Xfree configuration

Karl Hergenrother imagelab at ziplink.net
Thu Sep 17 17:58:54 EDT 1998


-----Original Message-----
From: Mike Bilow <mikebw at bilow.bilow.uu.ids.net>
To: discuss at blu.org <discuss at blu.org>
Date: Thursday, September 17, 1998 9:32 AM
Subject: Xfree configuration


>
>Your first problem is that there are two completely different chipsets
known as
>the "ET4000."  I don't know why Tseng Labs did this, but I have personally
run
>across both kinds and I can assure you that they are totally different.
>
>In any case, it is usually the cheaper ET4000 that you see used in
connection
>with only 1 MB video memory.  This is sometimes called the "ET4000/AX,"
>although I don't know what the "AX" suffix means, if anything.  The proper
>XFree86 driver for this chipset is the standard SVGA driver, which works
well.
>Only the more expensive ET4000 chipset should use the W32 driver.


I agree that it is the low end hardware.  It was delivered with this
computer (5 yr. old 483-33), and the video card is called "Color Designer".
Windows is using 'svga.drv' and gives no more information about the card.
The card is plugged into a local bus of the Opti variety.  The local bus
format that lost the bus battle.  I was aware that this was probably a low
end card when I was configuring it and selected the generic ET4000, not the
W32.  As I said, everything works well while I am in XFree, but when I exit
to command line Linux, the contrast is *very* low.  Clearly, something is
not properly set/reset when I exit Xwindows.

>It is a utility which you should get with your XFree86 distribution that
>attempts to determine what hardware you have and what drivers should be
used.
>It is pretty good, but it makes mistakes occasionally, and these are
usually
>already documented as concerns.  Most distributions -- I'm not that
familiar
>with Red Hat -- will run this utility automatically, although it can also
be
>run manually.


If Superprobe was run during the initial loading of Linux, it gave me no
readout.  Is there a log of actions/results during loading?  How can I run
it manually to collect useful information?  Sorry to be so stupid, but I am
trying to learn.  Too many years with Micro$oft shrinks the brain.  Do you
remember Convergent Technologies?  20 years ago I was sysadmin for a 20
workstation CT network.

Thanks

Karl


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