OneBigNewbie--In a couple of months, you may find it difficult to purchase a PC with XP--at least from the mass manufacturers. (That is what MS has recently announced, but things could change.)
Home vs. Pro is strictly a personal choice. It depends on whether you need the features of Pro and how much you are willing to pay. Here are the differences.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/h...choosing2.mspx
There actually are five versions of XP. Here is info on them all
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/e...n/compare.mspx