FC4 does not work, "out of the box" for me; GUI/X11 fails

[David Abbott]

Thanks for the responses.

We have Core 3 installed on all the workstations at my office which is about
70 or so,
and they all have nvidia effects 1300's and they don't seem to have too many
problems.
The reason I am working at getting Core 4 rolling on my laptop is that I
love using it and want to improve my knowledge on how to get things working
on it.
i.e there is no USB wacom support (no absolute mode or pressure sensitivity)
which hurts me, so i really want to be able to do my own experimentation
withthings, as I obviously (and thankfully so) don't have administrative
priveleges at work.

It's not a necessity but would be way cool if i can get over these hurdles.
I've had the main Linux tech guy give my machine a quick workout with the
various Nvidia installers (pretty much trying all the stuff i'd already
tried) and he had no joy.
I can get the computer to boot o.k but only using the default driver.

So am I right in thinking that compiling a kernel for my machine is the way
to go?
I was under the impression that this is the gauranteed way to get it to
work.

I am going to try a fresh install to make sure I didn't screw anything up.

I notice that the vanilla kernel is up a version from the
2.6.11-1.1369-fc4that I am using..
there seems to be a few nvidia fixes in there..should I be aiming to get
that in my build.
I'll have to work out exactly what I am doing before I throw any serious
questions out there.
Is there others out there who have installed fc4 on their Dell Inspiron
9300's with the Nvidia Go6800??
a pointer in the right direction would be cool.
Sorry if i seem a real dumbass, I know I am in a bit over my head with this.
But I am not giving up until I get this thing rolling.
As it is a laptop i don't really have the option of swapping the graphics
card for something else.

Thanks




On 10/30/05, Derek Martin <code at pizzashack.org> wrote:
>
> On Sat, Oct 29, 2005 at 09:56:16PM -0700, David Abbott wrote:
> > I have to say. Being new to Linux and trying to administer my own
> > system I have had loads of trouble.
>
> That's pretty normal, when you're new to something, generally.
>
> > I am trying to work out how to compile my own kernel because the
> > basic setup to install the Nvidia drivers doesn't work on my Dell
> > Inspiron 9300. The Go6800 is a pretty standard card. i wouldn't
> > have imagined that it should be difficult.
>
> This you can blame on nvidia, for refusing to release the specs of
> their hardware so that a proper driver could be integrated into the
> Kernel. Instead, we're dependent upon them to try to support a
> binary-only kernel module on dozens of different versions of the Linux
> kernel (both official releases, and also vendor-modified kernels).
>
> They are clearly not up to the task. Not that we should expect they
> would be; it's a pretty big task... But it becomes a small task if
> nvidia either releases source code for their drivers, or releases
> complete specs to their hardware, so that a driver can be written and
> maintained as part of the Linux kernel proper.
>
> Another issue is that Fedora Core is intended to be a cutting edge
> development platform, and as such there will always be bugs. In some
> ways I think it is really not a very good choice for someone venturing
> into the world of Linux for the first time... particularly for people
> who are not already somewhat adept with computers. Except that you
> will learn a lot by figuring out how to fix all the bugs and make your
> system work the way you want it to. So in that regard, it's a good
> thing. ;-)
>
> > I will persist, and continue my studies in how this all works.
>
> Good; if you do, you will be rewarded with a much greater
> understanding of how your machine works, and why it works that way.
> Enjoy!
>
> --
> Derek D. Martin
> http://www.pizzashack.org/
> GPG Key ID: 0x81CFE75D
>
>
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> fedora-list mailing list
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