When partitioning the hard disk, leave an unpartitioned area for Linux, and install WinXP, later, when you want to install Linux, you can create Linux partitions (using the Linux setup program), and install a boot manager for the OS selection menu.
Recent versions of Linux can read NTFS partitions just fine.
Fedora, SuSE, and Mandrake all use a GUI to install the OS, programs, and change settings.
Good luck
