and while youre at it get me a pony and a red rider BB gun. I got a perfectly usable laptop from the local E-cycle place. its a computer equipment recycler, and they usually got a bunch of last-generation hardware. i dropped off a few monitors and made a deal with the guy there that i could have a vaio if i pulled the hard drive and left it there. It works perfectly well, except the battery holds no charge, it's no longer a portable laptop, its a lightweight desktop i can bring anywhere in the house.

Hello,  Perhaps people within the community can recommend a laptop if you post what you need in your laptop and what your price range is.  Asus has a nice ultra mobil laptop for about $400 US called the Eee PC.  It was reviewed on Linux Journal if you follow this link http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/9947

Dell sells laptops with Ubuntu preloaded; see their webpage. Also try this great webpage: www.linuxcertified.com. They have several models and prices to suit your needs