I've been told conflicting information. Do I plug it in whenever possible and only rely on the battery when I have to...OR...Do I treat it like a cel phone, let the battery run out and plug it in only to charge? Both sound reasonable to me. I'm new to my laptop and don't want to ruin the battery by following bad advice.
I've had my HP DV7 plugged in since day one 3 years ago. Battery 100% as of right now. The DV7 is an Intel Q9000 Quad Core laptop but in the desktop replacement class. I use it about 6 hours daily when I'm not running my i7 2700K main rig......
My personal advice to you is to NOT follow the advice posted from TechRepublic. Cycling the battery to 0 will degrade it fast. I had an Asus laptop which lasted for 4 years and the battery degradation was 12%, it has now been passed on to my Dad. The secret is to stay off the battery for as much as possible but when you use it ensure it goes below 50% but never past 10%.