On Mon, 3 Nov 2003 17:48:01 -0500 (EST), "Mike A. Harris"
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

>Agreed.  I think he is of the belief perhaps that an X driver 
>module is perhaps like an SVGAlib API you can use in arbitrary 
>programs perhaps including kernelspace, which of course isn't 
>true.

NO, I was not thinking of that. I was rather thinking to take a look on how
the mode is exactly set so I can copy this to the kernel module. Of course not
verbatim as this wouldn't work since it is user space code. I never intended
to use the user space code from the kernel. What I wanted to know is, on how
to read the current state so that I can save that information, do whatever I
need to do, and then restore the original state so that the application
executaion can resume without problems.

>That's of course all true... I think he just totally 
>misunderstands XFree86 and it's driver architecture in general.  

Might be. :) But that is because I had to download a kernel module and the
OpenGL stuff from the nVidia web site. I think most of that is needed in order
to use 3D acceleration, but I was not sure what else is in there.

>Perhaps knowing that the majority of drivers don't even have a 
>kernel module at all period is a clearer indicator that XFree86 
>and it's userland video driver modules do _everything_ WRT 
>setting video modes, and configuring the hardware to blast 
>pixels.

It can't do everything. When I run Enemy territory it switches to OpenGL 3D
mode. This can obviously not done from within XFree86, because if that would
be the case, I wouldn't have needed to download that kernel module and the
libraries. 

>Indeed.  I think the key part of your message, and I'm in 
>complete concurrence with you, is "read the source Luke".  ;o)

I will do that. Now with your all help I know at least where I can start
reading. :)

>xc/programs/Xserver/hw/xfree86/drivers

Thanks.

>The source of the Nvidia proprietary drivers is in:
>
>/dev/null

Actually the open sourced part is in 
/root/src/NVIDIA_kernel-1.0-4191
along with the closed module nvidia.o downloaded from 
ftp://download.nvidia.com/XFree86/Linux-x86/1.0-4496

So it seems there IS a kernel module to accompany XFree86. :)

-- 
Gerhard Gruber

F�r jedes menschliche Problem gibt es immer eine einfache L�sung:
Klar, einleuchtend und falsch. (Henry Louis Mencken)

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