Ask Slashdot:Unix Laptops

This question came from the one and only Jamie Zawinski. Simply put, jwz wants to know what would make a good Unix laptop these days- let's face it, its hard. It took me a long time to make mine behave nicely under Linux (and APM and Sound is still flaky). Anyway, I've posted his full message after the link.

The following is a question written in by Slashdot reader Jamie Zawinski

I want to get a laptop running Unix and X. What should I get?

My requirements are, in order:

1. good keyboard (do laptops have ergonomic keyboards?)
2. good display (1024 or better)
3. good pointing device (no touchpads)
4. long battery life
5. lightweight
6. fast
7. cheap

Ok, I know I can't have #7, so just strike that. #1-3 are the ones I care about most.

My goal is, basically, to be able to go and sit in a cafe and deal with vast quantities of email (answering, filing, deleting, searching) and occasionally consulting web pages or other online resources.

Are Ricochet modems winners?

Is the Compaq Armada 7800 a good choice? (Looks nice, but I've heard bad things about Compaq and Unix...)

Is a PowerBook G3 running MkLinux a sensible thing?