Windows NT made a name for Microsoft in the corporate and business markets, and Windows 2000 is an extensive upgrade to this operating system. But besides offering a high level of stability, Windows 2000 provides features such as plug and play, USB, DirectX and better power management support. Consequently many games designed for Windows ME or 98 will also run quite nicely on Windows 2000, and it is ideal for laptops thanks to the new plug and play features.

Windows 2000 is a considerable OS, but compared to Windows NT, it's easy to install and not at all daunting. Users with average abilities should experience little difficulty. The documentation supplied in the retail pack is more extensive than the pamphlet that comes with Windows ME and is easy to follow, albeit aimed at the more technical user.

There are two key issues with Windows 2000. Firstly, it is an expensive upgrade, and will often require more RAM to function satisfactorily. Our installation, with a few apps running such as anti-virus software, takes up a cool 110MB of RAM before any applications are loaded. Microsoft does say on the box that it will run in 32MB RAM, but we certainly wouldn't recommend that. Given the current low price of RAM, there's never been a better time to buy, but it all adds up.

An additional consideration is that users might wish to install Windows 2000 in a dual boot configuration to leave Windows 98 intact, and this will require extra disk space, possibly necessitating a hard disk upgrade as well.

The second problem with Windows 2000 is that it can and does still crash, despite having a more solid foundation than Windows ME. Compared with many UNIX variants, Windows 2000 is far from stable.

That said, Windows 2000 still represents a more stable and more professional operating system than Windows ME or Windows 98, and if users have invested in software such as Microsoft Office, it makes some sense to stay with Microsoft software. So if money is no object, Windows 2000 represents a solid choice for the desktop with a predictable future and excellent support from third party software vendors.