Yeah, I think it is dying. I had used desktops from 1990-2004. Then I went to notebooks ever since (iBook G4 -> MacBook Core 2 Duo -> unibody MacBook Pro).

My wife went iBook G4 -> iMac Core 2 Duo. Lately she's been saying how much she misses being portable.

I think Apple is also shifting toward most users going portable. Case in point: the 24-inch LED Cinema Display. You can use it with a desktop Mac, but with the MagSafe power cable on it, it is unarguably designed for use with the MacBook family. And that there is the best of both worlds. Portable when you need it to be, but can have a desktop experince with an external display.

I don't think the desktop will ever die. I have an Alienware Laptop that overheats and crashes every day, but my desktop never does that. I've never had problems with a desktop that I have had with a laptop.

I'd have to agree with Greywulf... The various laptops I've had have crashed way more frequently than my desktops. There is a place in my house and work for both. However, when I really need to crunch code (compiling, rendering, etc), a laptop just can't handle it nearly as well as a desktop can.

However, netbooks and laptops have a significant appeal to most users as they aren't doing processor or disk intensive activities. The ability to "go mobile" and not lose any functionality (that they don't use) is what has been and will continue to move people to mobile devices instead of desktops. However, there will always be a power-hungry folk out there needing features that mobile devices just can't deliver in the near future.