Hewlett-Packard Corporation (NYSE: HPQ) followed its latest bad quarterly results with a prediction for a faltering 2009. According to CEO Mark Hurd, the world's largest computer maker will see many more quarters that ended up like its most recent one.

Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) probably had a blockbuster quarter at the end of 2007, according to research firm iSuppli. This is the firm that tears products apart to arrive at a cost of materials and digs into mounds of data to make sales projections on companies before they release official information. ISuppli is estimating that the world's largest PC maker increased shipments in the final quarter of 2007 to 14.6 million units from 11.6 million units, 25% above their 2006 year-end figure,

If that figure is accurate, then it just continues HP's remarkable comeback in the last 24 months under buttoned-down and get-it-done CEO Mark Hurd. Things were rosy for competitor Dell, Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) as well in 2007's final quarter, with iSuppli stating the the Texas-based PC maker having increased shipments 17% from 2006's final quarter to 11.3 million units. And don't count Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) out as well, as the smaller PC maker increased shipments a whopping 39% in the last quarter of 2007 according to iSuppli. Apple has increased its PC shipments in excellent ways with excellent products -- but globally it's still in sixth place.

The story here is HP -- its immense presence in consumer retail was timed either perfectly or by design to capitalize on the thirst for laptop PCs from that segment -- something that caught Dell completely off-guard in both areas (consumer laptop demand and retail availability). In 2008, HP's mammoth footprint in the computer business is not expected to slow down, something that Dell desperately wishes would happen. So far, there is little to no chance of that happening.

Hewlett Packard (NYSE: HPQ) announced this morning that it would be purchasing NUR Macroprinters, an Israeli-based maker of inkjet printers, for $117.5 million. As HP marches straightforward into bolstering its hardware assets, this one should make a very good acquisition for the world's largest PC manufacturer.

The terms of the deal specify that $14.5 million of the purchase price would be held in an indemnity escrow account as well -- that's standard practice in some mergers. No surprise there. HP wants NUR to be folded into its large-format hardware printing business, for which it has a strong slice of market share.

While other companies seem to be making less in hardware, save for Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), HP is doing the opposite. It's making money in the PC business (a feat in itself) and in the other hardware businesses it operates in. Not be left behind, HP is making major headway in the software intelligence business as well thanks to Mercury Interactive.

When Dell (NASDAQ: DELL) reported Q3 numbers last week, the market was underwhelmed by the computer maker's results. Dell, in the midst of staging a comeback under founder and CEO Michael Dell, missed earnings by a penny. Although this was the first solid quarter of honest-to-goodness results after a string of quarterly "preliminary" results due to an accounting scandal, the market didn't let up. Missing estimates by even a penny can be disastrous in the short term.

Well, larger competitor Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) continues to add to that misery, as research firm iSuppli recently stated that the Palo Alto, Calif., company increased its market share over rival Dell in the third quarter of the calendar year. Adding insult to injury, Taiwanese computer maker Acer stole the number two spot in laptop sales away from Dell in the Q3 period as well, after completing its acquisition of the Gateway brand in the same quarter.

According to iSuppli, Hewlett-Packard took home 19.2% of all computer shipments in the third quarter, widening its lead against Dell's 14.6% share. In 2006's Q3 period, the difference was 16.5% for HP compared to 16.3% for Dell. My, what one year can do. Dell, ever one to control internal costs, let that one area get out of hand in its Q3 period and that dented its profit even as revenues grew. With laptop PCs continuing to grow way faster in unit shipments than desktop PCs, and with a resurgent Acer not giving an inch, it's going to be one large, uphill battle for Dell from here on.

Hewlett-Packard Corp. (NYSE: HPQ) has opened up its checkbook once again. This time, the world's largest tech company by sales announced that it will be buying EYP Mission Critical Facilities Inc. That company, which provides data center consulting services, will become a division of HP for an undisclosed sum, according to sources.

Is this a move to compete more headily with tech giant IBM Corp. (NYSE: IBM)? It could certainly be seen that way. HP's growing presence in providing data center services and contract consulting is the core of IBM's business model these days, now that the latter is out of the hardware business.

EYP provides design, technology planning and support for large data centers -- the kind that runs a large U.S. bank, credit card operation or manufacturing business. This is right in IBM's territory, and the move should put HP in a more competitive position to challenge IBM as a premier provider of computing services consulting. Does HP's Mark Hurd want to grow the company he leads into the biggest computing hardware and services manufacturing company the world has ever seen? In a word, yes.