Jennifer Kirley said:

I bought a new machine a few years ago and asked my husband to wipe off XP and install my 2000 OS first thing. It's not free of errors, but I'm not dealing with this ugliness regarding SP2 ad nauseum.
Windows 2k is currently on SP
4. You should be aware that when you wipe out an OEM opertating system and replace it with anything other than the same OS, as shipped, you're probably voiding the warranty.
Jennifer Kirley said:
But I really did this because I disagree on principle with the .Net platform, as Microsoft wants to eventually have everyone pay a subscription and log on to use their computer, store everyone's data for them, etc. Not me, no way Jose!!
There may be plenty to dislike about Microsoft, but your fears about MS taking control of your data via the .Net Framework are unfounded. You don't have to install .Net if you're using XP, but there are currently some applications that won't work without it, and sooner or later you'll have to abandon 2K and get with the program.
Jennifer Kirley said:
I have Open Office and like it well enough but don't use it because certain functions (specifically, being able to select more than one spreadsheet cell with Ctrl and color the whole lot at once) don't work and that really slows me down.
You might want to have a look at Easy Office, another free open source suite that includes a lot more than OO and in my own limited recent use seems to be more compatible with MS Office files. It's available at
www.e-press.com.
Jennifer Kirley said:
My husband set me up with Firefox, set up a fortress-like firewall and screens my Outlook e-mail with some wizardry he has learned while becoming the minor computer god he is. (bow, scrape)
Nonetheless after a few years of hard riding, he did have to format my machine reinstall the whole bundle.
Using either 2k or XP, there should never be a need to reformat and reinstall the OS to deal with problems. Regular maintenance, including staying free from malware, should be all that's needed. If a computer gets so far gone that the only solution is reinstallation of the OS it's because of user issues. I'm currently using XP on a desktop and a laptop (both of which have SP2 applied, btw) and going on three years for both on the original installations and a lot of "hard riding."
Jennifer Kirley said:
How about this gag, where Microsoft buys software security companies, then talks about (no, they haven't done more yet than offer it for free to licensed users) selling software to fix security problems due to Microsoft's own weakness? Talk about chutzpah!
MS has announced that the Anti-Spyware package now in beta release will be free when released in its final form. Keep in mind that
no operating systems are immune to attack; MS is the easiest target in terms of sheer numbers. This is not to say that MS isn't culpable to some extent; theuy've been sloppy and slow to react in some instances. Most spyware infestations though, and indeed, virus and trojan infections are due to poorly protected computers. If any iteration of Linux or the Mac OS were as popular as XP, you can be assured that there would be similar levels of malware problems.