I've always wondered what the real difference is between a laptop, notebook, and a regular desktop PC. Are they/can they all capable of the same things? It depends on what hardware they have?

I'd say that the laptop/notebook is good for convenience, you can carry it around if you want to but it usually costs a lot to have great hardware.
Desktop beats the laptop in price/performance, you can have a desktop for $1000 and if you want comparable hardware for the laptop, it would cost twice as much. Also note that it is way easier to swap hardware on a desktop than on a laptop. You would have to buy a new laptop if you want to upgrade something (only thing I can think of that you can easily upgrade on a laptop is the RAM, and maybe the hard drive)
Here's some links to read...
Laptop vs Laptop vs Handheld
College Computer Buying Guide

Kamille

EDIT: Notebook is another word for a laptop.

This post has been edited by kamille316: May 8 2008, 09:36 AM