eliminating "noise"

Well I myself have only had experience with the Stomp Box style noise gates, and they tend to steal a fairly noticeable amount of sustain and can rob you of noticeable amounts of high end as well. I have heard much better things about the ISP Technologies Decimator Noise Reducer, while like all noise gates/noise reducers, reduces sustain and tone, does so less noticeably than say the Boss NS-2 and similar pedals. I Haven't tried out the Line 6 Variax, i always tend to find myself gravitation towards all the Jackson Dinkys and Soloists and Ibanez RG/S Series when i head into the guitar shops................

I record on a laptop as well, and I find you need to be at least 30cms away at the minimum,  and it's good to combine this preventative measure with the pickup angle idea suggested by MikeEnregalia.  Also remember that a good quality noise gate can be very effective, although the side effect of most noise gates is that they also reduce sustain of guitar notes. And if you haven't already, take a look at what single coil size humbucking pickups are available aftermarket. Some people feel they offer lesser tone, although many people are willing to sacrifice a bit of tone for significantly reduced 60Hz hum, but I myself prefer singlecoil sized humbuckers anyway, because they sound less edgy and generally somewhat smoother in frequency response, but that's my personal perference and I prefer the most modern tone possible, as well as practicality, rather than vintage purist tone. I myself lean towards Seymour Duncans, but of course Fender offer their Samarium Cobalt noiseless pickups, available aftermarket, which have significantly less hum than normal single coils, with a smoother frequency response.