GPU support?

[Tumbar]

Hello,

I have an empty HDD I would like to install a Linux distro on that can support my GPU and heard from many people [including relatives!] that Kubuntu was what I wanted, especially for a "friendlier" desktop [not like Ubuntu 12.04, which I still like] that will not have stability issues and whatnot [looking for long time support]. I am looking to know if Kubuntu supports my GPU GeForce Sparkle 6600 LE card [256mb] as I have had no luck with Ubuntu 12.04 [white screens/black screens and numberous errors] and can't even get Arch Linux to install. So, my question, does Kubuntu support my card and OpenGL and if so, how can I go about installing my driver?

Thank you all for any and all help!

[oshunluvr]

It looks like the current nvidia driver supports that card. So if your question is "Does Kubuntu support" your card, the answer is no. Kubuntu does nothing special for video cards. In fact, Kubuntu is the same as Ubuntu with a different desktop. However Ubuntu, and thus by extension, Kubuntu does allow the installation and use of the 304 series nVidia drivers - the one your card needs.

I suspect the problem you are having is not related to the distro you're selecting but rather the manner in which you're setting up (or more correctly NOT setting up) your card.

Here's what I see as your choices:

1. Continue trying different distros until you find one that configures the nvidia driver correctly right out-of-the-box (I suggest you try LinuxMint).

2. Learn to install and configure the driver all by yourself and then install any dang distro you want.

Option 1 will leave you with a usable computer, but no freedom. Option 2 will require you to have patience and the willingness to post useful information so we can help you through the setup and take the time to re-configure over and over until it works the way you want.

While you're thinking it over, you could download some iso's and make some bootable CDs or USB sticks and try a few like Mint, Kubuntu, PClinuxOS and Zoren.

[Tumbar]

Hello and thank you for the quick responce,

Yes, I have Linux Mint installed and am using it now [and very much like it], and the 304.64 drivers installed in it after a few days of painful errors, but currently it does not allow OpenGL to work through programs that require it [though glxgears appears to work fine]. I have another HDD that has Ubuntu 12.04 on it, too, and have several ISO CDs for Mint, Arch, Ubuntu and Edbuntu with the last having just finished burning. Kubuntu is next in the burn and install list, as I plan on having HDDs with different distros on them. (:

I felt I should just ask first if Kubuntu would be the one because I have re-installed Ubuntu six times—each with a different way and driver installed and it resulted in fresh installs being riddled with errors—so I wanted to avoid that with Kubuntu or any other distro.

I have also tried every possible tutorial on installing Nvidia drivers, but that was for Mint and Ubuntu. Is there someplace I can go to that will have instructions for Kubuntu? I have the patience to do it—been at this for a couple days.

Thank you,

[oshunluvr]

If glxgears is working then opengl is working. Just not very well apparently.

With Kubuntu, if you select "Third Party Software" at the install, it may get the nvidia driver at the start up, maybe not. "Riddled with errors" can mean lots of things. Likely more than one solution would be required. Likely with that older and low-performance card, desktop effects are going to be unusable or at best will cause problems.

If Mint is working, you might consider sticking with it or maybe partitioning your hard drive and installing Kubuntu along side it. In any case - try it out if you want then post back when you run into problems.

[Tumbar]

Hello,

I took your advice and decided to test out Kubuntu, and I am now posting from the very nice looking Kubuntu. I also was sure to select "Third Party Software" during install, however it did not pre-install any drivers for my card. The installing was a problem as the first install went wrong because I had an external device hooked up [didn't know I couldn't do that] and it froze me every time I got to the log in screen, and then the second install gave me static looking screens at bootup and a gray screen at log in, but I turned the system off, rebooted and though I still get the static screens and gray screen, I successfully logged into the computer.

I geot a jockey-kde error report of Ubuntu 12.04 [which I'm in Kubuntu, so I don't understand that] asking me to update a lot of files, so I opened Muon Update Manager and it wants me to remove the following before I can update--

Linux-headers-3.2.0-36-generic-pae
Linux-headers-3.2.0-36-generic
printer-driver-postscript-hp
linux-image-3.2.0-36-generic pae
patch

--so I did, and now no more jockey-kde errors and I can now access Additional Driver's page. Kubuntu does come with its own drivers, underneath Additional Drivers which has this as its list of options and then there is this site's instructions on dragly.com on installing nvidia drivers, and then there is manual installation which for me is "304.64", I'm told. Which driver in the Additional Driver list is the right one for me? I see 304 experimental, but it says it is only for beta testers but it is the only one that resembles the current Linux driver for my card. Should I just try each of the drivers listed in the Additional Driver's page, and then work my way up all other possibilities of installing drivers?

I must also add that I very much like Kubuntu's desktop, despite being a little demanding effects wise. It is very pleasing to the eyes, yet simple like how I like it. And it is also cool it has its own internet browser. :cool:

Thanks,

[oshunluvr]

304 is working well here. AFA desktop effects, blur is the worst of them in terms of performance. Most of us have it turned off I think.

[Tumbar]

Hello,

I currently did not have any drivers installed, but I did disable all that I could fine and it increased overall speed. But this morning when I attempted to boot into Kubuntu, I got the static screens, the gray screen before log in and then it loaded in fine. After about twenty minutes of use, everything started to freak out and this is what happened;

http://postimage.org/image/psex9b9t3/
http://postimage.org/image/d2aow81uv/

It froze for ten minutes straight, so I was forced to hard reset. Now I cannot boot into Kubuntu. Keyboard doesn't turn on, mouse doesn't work, I get the static screens and then it goes all black. My processor (AMD Athlon II X2 240 Dual-Core) can handle 32bit and 64bit, should I attempt a 64bit install and see if that fixes my problem?

[Tumbar]

Hello,

After taking the GPU out, the computer boots in fine using on board GPU with NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430, which seems to be supported by the same driver. So I guess it is the driver for the card or the lack of full support for this one card, or something. For now, the following distros have the exact problem; Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Linux Mint, Manjaro, Edbuntu, Xubuntu, and Fedora. Except in Manjora the installation pre-installed the exact driver I needed, so that was very helpful for my board GPU, however, can't use my external GPU so I can't perform any high applications or play videos above 300p.

This is disappointing, but I am glad it appears not to be a problem with the distros itself. At least that's how it seems. Any help, or ideas?