Which Linux distro plays nicest with the 9800XT?

[Slovak]

? Not which distro is the best, but which distro is the most 9800XT friendly?

[drpino]

dunno, but for some reason i recall reading stuff about how ATI don't play nice w/linux at all.

[Drufuss]

I use Suse 9.1 with my x800Pro (had an 9800Pro) before.

You can get drivers from ati (with instructions, but you sholdn´t follow them completely).
You can also get Suse specific drivers from Suse (driver + kernelmodule) and instructions how to install them.

Installing drivers for NVidia was easier (one rpm to install via Yast2, configured with Sax), the ATi drivers are a little bit tricky, but once you´ve done, it´s no problem at all.

Greetings

Dru

P.S.:I think Swannema has the most experience for installing ATi drivers in Linux (Suse).

[Lucas_Maximus]

Originally Posted by Slovak

? Not which distro is the best, but which distro is the most 9800XT friendly?

IT shouldn't matter which linux u use they are all fundamentally the same underneath.

[Slovak]

I agree that it should not matter, but it does. I honestly do not totally blame ATI for no or lousy linux support. After all, does ATI build the linux kernal?

[Drufuss]

What ATI provides is an rpm, to install the driver initially. then you have to build the kernelmodul according to your kernel, etc. etc.

Suse gives you a rpm for the initial driver install, and a rpm for the kernelmodul (for Suse standard kernel).

You should have no problems (regardless what Distro u use) when u use the ATI rpm and build your own module. But this can (and most of the time is) tricky.

Greetings

Dru

[pointreyes]

Originally Posted by Slovak

I agree that it should not matter, but it does. I honestly do not totally blame ATI for no or lousy linux support. After all, does ATI build the linux kernal?

Well actually, ATi could very easily get involved with part of the process of kernel development.

[Slovak]

Originally Posted by Drufuss

I use Suse 9.1 with my x800Pro (had an 9800Pro) before.

You can get drivers from ati (with instructions, but you sholdn´t follow them completely).
You can also get Suse specific drivers from Suse (driver + kernelmodule) and instructions how to install them.

Installing drivers for NVidia was easier (one rpm to install via Yast2, configured with Sax), the ATi drivers are a little bit tricky, but once you´ve done, it´s no problem at all.

Greetings

Dru

P.S.:I think Swannema has the most experience for installing ATi drivers in Linux (Suse).

Tricky they are, how did you do it? Do you use the ATI drivers from ATI, or the drivers from SuSe? I got the ones from SuSe installed, but can't figure out how to test my 3D. The only 3D test I could get working at all was the glxgears with the three spinning gears, but could not tell my fps. I have an ATI control panel, but cannot use sax2 to check anything out, it always says 3D is not supported but the ATI control panel says something about openGL being from the Mesa project, and Mesa GLX indirect and openGL version string 1.2 (1.4 Mesa 5.0.2) and driver version being 3.14.01. Is there some file I need to edit to get everything working correctly? I followed the instructions from the SuSe ftp server for installing the drivers.

[Slovak]

Has anyone successfully gotten 3d to work? If so please tell me how before I nuke linux for good, or have to find someone to trade my 9800XT for an equivelant nVidia

[Drufuss]

If you used the rpm´s provided by Suse, and followed the readme, you should be o.k.

Use fglrxinfo ( or fglrx_info?)to check if they are correctly isntalled. Should output something about ATi (nothing MESA).
Also fglrxgears(or fglrx_glxgears?) should show the 3 spinning wheels and the fps-ratio in the console window.

Hm, will have to check that when i´m home (and eventually edit this post).

Greetings

Dru

[wallijonn]

I just finished installing Ubuntu and I didn't have to install any ATI drivers. I set it to default to 1024x768. I didn't have to mess around with XFree86 to get my MX510 mouse working.

I did have to turn off ACPI and set No PnP (set the IRQs manually). (Not really a biggie as WXP won't listen to No PnP anyway and will set the IRQs to whatever it wants to).

It's GNOME 2.8, kernel 2.6, Evolution 2, FireFox, GRUB based.

