a network that's defined as "infrastructure" (Starbucks have access points) in "ad-hoc" mode.
I believe the article deals with different issues that have nothing to do with encrypting your own network. It talks about Windows automatically joining various wireless networks without your explicit concent. What would protect you in this case is a good firewall.
That's the point of ad-hoc - no need for routers / access points. I've played Quake III Arena with two friends a few days ago using peer-to-peer connections without the need for any additional hardware besides our wireless adapters. Again, as long as you have a good firewall, it should protect you from being hacked in such cases (in the case that someone else decides to join your ad-hoc network).
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.
