How to password protect folders in XP?

I looked up how to password protect folders on my XP user account, USING THE XP PASSWORD PROTECTION FEATURE. It told me you had to already have your user account set up with a password, then you had to use the SAME password to protect individual folders. Here were the instructions:
http://www.worldstart.com/tips/tipfeedba...
Does this seem futile or is it just me? Obviously, if your entire user account is password protected, the all of the contents should be already protected anyway?
I want to do this WITHOUT using third party password protection software.
Any help appreciated!

Sorry, this was the correct link:
http://www.worldstart.com/tips/tips.php/...

i know you said you didnt want to use 3rd part software...but this is easy and really secure:

http://www.truecrypt.org/

Not necessarily. Your password for login is used to log in to your profile. Your settings are displayed.
But anyone can access your documents and files through another user profile. Most of the time they can open them as 'read only.' If you want complete protection, you have to protect folders and files with passwords.
Now you have to encrypt data so that you only can access the folder.
RtClk the folder>Properties>General>Advanced.. Encrypt data box should be checked.

Well that sums up how to make your folders in XP private I think what you are attempting to do would require 3rd party software..

I'm aware thats not what you wanted to hear if you wish to make your files private in XP you then need to add a second user account to the system for everyone else to log into.

In order for it to do what you intend for it to do, adding users is the simplest way and easy enough to do in the control panel and if your password is already known by others change it..

This is always a common sense thing to do in XP or any operating system anyhow.

Never log onto and browse the net as admin depending on where you go this can be a disaster waiting to happen..

XP does not support "password-protecting" feature.

What it does support are:

* Encryption of specific drive content
* NTFS Security that can be setup for different directories with different permissions

Note that if you end up encrypting files .. it becomes difficult to recover in terms of a disk-crash / OS Corruption.