at the end of the summer my parents are going to be buying me a new computer(yes, i know i'm lucky

) and i was wondering what some of you guy's opinions were. I'm leaning towards a laptop as i will be a sophomore in college, and the compactness and flexibility of a notebook will be great. Basically, the computer needs to be a multi-tasking machine, at any given point i normally have open: outlook, AIM(with a few IM's), microsoft word, WinAMP, a music downloading program, weatherbug(i like to know how hot/cold it is outside), an antivirus program, and at least one window of internet explorer open. I know most of the newer computers can do this without too much of a problem(at least my friend's can). What laptop do you guys think offers the most bang for your buck? All thoughts appreciated, and if you think a desktop is better let me know that too! thanks guys,
Ryan