Office XP just came out and it's $240 for the upgrade. I'm running Office 2000 which does everything I need. The new 'task panes' and Smart Tags seem like gimmicks.

Is there a compelling reason to upgrade or is this a skip?

Skip it. Office 2000 is rock solid and does everything 99% of people need. The XP version is basically a reskin with some features nobody asked for.

The crash recovery in Office XP is actually really good — it auto-saves every few minutes. If you've lost work to Office crashes before, that alone might be worth it.

Save your $240. Office 2000 will be fine for years. Microsoft just wants your money.