But if you already have an OS installed... I'll tell you what I find tomorrow. I assume that I will have to set the partitions before hand because Ubuntu wants to use the whole drive; it does not use parted, gnuparted, etc. to dynamically resize a disk and write out the partition table.

The www.gnome.org web page has some nice Window Borders and themes to download, but not all of them work. I created folders for icons, applications (themes) and windows borders. I then download the respective files to the respective folders and doubled clicked to extract the files. When you get to the Computer -> Desktop Preferences -> Theme, window you just click on a theme, show details and drag and drop into the white area.

My mission is to make it look like SuperKaramba or OSX. (I'm about 60% there).

http://www.ubuntulinux.org/

You may want to try Libranet as it is supposed to be very easy to install.

http://www.libranet.com/

.

[Slovak]

Originally Posted by Drufuss

If you used the rpm´s provided by Suse, and followed the readme, you should be o.k.

Use fglrxinfo ( or fglrx_info?)to check if they are correctly isntalled. Should output something about ATi (nothing MESA).
Also fglrxgears(or fglrx_glxgears?) should show the 3 spinning wheels and the fps-ratio in the console window.

Hm, will have to check that when i´m home (and eventually edit this post).

Greetings

Dru

Well it just plain did not work, and there is no way whatsoever to install the drivers via the way SuSe says on their FTP server, because every single time they are downloaded the only option is to install them using yast2, yet the video driver listed as being used is ATI, but 3D still says Mesa, and glxgears works whether I do it with or without ATI drivers, and no fps is ever shown. I went to Suse's forums and many people have the same exact 3D problem I have with Mesa always showing up. Plus, my Audigy2 does not work at all, as well as a plenty of other peoples. They claim to have no sound anywhere or with anything for the last 5 months or so on their SuSe box. Pretty funny how the SuSe inventors themselves can't explain how ATI users can have 3D with the ATI drivers listed, but still saying Mesa, and Audigy 2's never working even half-***! Good-bye SuSe!
Let me see, I have tried Linspire, RH(all flavors),Knoppix, SuSe, Mandrake 9.1 and below, and the Fedora series and so far no 3D for me in all of them, and no sound in half of them. What's left? Gentoo, Debian, Slackware and mandrake10.1. I will try slackware as soon as I finish posting this.

[Drufuss]

Don´t just click on the downloaded rpm.

Do it like the readme tells you.

Open console, cd to where you saved the files, install them using

# rpm -Uhv fglrx*.rpm

# rpm -Uhv km_fglrx*.rpm (or build your kernel module if you don´t use the standard kernel.)

compile the kernel module sources using

# cd /usr/src/kernel-modules/fglrx
# KERNEL_SOURCE=/usr/src/linux make modules
# KERNEL_SOURCE=/usr/src/linux make install
# depmod -a


type

# sax2 -r -m 0=fglrx -b /usr/X11R6/lib/sax/profile/firegl


look into the /etc/X11/XF86Config file

and make sure that

Load "dri"

is in the "Module" Section. (If not, add it.)

Use fglrxinfo to check if all is installed correct (eventually do a reboot before that, just to have that windows feeling) and fglrxgears to see the spinning wheels.

Greetings

Dru

P.S.:Read more about it here:
http://www.ati.com/support/infobase/linuxhowto-ati.html

and there
http://www.ati.com/support/infobase/linuxhowto-ati.html

[Drufuss]

Even without the ATI drivers correctly installed you have 3d, but only MESA and thats slow.
With ATI-drivers you get higher fps.
At least fglrxgears tells you your fps in the console window (don´t you use a console window to run fglrxgears or glxgears?)

What problem do you have with the Audigy2? INstalled SUSE, openend YAST2, went to Soundcard, adjusted all the volume settings for each channel, works like a charm right out of the box.

Greetings

Dru

[Slovak]

DO you have AIM or anything? I got my sound working, but whenever I click on the file for the video to save it it just auto downloads it and installs it via yast. How do I download the files and save to a location of my choice without yast taking over? Any suggestions? I am home today from work so I can play with this till I grow grey hair. The only thing with the sound is I cannot get all the 5.1 speakers to work, namely the two rear channel ones.