The definition of a laptop is a small portable computer - small enough it can fit in your lap. Laptops are nifty little inventions created with many of the same setting of a desktop, but in a smaller and lighter package. It is easily folded and carried around and is also known as a notebook or portable PC. As the level of our technology increases, the size of laptops generally decreases.

Laptops are used to accomplish many different things in many different fields of business. In the ENTERTAINMENT category, say you are on a long flight as a part of a business trip. The CD-ROM drives can be used for listening to your own 's or playing a favorite movie when you disagree with the one already being played. This will definitely benefit to the enjoyment of the ride and it can also be used for accomplishing a few more tasks for your business in the spare time you are spending in the plane, train, car, etc.

LAW ENFORCEMENT uses laptops for accessibility through the police force. Laptops can cut down time on filing incident reports and also be in some assistance to pulling up records and warrants that would aide in an arrest at the scene of the crime. It only takes seconds for a victim to escape. Those seconds are usually spent when the officer goes back to his or her car to contact the police station for files and reports. Firemen could probably also contain GPS software that leads them to unknown areas, just like it would be used in navigation.

AMETUER ASTRONOMERS use laptops for their portability. They also use laptops to zoom in on individual things in space. They do this through a CCD camera in a telescope. This is easily processed to and viewed through a laptop. I can only imagine how much help this has been to our space station in being able to view a greater number of objects in space.

Laptops are used for precision in NAVIGATION. On small boats, large charting systems just can't fit. Laptops installed with GPS (global positioning satellite) help the sailors to know their pinpointed location. On long trips, laptops can also double as a source of time and date. Laptops could probably be used to contact someone in an emergency if the radio were somehow to go out, for the laptop can have a phone with the installment of the right software.

Laptops also answer a lot of EDUCATIONAL needs. Professors use laptops to present their slides and lectures. Note taking is another thing. If a student is in some way impaired, a laptop can be used to their benefit in school for notes. Laboratories have a good reason too. Laptops are used to gather data from experiments and scientific and PDA's can be hooked up for taking temperature or Ph level measurements. Here's something to think about; many colleges now even require for their freshmen to purchase laptops for their classes.

The field of BUSINESS has the highest demand for laptops by far. Multimedia presentations are always useful for company presentations and laptops create ease for the user. The laptop really benefits sales, as an example. Salespersons use laptops to process orders, as well as access and present company information on the sales product. Laptops can also be used for obtaining a company's data, as in profit and such. It can also be a great form of communication when a business member takes a company trip. E-mail on the go is a definite ease.

The Anatomy of a Laptop

The anatomy of a laptop seems complicated, but it is actually relatively easy to understand. Lets start with the brain of the laptop, the microprocessor. It controls all of the laptop's functions according to the laptop’s operating system. The operating system is what we first see when our laptops come on and when it goes off. It organizes and controls all the hardware. Now, we have certain input devices that feed into the microprocessor. These could be any of a mouse, a trackball, a touch pad, or a keyboard. Then we have data storage devices that can be CDs, DVDs, the hard drive, floppy disks, or Zip disks. There are also two sources of power that are able to feed the laptop and they are either batteries or AC adaptors. Somehow, he information inside the laptop must be displayed. This is where the LCD display and the monitor come in handy. Displays usually run from 12 to 17 inches, can be passive or active matrix (active is clearer), and can be reflective or backlit. Also, we have a couple of memory devices that would be called RAM (random access memory) and ROM (read only memory). As a side note, the RAM of a laptop should be 64 MB or greater to meet all of the users performance needs. Finally, an input/output port is another piece that feeds the microprocessor. A diagram of this anatomy can be found on the right.  ->

This diagram of a laptop's anatomy came from "HowStuffWorks.com". All credit goes to them.