I'm sure someone has a ready answer for this. I purchased a laptop about 3 years ago when in hindsight, I was better suited for a desk top (and could have saved about 50% on the cost). In fact I am essentially using it as a desktop at this point, and that is where my question comes up. Since I rarely have to move it around, it is plugged in (ac/dc power) almost always. Rarely do I need it to run on battery. Therefore, it is always fully charged. Is this a problem now or will it be one in the future? I've had 2 different friends in high IT places who have provided opposite answers. FWIW, it is a Dell Inspiron 8200.

Possibly, Dell would be a source of good information.
http://support.dell.com/

I have trouble operating an abacus, so I'd have to ask one of my kids...

yes, you will have trouble. You need to run the laptop on battery periodically and run it down.

If you don't do this, the battery will go dead on you when you least expect it. I know this from personal experience.