[ale] Nvidia Geforce 2 on Dell Inspirion 8100 "Good News"

Dow Hurst dhurst at kennesaw.edu
Fri Mar 26 12:25:17 EST 2004


Whoa there!  A BIOS update fixed this?  Why would this matter?  Are the newer 
kernels and XFree86 using BIOS info by default to get video card info now? 
Could it be that disabling ACPI on boot would have fixed this without the BIOS 
update? Why wouldn't XFree query the video card directly?  This is something 
bothering me alot now since it seems that the support of older hardware is 
getting spotty.  My old Dell Latitude was best supported for video and sound 
under SuSE 7.1 and not SuSE 8.x-9.0.  Isn't that a step backwards?  Sorry to 
sound hotheaded but this issue is beginning to bug me since we preach that all 
you need is some old hardware to run Linux.  Or, that the old hardware will be 
useable longer, but actually that isn't the case like you'd think.
Dow


John Allgood wrote:
> Hello Ale Folk
>     
>     All my attempts to edit the config file were in vain. Last resort 
> BIOS Update. Guess what that fixed my problem. 1600x1200 @ 24bpp looks 
> great. Thats for all the input.
> 
> John Allgood - ESC
> Systems Administrator
> 
> 
> Mike Murphy wrote:
> 
>> Disclaimer: usually all of my attempts at editing XF86config end with 
>> me beating my head on my desk until I bleed, but....
>>
>> SubSection "Display"
>>     Depth     24
>>     Modes    "1400x1050" "1280x1024" "1280x960" "1152x864" "1024x768" 
>> "800x600" "640x480"
>> EndSubSection
>>
>> Looks like to me the biggest resolution that's defined in your config 
>> file is 1400x1050
>>
>> Also:
>>
>> Section "Monitor"
>>     Identifier   "Monitor0"
>>     ModelName    "Dell 1400x1050 Laptop Display Panel"
>>     HorizSync    31.5 - 90.0
>>     VertRefresh  59.0 - 75.0
>>     Option        "dpms"
>> EndSection
>>
>> Did it detect the right monitor. Some of what you describe may be 
>> because the HorizSync and VertRefresh values might be wrong. Don't 
>> tinker with those though (although, on an LCD I doubt you can actually 
>> damage anything that way). They should be listed in the technical 
>> specifications for your laptop somewhere.
>>
>> Kudzu or whatever made that config seems to think that your display is 
>> 1500x1050 "native". Is it? Does it run ok at that? Also, generally 
>> when I update or install a new release, I try to make sure I save a 
>> copy of this file, just in case (but see the first paragraph above). I 
>> don't suppose you still have your old one, do you?
>>
>> Mike
>>
>>
>>
>> John Allgood wrote:
>>
>>> When the laptop was running Redhat 7.3 I could achive anything up to 
>>> 1600x1200 running at 24bit color. Now I am running at 1280x1024 @ 
>>> 8bit. Eventhough my XFree86 Config says otherwise. If I use the 
>>> default "nv" driver I get the full resolution but not a full screen. 
>>> I also did a quick install of Suse and downloaded the nvidia driver 
>>> from their site still the same issue. I think the video card is too 
>>> old for the newer versions of XFree86 and Linux. This notebook is 
>>> nearly three years old. And in computer terms thats a lifetime. Here 
>>> is a copy of my XFree86 file.
>>>
>>> Dow Hurst wrote:
>>>
>>>> What did the card achieve with the older drivers?  It is probably a 
>>>> XF86Config syntax problem.  You want to post your file?
>>>>
>>>> John Allgood wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Hello Ale
>>>>>
>>>>>     I have been working all day trying to get the NVIDIA drivers to 
>>>>> work correctly on Fedora Core I. I have downloaded from the NVIDIA 
>>>>> site and installed the drivers not a single problem. I then 
>>>>> configured my XF86Config file to use the nvidia module. The problem 
>>>>> is that I can't get any color depth or resolution greater than 
>>>>> 1280x1024. I have tried to install older versions of the driver 
>>>>> same result. This driver worked great under Redhat 7.3. I even 
>>>>> tried to go back and install the drivers before NVIDIA came out 
>>>>> with the unified driver. I may drop back to Redhat 9.0 and see if I 
>>>>> get the same results. Anyone got any ideas.
>>>>>
>>>>> Thanks
>>>>>
>>>>> John Allgood - ESC
>>>>> Systems Administrator
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> Ale mailing list
>>>>> Ale at ale.org
>>>>> http://www.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>
>>> # XFree86 4 configuration created by redhat-config-xfree86
>>>
>>> Section "ServerLayout"
>>>     Identifier     "Default Layout"
>>>     Screen      0  "Screen0" 0 0
>>>     InputDevice    "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
>>>     InputDevice    "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
>>>     InputDevice    "DevInputMice" "AlwaysCore"
>>> EndSection
>>>
>>> Section "Files"
>>>
>>> # RgbPath is the location of the RGB database.  Note, this is the 
>>> name of the # file minus the extension (like ".txt" or ".db").  There 
>>> is normally
>>> # no need to change the default.
