Yes you can have vary degrees of sucess by doing the following (disabling desktop composition and visual themes can work some magic also).
To get a program or
driver to install if the
driver or program was written for an earlier OS eg vista or XP, and wont install - do the following below. Once its installed you can have another go at it by changing the settings above, and others:
To install a
driver OR program in compatibility mode - right click the setup.exe file - click properties - click compatibility - check run in compatibility with vista/xp etc - check run as administrator - leave the rest blank. Start setup.exe and instal
To run the program in compatibility mode right click any shortcut to the program, or find the exe program in program files, and do as above and start the program.
If you need help type "how to run a program in compatibility mode" in the help & support search.
For virtual xp mode you need a processor that supports VT (Virtual Technology), and then you enable it in the bios -
http://www.guru3d.com/news/intel-cpu...ws-7-xp-mode-/
In my bios it can be found in the advanced menu - cpu configuration - Vanderpool technology -this is the VT, and can be enabled here.
Then you download and install - to find out more - I know you said your motherboard didnt support it, but its the cpu, and whether you can enable VT in the bios, of course you may have meant that, but incase you got it wrong, or would like more details go here.
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc/