Install Win2K on AAO D250?

Hi,

My AAO D250 came preinstalled with XP. It's a resource hog even though most of the "extra features" can be disabled (themes, media center, etc) or removed with tools such as nLite, and so I'd like to install Windows 2000 on the Aspire One. I had an old laptop that died unfortunately (ironically, it was an HP "Entertainment PC" with Vista on board), and I removed the old OS to install Win2K, which I found simple and fast, and loved it, until I couldn't love it anymore (true story: I was carrying the laptop out of class and tripped on my untied laces!). I know MS has removed "support" for 2K but fact of the matter is, I won't need anything "new" or "updated"; I've got a good security system lined up (Avira Free, Spybot, ZoneAlarm Free...and common sense). There isn't much I use the AAO for besides Word and the Internet; I'm not a gamer or a graphics person and the small size of the netbook is what drew me at first. The HP was physically bulky (financially, too), but with the netbook, XP renders it next to unusable. Linux has too much of a learning curve and I'm in college, so between term papers and exams I don't have the time to fuss with it.

I'm a little technically inclined (but not to the point of programming knowledge or physical repair). I managed to get an old disc of 2K onto a flash drive with a how-to from here

Code:

http://www.msfn.org/board/topic/120444-how-to-install-windows-from-usb-winsetupfromusb-with-gui/

and it goes through the Text mode in Setup but won't go beyond "Setup is Starting Windows 2000". I have all the necessary drivers (hard to find, I know, but they're there). I wrote about installing Ubuntu last time I was here and that didn't work out so well. I don't think this is an issue with the flash drive itself because I've tried three different USB drives and different configurations -- even a plain, untouched setup folder just won't install. I'm practically hell-bent on putting the "old reliable" on my machine. I can't stand XP; the OS formerly known as Longhorn might as well have been codenamed Edsel and IMHO, Windows 7 is just a streamlined version of Vista, or what Vista should have been if it wasn't Win7's prematurely born twin. All the reviews I read of W7 have been "it's great for Photoshop," or "I can watch HD streaming video," etc., all very nice and flashy but too much for my needs. I couldn't care less about Netflix or YouTube; I don't use networking sites (which is what netbooks in general were designed for - Facebook and Twitter and all that...stuff); and the extent of my media interest is watching a DVD rip of my own and listening to mp3 files -- which 2K does, and with a fraction of XP's bulk. I guess, is this possible, and maybe even a good idea, to install an OS that is nearly 11 years old in the interest of simplicity? Money-wise, obviously the AAO isn't a MacBook Air, but it cost as much as its model # indicates. I would have gotten something different, but I needed something portable to carry around with books, and there's no way I can just tell the folks that without a system, it makes for a pretty pink $250 paperweight

I don't need anything fancy -- not code-happy Linux or media-rich XP/Vista/7/Mac OS X. I'm not a computer science major or a web designer/graphic arts major. Actually I'm studying English with a creative-writing concentration and all this technical stuff is way too much "showing and telling." If I can't get the netbook slimmed down to simplicity then I might be leaning towards one of these

Code:

http://www.vermontcountrystore.com/products/products-for-the-home/country-home-decor/Home-Office-supplies/Electronic-Typewriter.html

or the full office suite

Code:

http://www.papermate.com/
[url]http://www.meadonline.com/[/url]

If I'm able to spring for an external DVD drive, would 2K install from the disc? BTW the disc is clean -- no scratches or anything. I know, 11 years old in OS years is about the same as dog years, if not more...but I had a dog that lived to be 20 -- that's 140 in people years -- and to his last days, still played and romped like he was still a pup fresh out of the litter. (Imagine how horrible it'd be if society applied the MS model of "planned obsolescence" to its children!)

Advice is greatly welcomed.

---
Specs:
2GB RAM (upgrade from 1GB; 2GB is the max)
750GB HD (upgrade from stock 160GB)
Primary use(s): office, Internet, downloading, media (video, audio, some conversion); educational software (Mavis Beacon, Rosetta Stone, Encarta 95 - yes, I still have it)

 

W2K doesnt include SATA AHCI drivers. Your D250 is setup by default to run the HD in AHCI mode. Changing the setting in the BIOS to IDE mode should let you be able to install W2K, if there is drivers for the Intel chipset included in the W2K install CD. Otherwise you will need to slipstream the drivers into a W2K install CD. If you do that you should also be able to run in the default AHCI mode, with the performance gains that gives.

DutchDK