Programming does not take a good video card so far as I know, only a good processor and a nice chunk of RAM, however I could be incorrect on this.
I suggest HP, they generally have good quality and you can get one of their Pavilions will the following info on it for a nice price:
HP Pavilion dv5000t customizable Notebook PC
EX203AV
* – FREE Upgrade to Genuine Windows XP Media Center
* – Intel(R) Core(TM) Duo processor T2050 (1.60 GHz)
* – FREE Upgrade to 15.4" WXGA BrightView Widescreen!
* – 128MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7400
* – FREE Upgrade to 1.0GB DDR2 SDRAM (2x512MB)!!
* – 80 GB 5400 RPM SATA Hard Drive
* – FREE Upgrade: 8X DVD+/-R/RW w/Double Layer Support
* – Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network w/Bluetooth
* – No TV Tuner w/remote control
* – 12 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
* – Microsoft(R) Works/Money
* – Genuine Windows XP Media Center Edition Backup CD
* – HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope
total price is $1008.99 with a 50 dollar mail in rebate, this laptop seems perfect for college (for me at least) since it has a decent video card that can actually play some games, good RAM, killer CPU, and is not to pricey, but I may wait a month for the C2D mobile to come out and drop the price more.
I may drop it to XP Home so I do not have to monkey with the Media Center crap.