Hellooooo, writng here to make my Linux announcement. I just successfully replaced WinME with XUbuntu. I had a couple of freak-outs during the install (erasing ones HD for the first time can be scary), but after 5 wasted CD-Rs and several hours, I got it to run.
The keyboard and mouse both work fine, so do the programs, but the speakers are another matter…if I’m having enough trouble with them, naturally, I’ll ask you guys to see if someone could possibly help. But other than that, I am quite satisfied with my choice. Will have to post my screenshot up one of these days.
And thank you for the help on my last post regrading Ubuntu, your messages really helped me through the installation process!! Hugz!! 
(cheesy happy face)
One handy hint.
The next time you burn a CD, keep the burn rate at 12x, I find this gives best results at a respectable speed and doesn’t cause damaged CD’s.
It all depends on the quality of your cd burner.
Yeah, clearing a hard drive is definitely scary. Years of use wiped out in minutes. Congratulations on successfully installing Ubuntu- sooooooo much better than vista 