xp problem

i live in the uk and use ntl cabel as my ip it plugs into my cable tv box well my problem is i had a system crash and reinstalled xp on my pc after setting up my antivirus program (norton) i conected to the internet before i can update i get bombarded by viruses which eventually slow or lock my machine so as a last resort i installed windows millenium which has givern me no problems ive tried to install xp 6 times now with the same affect so i thought of upgrading millenium with my xp disk will it be the same as using a clean copy of xp or are there differances as i can see this is the only way of getting xp onto my machine

spec
amd 1.4 athlon 40gig hd dvd cdrw 256meg ram hercules prophet 2 64meg graphics sound blaster live abit raid motherboard

 

Hi and welcome. I don't understand the bombarded by viruses portion of your post.

If it's a full install XP cd, I don't think it will overinstall.

 

sorry ill try to make it clearer after installing xp and and setting up machine i plug my cable box into the ethernet card i then set up my internet go online before i can update my virus deffinitions my pc gets invaded with all different kinds of viruses i also have adaware 6 and spyware blaster set up on machine ive installed the worm blaster patch since ive installed millenium the machine works fine and i can surf the net no problem but i like xp and really need it on my machine so is upgrading me using my xp disk as good as installing xp from a fresh format as the machine is now setup with all my latest antivirus updates

 

I've seen the ME->XP upgrade go badly several times. It sometimes fails to upgrade a few important files.

If you are trying to update xp after a fresh install, turn on the windows firewall before you connect to the internet. This will deflect some of the junk that may try to infect you.
Also, if you connect through a router (linksys or somesuch) the NATing provides some extra protection from random windows attacks. You may want to try installing from within somebody's LAN.
Or you can try putting all of the XP updates on a CD and do the clean install and all the updates before you even put it on the internet.

 

I'm still not understanding how that is happening.

What viruses are you being invaded with?

I answered the upgrade question above. Is the XP cd a full install or an upgrade? If it's a full install, I am not sure it will install. You may be told you have an operating system and need to use an upgrade cd. I have not tested that theory, but that's the way it normally works.