Symptom
in a mixed OS, win98, MW and W2K/XP, if win98 and Me client have a password-protected file share; all computers are part of a workgroup; you are using the "Save this password" feature on your XP client computer, you may experience slow browsing Win98 and ME from the XP.
Resolution
XP always saves the password in the Credential Manager. When you browse a Win98 or Me client in a peer-to-peer network, Credential Manager tries to contact a domain controller to validate the password. Because the computers are in a workgroup environment, there is no domain controller, and you must wait until the requests timeout. Install SP1 should fix this problem.