Just got a new laptop - Few problems

I’m really happy with this thing, but I’ve got a few questions.

First off, its on Media Center XP, so someone told me that the bottom bar is a little higher than XP, as a result icons become slightly distorted and pixelated. How do I fix this?

Second, is it a problem for a laptop if i keep it on my lap and type? It sort of moves around a fair bit while typing, will this affect it? Or should I always have it on a hard surface…?