Best practices to keep your ubuntu desktop and laptop in sync?

OK. What you need is two separate features. I only know a lot about one, but I will do my best to give you the background to the other.

I have 8 computers in my house, and keeping all my files on all of them is a necessity. Unfortunately, I also have about 25 GB of files to sync, so I couldn't use any on-line storage site - they don't give you enough space (except for copy.com - you can sign up for 2 free accounts, and share the data between them. It will be half on one, half on the other, so if you share everything you have 30 GB of space. Whether or not this is allowed, I don't know. It also means that your data is twice as likely to be hacked into.) Anyway, another solution which doesn't require your files being stored on-line is Bit torrent Sync. This requires a program to be installed on both computers (it's available for free on Windows, Mac OS X and Linux). You then enter a secure address (which it generates) and it syncs your files across - either via your LAN or the internet, and their servers. You could also sync the folders with the program files in them, but that could cause instability. In the ubuntu software centre, you can sync installed programs to another computer. Click on

File -> Sync Between Computers

You then sign up for an Ubuntu Software Centre account (which may be the same as an Ubuntu 1 account). On the second computer, you sign in to this account in the same way,

File -> Sync Between Computers

but then click 'I already have an account'

look at this How-To Geek article for more information.