I have 4 computers all running windows xp professional....3 are desktops and one is a laptop

is there a way that i can have them on a domain without a server operating system on one of my computers?

No!

XP is a domain client, not a domain server. You will have to have Win 2k server, or Win Server 2003 if you want MS's domain server and active directory.

You can also buy a MAC and Get Leopard Server, it will do the work
I believe full well that Linux can handle the task with SAMBA.

Why do you need a domain? You can network them together as workgroup PC's without spending that kind of money.

I would need to do some looking to see if there are any free alternatives (other than Open LDAP), that may work for a windows environment... but I doubt I would trust the offerings!!!

Yep - as Thaylok said, Windows Workgroups is the easiest and best option for home networks.

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Can't one of these threads be deleted for the fact that there is two?

I see 2. One asking a yes/no question, the other asking how to manage the network using networks instead of domains.

correction... using workgroups instead of domains workgroups, not networks, silly me.