Correct way to orient laminate flooring planks?
"Running down the long axis of the hallway" is just a specific case of "running along the long axis of the room".  I think this is very important, especially in a hallway.

In your case, I would do both.  Lay the living room and dining room planks north-south, along the long axis, in one continuous piece.  Then, put in a transition at the hallway and run the hallway boards east-west.  Even though the transition isn't ideal, I think it will be much better than having either the front rooms or the hall seeming "compressed".

Then, at the bedrooms, you could revert back to the living/dining room orientation.  This would have the effect of the hallway being "different", pulling all the similar rooms together.

In fact, if you're feeling inspired, you may even choose to use a different wood color for the hallway.  Your mileage may vary :) 

One thing to be aware of is that a house usually isn't square.  If you have any features with parallel lines, such a tile hearth, make sure that these areas are lined up precisely with the laminate planks.  The eye will easily pick out any problems there.  On the other hand, you won't even notice if you have to taper by an inch or so over the length of a room.