Even with a brand new Intel motherboard, i5 processor, and SATA hard drives, it takes for mother-lovin' evah to full-format a 1GB drive for XP.
(Yeah, I know, why am I installing XP on hot new hardware? Primarily for applications and peripherals -- printers, in particular -- that I can't port to Windows 7 at this point because drivers and suchlike aren't available. And yes, I also know I could have quick-formatted it. I don't believe in quick-formatting, and it's inappropriate in this case anyway, per Microsoft:
If you choose the Quick format option, format removes files from the partition, but does not scan the disk for bad sectors. Only use this option if your hard disk has been previously formatted and you are sure that your hard disk is not damaged.
(emphasis mine.) So there.)
Almost 2 hours later, it's just reached 90%.