Hello, I recently purchased a laptop. It's a Sony Vaio VGN-FS920. The battery lasts about 2.5 hours watching xVID movies on VLC. Anyways, the questions. What do I want to look out for with problems with a laptop? Do I want to have the battery in when i'm on AC power for a few days straight?

>> What do I want to look out for with problems with a laptop? << Anything that stops it from doing what it is meant to do. >> Do I want to have the battery in when I'm on AC power for a few days straight? << I have no idea what you want to do! You can take the battery out if you wish but there is nothing to be achieved by doing so except that you might lose it. Keeping it in ensures that it is fully charged for when you might need it. Stuart

Be gentle plugging and unplugging the AC power cord. We see lots of complaints about laptops with loose/broken AC sockets. Do yourself a favor BACKUP! Sorry, I do not check for private messages

I'd say that's THE most common problem with laptops, the power connector. It sounds like your concerned with potentioally over-charging your battery. Don't be, that won't happen. Newer bateries can be charged, left on to charged, partially drained... it doesn't matter, unlike older Ni-Cad batteries that had a "memory" in them that would cause problems. Yours is most likely Lithium. Get some compressed air (like Dust-Off) and keep it clean, the keyboard and vents especially, that will help prolong the life of your laptop. ~~Dylan

From the Doh! school of things to avoid with your laptop: Coffee. Sharp drops. Sounds funny, but you wouldn't believe the number of notebooks I've seen that have been killed by beverages or being dropped. "If it ain't broke, upgrade anyway."