At that point it was Whistler Beta 1 and is actually supported though not recommeded.
Here's What You Need to Use Windows XP Professional
PC with 300 megahertz or higher processor clock speed recommended; 233 MHz minimum required (single or dual processor system);* Intel Pentium/Celeron family, or AMD K6/Athlon/Duron family, or compatible processor recommended
128 megabytes (MB) of RAM or higher recommended (64 MB minimum supported; may limit performance and some features)
The part about may limit performance is more than true. I agree, it needs much more and isn't really happy till you get to a 1Ghz with at least 512Meg, but it still wants more.