WinXP EXTREMELY slow now

My computer was recently reformatted and WinXP reinstalled along with MS Office and Norton home edition. Although opening and using files doesn't seem to be a problem, navigating with Windows Explorer is a lengthy process especially when browsing other computers on the network( there are 5 computers total). After selecting another computer in Explorer and then getting about 2 levels deep into the directory it will take about 1 to 2 minutes to reveal in the right pane what I expanded in the left (CPU usage is at 100% during that time). When navigating on my computer response time is better but still about 2-3 times slower than what it should be. I have no slowdown when browsing the internet. I thought Norton might be slowing things down but I turned that completely off with no difference that I could tell. Here are some specifics on my computer:

Win XP Home Ed Version 2002 SP1
Intel Pentium III
666 MHz
256 MB RAM

Any ideas?

 

Cant say if you didnt have problems before i would use 512 or higher on xp pro and the the p3 cant be helpin much

 

Have you run a good diagnostic proggie like Everest ? (thanks to Robo for mentioning it in another thread) I d'l'ed the proggie this morning and it works well It might show you where your bottleneck is.
Bill

 

start with turning off all the menu animations, shadows and theme support. Then look for an updated network card driver to see if it resolves your network issues.