For those "Old School" Microsoft Windows users, it takes a lot of changes to the defaults to make your Windows XP session more like what you may be used to from the past: Windows NT Workstation, Windows 2000, or Win95.
To get that old Windows look, feel, and general behavior back, in addition to unhiding some of the stuff Microsoft thinks you might hurt yourself with, just follow this guide.
On the initial login you will be presented with the Windows Security Center. The Windows Security Center was added to Windows XP in Service Pack 2. It has a front end for "Firewall, Automatic Updates, and Virus Protection." I typically disable Automatic Updates or set it to notify me but not install, and choose "Not Monitored" for virus protection. This is because I use my own choice of Virus Protection software and don't need Microsoft telling me when and how to install it.