there are only a handfull of laptop manufacturers out there. I like asus units, I would recomment middleweight, about 5-6 pounds, lots of ram (2gb), fast 7200 rpm hard drive 80-100gb size. as highpowered as possible videocard.
If you like laptops based on ASUS bodies, you might also look into PortableOne. Their "house brand" laptops are customized ASUS machines that are well reviewed . . .
Mike
