I have a five year old Compaq with 128MB of memory (shared with video
memory.)

It has Windows ME installed so you know that It's crashing like crazy.

Before I spend the money on a new computer I thought I would look into
upgrading the memory.

So: how hard is it to take out the old memory and install new memory?
I have never cracked open my computer case before. How easy is it to really
mess up a computer while changing memory?

My computer is a Presario 500 Series - model number - 5B2284.

I just went to that crucial.com site and punched in my model number.
They have 256MB or ram for $76.00 I would buy two of these, right? Open
the case, take out the two RAM things, and replace them with the two new RAM
modules. Correct?

Would I have to update any software or mess with the BIOS?

If all it involves is a few simple steps then with good instructions I
could probably do it.

Thanks!