>>> # Multiple FontPath entries are allowed (they are concatenated together)
>>> # By default, Red Hat 6.0 and later now use a font server independent of
>>> # the X server to render fonts.
>>>     RgbPath      "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/rgb"
>>>     FontPath     "unix/:7100"
>>> EndSection
>>>
>>> Section "Module"
>>>     Load  "dbe"
>>>     Load  "extmod"
>>>     Load  "fbdevhw"
>>>     Load  "glx"
>>>     Load  "record"
>>>     Load  "freetype"
>>>     Load  "type1"
>>> #    Load  "dri"
>>> EndSection
>>>
>>> Section "InputDevice"
>>>
>>> # Specify which keyboard LEDs can be user-controlled (eg, with xset(1))
>>> #    Option    "Xleds"        "1 2 3"
>>> # To disable the XKEYBOARD extension, uncomment XkbDisable.
>>> #    Option    "XkbDisable"
>>> # To customise the XKB settings to suit your keyboard, modify the
>>> # lines below (which are the defaults).  For example, for a non-U.S.
>>> # keyboard, you will probably want to use:
>>> #    Option    "XkbModel"    "pc102"
>>> # If you have a US Microsoft Natural keyboard, you can use:
>>> #    Option    "XkbModel"    "microsoft"
>>> #
>>> # Then to change the language, change the Layout setting.
>>> # For example, a german layout can be obtained with:
>>> #    Option    "XkbLayout"    "de"
>>> # or:
>>> #    Option    "XkbLayout"    "de"
>>> #    Option    "XkbVariant"    "nodeadkeys"
>>> #
>>> # If you'd like to switch the positions of your capslock and
>>> # control keys, use:
>>> #    Option    "XkbOptions"    "ctrl:swapcaps"
>>> # Or if you just want both to be control, use:
>>> #    Option    "XkbOptions"    "ctrl:nocaps"
>>> #
>>>     Identifier  "Keyboard0"
>>>     Driver      "keyboard"
>>>     Option        "XkbRules" "xfree86"
>>>     Option        "XkbModel" "pc105"
>>>     Option        "XkbLayout" "us"
>>> EndSection
>>>
>>> Section "InputDevice"
>>>     Identifier  "Mouse0"
>>>     Driver      "mouse"
>>>     Option        "Protocol" "PS/2"
>>>     Option        "Device" "/dev/psaux"
>>>     Option        "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
>>>     Option        "Emulate3Buttons" "no"
>>> EndSection
>>>
>>> Section "InputDevice"
>>>
>>> # If the normal CorePointer mouse is not a USB mouse then
>>> # this input device can be used in AlwaysCore mode to let you
>>> # also use USB mice at the same time.
>>>     Identifier  "DevInputMice"
>>>     Driver      "mouse"
>>>     Option        "Protocol" "IMPS/2"
>>>     Option        "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
>>>     Option        "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
>>>     Option        "Emulate3Buttons" "no"
>>> EndSection
>>>
>>> Section "Monitor"
>>>     Identifier   "Monitor0"
>>>     VendorName   "Monitor Vendor"
>>>     ModelName    "Dell 1400x1050 Laptop Display Panel"
>>>     HorizSync    31.5 - 90.0
>>>     VertRefresh  59.0 - 75.0
>>>     Option        "dpms"
>>> EndSection
>>>
>>> Section "Device"
>>>     Identifier  "Videocard0"
>>>     Driver      "nvidia"
>>>     VendorName  "Videocard vendor"
>>>     BoardName   "nVidia GeForce 2 Go"
>>>     VideoRam    32768
>>> EndSection
>>>
>>> Section "Screen"
>>>     Identifier "Screen0"
>>>     Device     "Videocard0"
>>>     Monitor    "Monitor0"
>>>     DefaultDepth     24
>>>     SubSection "Display"
>>>         Depth     24
>>>         Modes    "1400x1050" "1280x1024" "1280x960" "1152x864" 
>>> "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
>>>     EndSubSection
>>> EndSection
>>>
>>> Section "DRI"
>>>     Group        0
>>>     Mode         0666
>>> EndSection
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Ale mailing list
>>> Ale at ale.org
>>> http://www.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Ale mailing list
>> Ale at ale.org
>> http://www.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
>>
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Ale mailing list
> Ale at ale.org
> http://www.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
> 

-- 
__________________________________________________________
Dow Hurst                  Office: 770-499-3428            *
Systems Support Specialist    Fax: 770-423-6744            *
1000 Chastain Rd. Bldg. 12                                 *
Chemistry Department SC428  Email:   dhurst at kennesaw.edu   *
Kennesaw State University         Dow.Hurst at mindspring.com *
Kennesaw, GA 30144                                         *
************************************************************
This message (including any attachments) contains          *
confidential information intended for a specific individual*
and purpose, and is protected by law.  If you are not the  *
intended recipient, you should delete this message and are *
hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution *
of this message, or the taking of any action based on it,  *
is strictly prohibited.                                    *
************************************************************



More information about the Ale mailing list