SAN FRANCISCO -- Buoyed by demand for Windows 7, PC shipments are forecast to grow 10% next year, touching off a three-year run of double-digit growth.

The new Microsoft operating system, which debuted this quarter, has taken off, assuming four of the top five spots on Amazon's list of bestselling software, and two of of the top five spots at Best Buy.  

Notebook PC sales will grow 15 to 17% per annum during the next three years, a Deutsche Bank analyst said today.

Netbooks will rise 27%, 31% and 18% during the same period, wrote Chris Whitmote of Deutsche Bank Equity Research in a research note.

Desktop growth will be flat to slightly higher, ranging from zero to three percent growth during the forecast period, DB said.