Bit perfect digital output from pc

I'm hoping someone can help me grasp the difficulty in getting a 44.1KHz signal from my pc to dac. I'm putting together my first 2 channel HT/audio pc.

Reading this forum, I gather you firstly need a sound card that will output 44.1KHz without first resampling to 48KHz. Any recommendations?

Secondly, it appears Windows will not in fact allow a 44.1KHz output. Can someone explain why this is? Is this something that will be corrected in Vista? Are Macs similarly handicapped?

Thirdly, there seems to be some very complicated ways of bypassing whatever it is in Windows that prevents the 44.1KHz signal using ASIO or kernel streaming. Can someone please explain what these are and how to use them?

Lastly, it seems you need a software player capable of a 44.1KHz signal - I see Winamp mentioned a lot. Will Windows Media Player not do the job? Any other software recommendations?

Thanks for your help. I just want my computer to output a standard cd signal and I really don't understand why it should be this complicated.