I have read that if I can find 'gpedit.msc' I'll be able to speed my internet speed but I can't find it through the search facility - any clues if it exists on XP?
Hmm... There are some Network settings in Administrative templates, but I don't know if you're gonna find such a thing, (maybe the bandwidth limit, but I never tried the option) but you can access gpedit by going to :
Start>Run, and typing gpedit.msc and press OK. A window should open...
If you have xp home edition it might not be available, but you can try to get it: