Don't bother writing. I know only five months ago I told you why I didn't like Windows XP--Product Activation and price gouging. Okay, I'll say it: I was wrong. XP is terrific. So despite scattered reports of upgrade nightmares and compatibility problems, I'm recommending XP. Still waffling? Hey, by waiting this long, you've sidestepped some glitches that Microsoft and other companies have already fixed. Now I'm going to help you avoid the upgrade hassles that remain.

One big exception: XP isn't for everyone. Sure, it makes perfect sense for Windows 9 x users with enough hardware muscle. But I've been surprised by the number of people who ask me if they should abandon Windows 2000 for Windows XP Professional, the version for businesses. I say if Win 2000 is working fine, stick with it. XP inherited most of its skills from Windows 2000--it just slapped on a candy-coated interface. (By the way, I switched XP back to the Classic style by right-clicking the desktop, choosing Properties, clicking the Appearance tab, going to the 'Windows and buttons' drop-down list, and selecting Windows Classic style.)

Bootable insurance: You need your CD-ROM drive to install XP, so in case of problems, set your PC's BIOS to boot in this order: floppy, CD-ROM drive, hard drive. Enter your BIOS settings by pressing <Delete>, <F1>, or the key specified on screen as you boot. Check your boot order under BIOS FEATURES SETUP. Don't want to mess with the BIOS? No sweat--we have a tool at pcworld.com/downloads to create a boot disk for your current operating system with generic drivers for your CD-ROM drive. And for one more ounce of prevention, do a full system backup just before you begin the XP installation.

Driven to distraction: Go to the Web sites of your peripherals vendors and download any XP updates and patches for the devices. Don't forget products you use rarely--in my case the forgotten ones were my X10 camera and label printer. Two great sources for driver updates are WinDrivers and DriverGuide.

Update? Just Say 'Yes'

During setup you'll be asked if you want XP to perform a Dynamic Update. It's imperative that you say yes, because this update gives XP a chance to add new drivers. And be sure to take advantage of XP's efficient auto-update feature to download and install all the latest patches soon after they become available.

If you can't find an XP driver for a particular device, try using a Windows 2000 driver--it's far more likely to work than a 9 x driver because XP is built on top of Windows 2000. XP may warn you that the driver isn't XP-compatible and will try to dissuade you from installing it. Ignore that advice and load it anyway.

Make the disconnect: Before you upgrade, temporarily disconnect devices more than six months old--a step Microsoft obliquely recommends. During my XP installation, the setup program suggested that I connect my HP printer only after XP was installed. If XP's setup doesn't find drivers for printers and other devices connected to your system, your installation could hang. The devices should be detected automatically when reconnected to the PC after the XP installation is complete.

Clear the background: You probably have lots of programs on your PC that load automatically when your machine boots up--like firewalls, ad blockers, and antivirus tools. Don't install XP until you've reset these programs so that they don't load at boot-up. Once XP is running, you can set them back to autoload.

This is a good time to visit the program vendors' Web sites to check for upgrades. For instance, I took out ZoneAlarm Pro before installing XP, and subsequently put in an upgraded version of the firewall software. I also removed and then reinstalled my antivirus program and my ad-blocking utility, AdSubtract. (Remember to write down any license numbers or registration codes for your shareware.)

When did I know for sure that XP is a great piece of software? Right after I managed to convince my mom to put aside her prized copy of Linux and let me upgrade her computer to XP.

• See more like this:
• Windows XP,
• windows xp upgrade,
• windows xp installation