My rule of thumb is to not upgrade, but only buy the PC.
So, now I have an XP box for the first time. Luckily, I
haven't needed to reactivate. I tend to believe the negative
press and see DRM hiding under every new Windows version.

When Vista boxes become available used at steep discount,
maybe I'll see one come my way, two or three years, after the
early adopters have finished the real beta testing.

Win98 is looking more and more like a fine old Swiss watch.
I don't want to install Vista on a PIII-800 anyway.