im not on a retail version of xp pro.. but i can use the program just fine most problems i have got with windows can be resulted with a good ol' prefech clearning start > run > type prefetch > ok or enter select all > delete reboot one other thing.. turn off the burning in dvd shrink.. that causes a lot of problems for people also it could be freezing because it does not work well anymore with the new copy write codes in DVDs. most people have had to switch to something else