Well, not sure exactly when it happened, but I just checked it out and you can grab XP SP2 directly from the Windows Update site rather than download the 266 MB zip file. For some reason the version on Windows Update is telling me that it is only 75 MB, so not sure what all it contains.
But if you're feeling frisky, go head over and give it a whirl. I mean, c'mon, "what's the worst that could happen"™?
Windows Update [Microsoft]
For those of you who are less impulsive, feel free to gander Microsoft's well titled "Application Compatibility Testing and Mitigation Guide for Windows XP Service Pack 2" [Microsoft.com]
Or for all you sassy ones, you can get a free CD of Service Pack 2, yours for the askin (but you also have to wait 4-6 weeks for shipping) [Microsoft.com]
The fine folks at InformationWeek have the following to say:
Microsoft on Wednesday made Windows XP Service Pack 2 available via Windows Update and free CD. It also began distributing the update to its flagship operating system to Windows XP Professional customers via Automatic Updates.Posted by peter on August 25, 2004 at 05:12 PM
The CD Request Page had been live for several weeks; however, the option to make the request was not turned on until now. The installation, which requires 1.6 Gbytes of available hard disk space, was previously only available in a 75-Mbyte download (for individual PCs; the full "Network Install" version is 266 Mbytes). This could be time-consuming for most XP users--and nearly impossible for those consumers still using dial-up connections to access the Internet.