Protect ur folders on Windows XP?

Recently I came across an article which talks about how to password protect folders on Windows XP. XP doesnt provide any built-in tools for it.
There are various paid 3rd party softwares available.

This article shows a simple way to protect your folder. However, if its on the web, its known. So not of much use as such.

But gud to know -
How to create a secured and locked folder in Windows XP