I'm in the process of shopping for a new computer which I'm hoping to purchase in the fall. I'm not very technical and I have a few questions that I'm sure some of you have some opinions on.

1. Besides price and size, what are the pros and cons (if any) of Laptop vs. Desktop? I'm not likely to taking my computer out of the house, but I also work from home. Our home desktop takes up 1/4 of the desk space. It would be nice to be able to get the home computer off the desk to clear the space to work. Since I travel for work, my firm supplies a laptop for work purposes. Are there any reasons why I shouldn't consider a laptop for home use?

2. How much memory should I have for basic home use (internet, microsoft office, burning disks, editing photos)? I see computers advertised with anywhere from 40 to 200GB. How much do I really need?

3. Do I need to spend the extra money for a Pentium processor or would a cheaper processer suit my basic needs?

If I go the desktop route, I've been eyeing a nice Compaq box. It has the USB and Firewire ports on the front which means that I don't have to crawl behind my desk to the back of the box to change components. A very nice feature!

Any help you geeks can provide would be appreciated.