Can't increase resolution or refresh rate [Resolved]

[neiby]

Re: Can't increase resolution or refresh rate

I verified that I'm running 1280x960 in Windows, not 1280x1024. The latter is a bit too stretched in one direction.

So, I just have to figure out how to force this to work. I think I may be onto something. There is a way to make xorg.conf ignore the EDID information. I'll try that.

[neiby]

Re: Can't increase resolution or refresh rate

After trying all sorts of things to get 8.10 to work right, I uninstalled it and went back to PCLOS (although this time I'm on one of their betas). In case in might be helpful, here are the relevant sections of my xorg.conf from PCLOS:

Section "ServerFlags"
#DontZap # disable <Ctrl><Alt><BS> (server abort)
#DontZoom # disable <Ctrl><Alt><KP_+>/<KP_-> (resolution switching)
AllowMouseOpenFail # allows the server to start up even if the mouse does not work
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "dbe" # Double-Buffering Extension
Load "v4l" # Video for Linux
Load "extmod"
Load "type1"
Load "freetype"
Load "glx" # 3D layer
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "monitor1"
VendorName "Dell"
ModelName "Dell P991"
HorizSync 30.0-107.0
VertRefresh 48.0-120.0

# TV fullscreen mode or DVD fullscreen output.
# 768x576 @ 79 Hz, 50 kHz hsync
ModeLine "768x576" 50.00 768 832 846 1000 576 590 595 630

# 768x576 @ 100 Hz, 61.6 kHz hsync
ModeLine "768x576" 63.07 768 800 960 1024 576 578 590 616
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "device1"
VendorName "nVidia Corporation"
BoardName "NVIDIA GeForce 6100 and later"
Driver "nvidia"
Option "DPMS"
Option "DynamicTwinView" "false"
Option "AddARGBGLXVisuals"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "screen1"
Device "device1"
Monitor "monitor1"
DefaultColorDepth 24

Subsection "Display"
Depth 8
Modes "1280x960" "1152x864" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "640x480" "480x360" "320x240"
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 15
Modes "1280x960" "1152x864" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "640x480" "480x360" "320x240"
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 16
Modes "1280x960" "1152x864" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "640x480" "480x360" "320x240"
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "1280x960" "1152x864" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "640x480" "480x360" "320x240"
EndSubsection
EndSection

I'm tempted to reinstall Kubuntu 8.10 and use that exact xorg.conf. I wonder if it would work? The drivers aren't the same. PCLOS only has the nvidia 173 drivers, while 8.10 has 177. But I think the xorg stuff should be the same. I think a big difference is that I'm able to select (or change) my monitor in PCLOS. I have no idea why I'm not able to do that in Kubuntu, but that seems to be the cause of my problems because, apparently, the EDID identification information coming from my monitor is not what 8.10 expects to see.

Regardless, I have no problem selecting and using 1280x960 in PCLOS. But I have to admit, I miss Kubuntu 8.10. KDE 4, despite lots of weirdness that I saw, looked pretty good!

[neiby]

Re: Can't increase resolution or refresh rate [Resolved]

Solved! My curiosity got the best of me and I reinstalled Kubuntu 8.10 and then created a new xorg.conf based on the one I had working in PCLinuxOS. And guess what? It worked! As a final record, here is my current working file. I believe the settings specific to my monitor were what allowed it to start working. There are also a few options added here that might be affecting the outcome, but I'm not sure.

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "Configured Monitor"
VendorName "Dell"
ModelName "Dell P991"
HorizSync 30.0-107.0
VertRefresh 48.0-120.0
# TV fullscreen mode or DVD fullscreen output.
# 768x576 @ 79 Hz, 50 kHz hsync
ModeLine "768x576" 50.00 768 832 846 1000 576 590 595 630

# 768x576 @ 100 Hz, 61.6 kHz hsync
ModeLine "768x576" 63.07 768 800 960 1024 576 578 590 616
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "dbe" # Double-Buffering Extension
Load "v4l" # Video for Linux
Load "extmod"
Load "type1"
Load "freetype"
Load "glx"
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "Configured Video Device"
VendorName "nVidia Corporation"
BoardName "NVIDIA GeForce 6100 and later"
Driver "nvidia"
Option "NoLogo" "True"
Option "DPMS"
Option "DynamicTwinView" "false"
Option "AddARGBGLXVisuals"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Device "Configured Video Device"
Monitor "Configured Monitor"
DefaultColorDepth 24

Subsection "Display"
Depth 8
Modes "1280x960" "1152x864" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "640x480" "48
0x360" "320x240"
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 15
Modes "1280x960" "1152x864" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "640x480" "48
0x360" "320x240"
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 16
Modes "1280x960" "1152x864" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "640x480" "48
0x360" "320x240"
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "1280x960" "1152x864" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "640x480" "48
0x360" "320x240"
EndSubsection
EndSection

[LinuxRocks]

Re: Can't increase resolution or refresh rate [Resolved]

HAHAH, Nice man!!! Great persistence ... Glad you got it working...

Oh, you can't install KDE4 in PCLOS? I was going to try that OS just to say I tried it :-P

[neiby]

Re: Can't increase resolution or refresh rate [Resolved]

I highly recommend you try PCLinuxOS 2007. It's a fantastic distribution (coming from a linux noob like me), but PCLOS 2007 uses KDE 3.5. Their latest beta for PCLinux 2009 uses 3.5.10. They don't feel that KDE 4 provides the right mix of features and stability yet, and stability is one of their primary goals. They have said that when they feel comfortable with KDE 4, they will add it.

It's definitely worth checking out. It's quite different from Kubuntu 8.10, but I think many of the differences are from 8.10 using KDE 4.

I love the way KDE 4 looks. I don't know if I can go back to KDE 3. lol