Some follow-up on my issues with the Dell Optiplex 745. I've sorted out my issues with the console going blank.
The Intel 82Q963/Q965 Integrated Graphics Controller uses the i915 linux graphics drivers, and implements drm (Direct Rendering Manager). This driver requires KMS (kernel mode setting) to work correctly. I can't say my Googling made things completely clear, but apparently the mode switching is done when udev starts, so you'll see something in your dmesg log like: [ 10.009827] [drm] initialized overlay support [ 10.136437] fbcon: inteldrmfb (fb0) is primary device [ 10.268616] Console: switching to colour frame buffer device 533x160 [ 10.311631] fb0: inteldrmfb frame buffer device This affects both your console mode as well as your X capabilities. Apparently, there is no way to just leave your console alone, and still get the drm-enabled i915 X display. Several people suggested using the 'nomodeset' or 'i915.modeset=0' kernel boot commands. While this fixed my console issue, it broke X. The solution that worked for me was to use 'video=640x480' in my kernel boot line. I was also able to use 800x600 and 1024x768 (I've left it at 1024x768 for now). Other suggested solutions that didn't work for me included 'acpi_osi=Linux' and 'video=SVIDEO-1:d' kernel boot parameters. Although I might try the 'video=SVIDEO-1:d' if I have issues on my netbook. Unfortunately, this did not fix my issues with resolution under the LiveUSB session. But at least now if I break X, I won't be left with nothing. I also solved my problem with CPU frequency scaling. I did not realize that Enhanced Speedstep had to be enabled in the BIOS. After enabling Enhanced Speedstep, I was able to get some results using the acpi-cpufreq module.
