MBP optical drive: how long to replace it?

My 2007 MBP has been with Applecare for 3 weeks. i was told it could be 7 days - 3 weeks tops. The optical drive (mashita) was not accepting CDs/DVDs. It's the 2nd faulty optical drive in the same machine; the first one went within a week of having bought the MBP. I rang Applecare who can't trace where the machine is in the system. How long does this repair normally take? They are going to charge me £47 for related software too, despite the fault being raised in May while the machine was under warranty. I am having to work on a netbook instead while I wait - not so great.

It has also had a chronic overheating problem dating back months. Applecare removed my Flash plug in (amid much ranting about how lousy Flash is) and told me the MBP is not a 'laptop' so if I use it on my lap, I'll burn myself It managed just fine until recently.....

I was told by a friend who has used mac all his working life to quit all apps, not just close them and only run one at a time. This helped some. It shouldn't be necessary though and is inconvenient. He also had me install click2flash which works fine.

I am a relative newbie and so any advice on either issue much appreciated. I am assuming that my MBP will be returned to me relatively soon, but I wish Apple would use another manufacturer for optical drives

Today's notebooks are not "laptops", and yes, your MBP when used on your lap can get very hot. That's because the air flow is restricted causing the machine to possibly overheat and shut down.

As far as how long it takes to do a repair, that's something you need to take up with your local Apple dealer or store. Since your machine is three years old, they may be having difficulty locating an exact replacement drive.

Unfortunately, optical drives used in notebook computers (PC and Mac) have a different form factor than those used in desktops. Slimmer and more compact is great for a notebook computer but usually break down faster. I've seen optical drive problems in Dell, Toshiba, Sony, as well as Apple. Also remember that Apple employs slot loading drives versus tray loading for PCs.

Regards.