Hey, Just thought I'd share with the group on this matter. Well, I installed my RC1 of WinXP a couple of weeks ago, and must say that it was very stable for a release candidate. That's where the good parts stop though. It was basically windows ME on an NTFS drive, and while it offers increased stability (from ME/98), it is horribly resitrictive, not allowing me to share "protected" folders, such as my documents, program files and windows across my LAN, with no way around this. The networking interface has also changed a lot, and while there are some good concepts in there, it assumes a zero level of intelligence in the user and forces you to go through a wizard for everything. For the average home user, XP is definitely a step up from 98 or ME, but to anyone already using 2k, this is definitely not worth the bother. You will find the interface restrictive, difficult to acheieve what you want (eg you can't uninstall ms instant messenger, and requires regediting to stop it from loading at startup). The only feature that might interest anyone already on 2k is the Luna skinning engine, which allows users to do exactly what they already do with Stardock's range of products. So, my advice to anyone running 98/ME, if you're a computer novice, XP is a definite worthwhile upgrade, if not, install 2k, it's all lies about problems with games. If you're already using win2k, forget XP, it is a total waste of time.

Hope you find this helpful if you're considering upgrading in October.

Cheers,

AJ/Kris.