Microsoft ends support on Windows 98, Windows Me, and Windows XP Service Pack 1.

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/support/endofsupport.mspx

May I suggest a nice Unix? Perhaps a finely aged Linux?

I suspect that you are not alone, especially now that Mickey has ceased running anti-linux attack ads. After a year of running ads condemning "open source" software, they have just announce several "open" projects inside Microsoft. Seems to be similar to their attitude towards the internet and TCP/IP in the 1980s and 1990. They put it down with all their might and when it didn't go away, they claimed it as their own.

The real irony is that Mircosoft is still seen as the "conservative" choice when Unix is more than ten years older, much more stable, and a whole lot more secure.

Myself, I am still not sure I would recommend Linux as a "User" operating system. As a server, or for software development, I believe that Linux is superior to Microsoft (by a very wide margin). But, even though Linux Desktops have made it a lot easier to use than it used to be, Linux does require a substantial learning curve. It is very very flexible, so once you get used to it, there is very little you cannot do. So in the long run it is easier to use than Microsoft. But those first few days can be a bear.