I'm thinking about getting a new laptop from Dell with computrace on it. I'm just trying to figure out how secure it is. What if someone reformats and installs some type of linux or another operating system, can the laptop still be traced? Thanks

Check this out...

http://labnol.blogspot.com/2005/12/prevent-notebook-theft-track-stolen.html

I think it is a good idea to follow some of the notebook security ideas mentioned