Good article on two alternatives to getting tethered access with your phone to a laptop. First one is a commercial based solution that you can get a free sample, or pay for the full version. You do not need to root your phone either. BUT…it doesn’t work on all phones (HTC Evo xx series being one of them). Or you can go the opensource route and root the phone to do it. More likely to work, but can be more difficult.
Not that I would do that…
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-get-a-tethered-android-connection-on-any-carrier-anytime/