I just finished install windows 2000 and office xp in a used laptop. I found the font of the words I type in the office application is really ugly, which looks different than usual. Why's that and how can I fix that? Thank you.

You use View / Toolbars check Formating. thay will show the font name size etc. hilight the text and change it

or

Hilight the text, click formst font and choose there.

from Word help:

Set the default font
If your document already contains text formatted with the properties you want to use, select that text.

On the Format menu, click Font.

Select the options you want to apply to the default font. If you selected text in step 1, the properties you want will appear in the dialog box.
For Help on an option, click the question mark , and then click the option.

Click Default.
Any new document you open will use the font settings you selected.

Tips

In previous versions of Microsoft Word, the default font setting was 10 pt Times New Roman. For easier reading, the default font setting in Word 2000 has changed to 12 pt Times New Roman. Note, however, that if you open a document in Word 2000 that was created in a previous version of Word, your document will retain the default font size of the previous version (that is, 10 pt).

The default font applies to new documents based on the active template. Different templates might use different default font settings

You might also consider writing a macro to change your typeface. For example, I wrote a macro for Times New Roman 12pt and set the keys Ctrl+Alt+t. Here's how to do it:
TOOLS/MACRO/RECORD NEW MACRO
MACRO NAME: type letter
Click on keyboard
If you have used before, you get a message, "Do you want to replace the existing macro?"
Press yes [* but see below]
In PRESS NEW SHORTCUT KEY, type your preferred key, for example,
If this key is assigned to another action, a message tells you to what action it has been assigned. You can either re-assign it to this action or chose another key.
Press CLOSE and press the little rectangle in the little dialogue box to stop recording.
Now press Alt + 11, or TOOLS/MACRO/VISUAL BASIC EDITOR
Edit the script of the macros for by inserting the following:

Selection.Font.Name = "Times New Roman" [or whatever typeface]
Selection.Font.Size = 12 [or whatever size]
Selection.LanguageID = wdEnglishUK [or wdEnglishUS]

*At this point after pressing YES, you can press CLOSE and insert any formatting instructions by pressing the little rectangle in the dialogue box that appears on the main screen to start recording. The macro script records every key operation you press. If you make a mistake and have to delete and/or backspace, all these instructions are recorded. However, they can be edited out later. If you go this route, don’t forget to press the little rectangle to stop recording otherwise you will continue recording all the keys you press.
If you wish to edit a macro, you can use letter to record new instructions and stop recording. Then go into Visual Basic Editor [Alt 11] go to the macro and Press EDIT. You can then copy and paste the instructions in the macro into the macro you wish to change. Note particularly the , and instructions in the macro scripts. You might duplicate these the first time, but all you have to do is follow the onscreen instructions if you get an error message maybe sometimes “Expecting Endwith” and so on.