the problem with laptops is its 100% dependant on what type of laptop you have ?
Intel Pent 4 ? if so what chipset ?
AMD64 ? if so what chipset.
frankly there is 1 and only one program that i am aware of that can overclock laptops on the fly. its called Clockgen
http://www.cpuid.org/clockgen.php
Its a windows app but you may be able to use it with a windows emulator in linux i have no idea though. you MUST get the version that applies to your chipset. they also have one that works for the Intel 875P version which not everyone knows about.
now as for temperature monitoring. i would be curious about this also as im a stickler for temps on my 3500+ amd64 system. but linux has nothing like that. which isnt surprising. and im also running the 64bit Suse 9.2 which makes it worse.
the temp program you will want is called Speedfan, or Motherboard Monitor.
both can be found via Google. i recommend Speedfan but if it dont work with your laptop then see if Motherboard Monitor 5 will.
Lastly overclocking a laptop is not usually a good idea, and you will only be able to do this with a Pent 4 socket 478 or higher or AMD64 socket 754 chip. no other laptop ou ther can be overclocked via software that i am aware of.
your going to run into some SEVERE heat issues not to mention the fact that the power consumption can be staggering , but if your plugged in i wouldnt worry, just worry about heat.
Clockgen has the ability to write a file that can be started everytime you start the program inside windows. then your settings can be started without you doing anything.
but so far as im aware there are no such linux overclocking programs for either a desktop or laptop.