I currently run ME, but get hold of copies of 2000 and XP pro, Which is the best...?

I am having real problems with the system resourses with ME when i startup i am left with...

SYSTEM RESOURCES: 45%
USER RESOURCES : 45%
GDI RESOURCES : 80%

this rapidly goes down and gives me low resources messages one i start using the internet and e-mail. I have cleaned out all the startup programs etc. BUT i have Norton 2003 Antivirus, Norton 2003 Internet securiy, wirless networking software and ICS...
Iam guessing that Norton takes up most of my system resources, but i don't really want to get rid of them. I was also thinking of buying another 512mb Ram but Rambus is still kinda expensive and dont really want to pay out £200.

So will win 2k or XP pro help me? which is the best?

I was running ME up until about 1½ months ago. Then I had to do total re-installation of ME three times in 2 weeks. At that point I decided to go to XP Pro. I'll never go back. I haven't had a BSOD since I installed XP Pro. I've had a few programs freeze up, but the good thing about XP Pro is it doesn't freeze the whole machine up, like ME did if a program froze. IMHO go with XP or at least 2000, stay away from ME.

Everybody is different , I have been running ME for 2years now and hardly ever have a problem with it and if it freezes I can usually close the offending program without restart . Hardly ever have seen a BSOD with ME . I think it depends on what programs you put on and what is running in the background . I'll keep using it until I am forced to go to something else , can't see spending $100 for the XP upgrade version like Microsoft would like you too , who knows maybe in 2 or 3 years we will be looking at linus desktops , they certainly are making some big inroads in the market .

The wisest thing to do is always update your windows with windows update to download the latest security issues and bugs for your OS, I'm using Windows Me and Windows XP Pro in dual boot and I have no problems at all!

My computer specs.

Intel Pentium 4 2.4 Ghz 533 FSB/ 512 L2 Cache
Intel 845G Chipset
256 DDRAM
40 Gigz. HD (7200 RPM)
GeForce-2 MX-400 (64 mb)

http://computing.net/windowsme/wwwboard/forum/18106.html how 2 run m.e well ver.3

http://computing.net/windowsme/wwwboard/forum/30687.html

http://www.computing.net/windowsme/wwwboard/forum/24159.html how 2 run m.e ver.4

and for running vidio and tuneing m.e try this link
http://www.videoguys.com/WinME_Tweaks.html

well im just testing XP pro on my laptop now and like it, so im putting it on the offending computer! I also ordered another 256mb of Rambus Ramm for £110 and will install it 2morrow when it arrives.

I've got all 3 on the same machine, and the Me partition almost never gets used. You still might want to set up a dual boot with Me on a small partition for any older apps that won't work on XP. There are also some older cd burning programs that work fine on 2000, but won't work with XP, so that's something to consider.

Your having problems with your system resources because you don't have any (enough) system resources. Add a stick of 256mb of ram and you resource problem will go away.
ALL 9x Windows OS's suffer from memory leaks. This isn't news, just a fact.
With the introcuction of Windows 2000 (and XP) the memory leak problem has been resolved. (a least that's what Microsoft says)
Moving up to Widows 2000 will give you stability you've never experienced before.
Windows XP is definitely a more robust OS, but you may not need all the new features it offers. (digital camera support etc.)
If the price is the same for either Win 2k or XP, then I'd go with XP, but the professional version ONLY!
If you decide not to up your RAM, stay where you're at with Me.
Good Luck.

I haven't upgraded from WinME to WinXP Home Edition because the latest incarnation of WinXP Home Edition doesn't support my USB/Ethernet modem connector and my Canon bubblejet printer. The downside to this is that I will not be able to run C#.Net. But otherwise, I am sure that I am having fun learning about WinME, the only question I have is whether its a 16-bit or 32-bit OS, and how different from W2K is WinME internally. Does anybody have a clue?

Email me.