Michael Hannon wrote:
Greetings. We just installed Scientific Linux 5.0 on a Dell Optiplex
745 belonging to one of the professors here. On the whole, the system
works just fine, but we've got one small, annoying glitch with the
video, and I'm seeking advice about it. Note that we've installed the
32-bit version of SL, on the theory that there would be better drivers,
etc., for this version (and this is the prof's desktop system, not a
number cruncher).
The monitor for this system is a Dell 2407WFP, with a preferred
resolution of [EMAIL PROTECTED] We're using the DVI interface to the
monitor.
The graphics adapter is identified as follows by "lspci":
01:00.1 Display controller: ATI Technologies Inc Unknown device 71a3
Subsystem: Dell Unknown device 0d03
Flags: bus master, fast devsel, latency 0
Memory at dfdf0000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=64K]
Capabilities: [50] Power Management version 2
Capabilities: [58] Express Endpoint IRQ 0
We've downloaded what appears to be latest version of the ATI driver
(ati-driver-installer-8.37.6-x86.x86_64.run) and have used the included
aticonfig utility to help configure X-windows. Note that the ATI web
site has two choices for linux:
Linux x86
Linux x86_64
So far as I can tell, both choices lead to the same installer file,
marked as "...x86_64...".
Looks like an invitation to install the 64-bit version.
By the way, the ATI software identifies the graphics adapter as:
Radeon X1300/X1550 Series
The difficulty is that X-windows insists on running the display at a
resolution of:
1600x1200
This makes for a perfectly clear display, IMHO, but it does give
characters and images the wrong aspect ratio: everything looks a little
too short and a little too wide.
We opened a help ticket with ATI support and received the following
non-response:
>The Linux drivers available from ATI are provide are "as is".
>You may be able to get further assistance from the Linux community...
(All your video are belong to us.)
We've tried just cramming "1920x1200" into the mode line in xorg.conf,
but that is either ignored or causes the video subsystem to "hang",
depending on the detailed circumstances.
If you have any suggestions, please pass 'em along. Thanks.
There's an AMD chap hangs out on the Nahant (RHEL4) list. I don't know
whether he's on the RHEL5 list too.
I suppose one could ask for experiences on one or both of those lists
and hope he bites.
RHEL is very important to AMD (they use lots of licences of it) and I
speculate they'd be interested in having it work well with ATI graphics,
not that AMD has bought ATI.
I personally don't often buy new kit; by the time it's od enough to come
my way, those issues are properly sorted out:-)
One thing I didn't notice you mentioned: why are the standard Linux
drivers inadequate?
--
Cheers
John
-- spambait
[EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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