Almost exclusively. For whatever reason I shifted into playing female characters at some point after Mass Effect 3. If I can create a character who choose who to play then I almost exclusively choose the female option.
A gaming laptop if you've any interest in gaming with it. If you catch a sale it's not too hard to find something with decent performance for a reasonable price.
Do it. I'm of the mind that all the old fogies still cluttering up development should be nudged into retirement. I'd love to see Zelda move on without corporate and managerial mandates saying it has to adhere to a particular gameplay and narrative formula.
I'm pretty sure the solution to each puzzle is highlights on the wall of the opposite shrine. There's a second shine on the mountain that offers the solution it the first, while the first contains the solution for the second.
I recommend taking a screenshot.
The only thing I tend to keep in mind is how consistently incompetent the monarchy is. They're typically portrayed as idiots with no foresight, no record-keeping, and whose military forces crumble at the drop of a hat.