Keyboard layouts (Score 1)

Whats up with the obscure keyboards lately (those Dell laptops being an example)? Recently I find it difficult to find a laptop or keyboard with the keys placed on it the way i've used to. Often keys like the ones for <|> or underscore (estonian layout) might be absent or misplaced in some weird location (e.g. on top of or right of the return key). I once even had to buy a new keyboard, because my shell uses <, | and > for redirection.

Can anybody shed some light on this issue? Thanks.