Dear Mark-

I had some trouble with the Win2k install, after all. I couldn't get past the first 5 seconds of setup.
Disheartened and disenchanted by the failure, I thought I'd take your advice and see how well Ubuntu would do on this machine.

With Ubuntu booted from the freshly burned CD (it was still warm!) I found that at the top level of the OS install was a memory test. Why not?
Well- I'll tell you what... a 10 year old machine might take issues with a new stick of RAM in a previously empty slot.
I reseated and generally futzed with the sticks until the memory test on the Ubuntu disk came up clean.
Ta-Da! A victory for Linux!

...but now I'm continuing the Win2k install.
*sigh*
Next time, my friend, next time...