does vista really beat the living hell of xp?

My opinion don't go for vista as of now, Vista is very resource hungry and tests have shown that applications run a lot slower on vista than in xp with systems having memory modules below 1 gb (RAM). to have a better performance if you can afford the extra bucks i suggest you to upgrade the system to 2gb of ram and than go for Vista. If you are just looking for a good alternative, I suggest you to try out Linux flavors of Suse or ubuntu, you will not regret.

i think it beats from the look and in many other added features.

Yea I am waiting for SP2, I have been told there are still faults with it. i recon stick with XP for a bit longer!