Yes you very well can.
I would recommend a laptop, primarily because it offers a few more features over a netbook such as a cd drive. A netbook limits you to the use of jump drives and if you need to access a cd well you're simply out of luck.
Windows XP shouldn't have any problem on both a laptop or netbook.
They are both good. It will depend on your personal need whether you want a laptop or smaller netbook. A netbook will not have a DVD drive and will have less memory storage than a laptop but is more portable.
The netbook and laptop cases vary in size because a netbook is significantly smaller than a laptop. You should definitely check which one your friend has to ensure you get one that is going to fit the size of their computer.
The greatest difference is that a netbook or tablet are made for internet use only. The laptop notebook will also be able to have Office or other useful software as well as a hard drive for storage.
A netbook is a version of a laptop computer. It is smaller than a notebook, sometimes called a regular laptop and is generally less powerful and less expensive.
Notebook, Ultrabook, Netbook.....
A Netbook is simply a smaller version of a laptop, but has less memory. Although it is very easy to carry and is portable to have, Netbooks have lesser GBs.
A netbook because if you have a budget of $300, then you're gonna be really lucky to find a decent laptop...
A netbook is a small laptop that's more portable but slower, a notebook is usually the same as a laptop but used to mean a smaller unit. Laptops are usually the largest of the three classes.
i think you should pay about $500 for a decent laptop or netbook
two or three pounds depending on if its a netbook or laptop