Lesson 1: just Windows XP (including SP2), with no additional software installed takes up 3.37 GB on my hard drive (according to the properties of the C: drive). I had only assigned a 5 GB slot on my disk, which I guess is not enough if I also want to install some additional software, like the driver software for my video camera, palm pilot, web cam or digital camera, or Neverwinter Nights.

I'll try to somehow reduce the amount of space used, although I already 'Clean disk'-ed. I must be getting old; I do remember vividly how I paid a lot of money to get a 40 MB hard drive way back when. I guess 640 KB will be enough,...

Update (21:15) The other lesson I learned: the VMWare Snapshot Manager does not like to run out of disk space while optimizing a snapshot tree. I hosed my installation of XP with it, since it keeps on telling me that the "virtual filesystem needs repair". Unfortunately, no clue as to how to repair it, or where to get the tool to do it. I guess I'll do a new install tomorrow: for today, I have had enough.

Update (08:00, July 26) I was told that Windows XP keeps a full uninstall record of all service packs and security patches that it applies. While this is undeniably a good thing to have turned on by default, I would have expected a question or a configuration setting somewhere that I can use to remove this uninstall stuff.

Hmm. reading back the previous paragraph, I realised something. I write: "of all [...] patches that it applies". And that is true! Windows installs and applies patches (yes, I know, I do click on OK), while on other systems, installing patches is something that a system administrator does. May I have hit on something there?