Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

[Uber Nooblett]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

From the nvidia manual:

the primary display device (specify its HorizSync and VertRefresh in the Monitor section of your X config file) and the secondary display device (specify its HorizSync and VertRefresh through the SecondMonitorHorizSync and SecondMonitorVertRefresh options).


I see a primary sync and refresh but no secondary monitor sync and refresh in your xorg.conf file. If you have two monitors with vastly different specs I could understand the tearing you observe without the additional options present in your xorg file.

Managed to sort out the crazy lack of widget desktop and right click, just need to fix window borders now

Seems I'll have to have a play with xorg.conf then... though I'm not sure quite where to start though... can you set the vert and hori values to a single figure or does it have to be variable?

[dibl]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

can you set the vert and hori values to a single figure or does it have to be variable?

Nope, that won't work. Here's the basics on monitor refresh rates:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refresh_rate

If you can discover the manufacturer and model number for each monitor, you should be able to Google them and chase down refresh rates for each. For example, if I Google "samsung syncmaster 1100 specs" I quickly find this:

http://www.shopping.com/xPF-Samsung-...IGE-0-25MM-DOT

which tells the refresh rates for my CRT. Those are the figures that need to be on the lines in xorg.conf.


The window borders (aka "window decorations") is an entirely unrelated issue. When the monitor issue is sorted, then we can fix window decorations.

[Uber Nooblett]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

can you set the vert and hori values to a single figure or does it have to be variable?

Nope, that won't work. Here's the basics on monitor refresh rates:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refresh_rate

If you can discover the manufacturer and model number for each monitor, you should be able to Google them and chase down refresh rates for each. For example, if I Google "samsung syncmaster 1100 specs" I quickly find this:

http://www.shopping.com/xPF-Samsung-...IGE-0-25MM-DOT

which tells the refresh rates for my CRT. Those are the figures that need to be on the lines in xorg.conf.


The window borders (aka "window decorations") is an entirely unrelated issue. When the monitor issue is sorted, then we can fix window decorations.

Fixed borders by switching to emerald so that's all kosher

Back to the original issue now: my monitor tells me refresh on the menu: H 74.0KHZ V 60.0HZ

I played about with compiz config putting the value of the refresh up and down but it had absolutely no effect, there was a constant scan line moving up the page on motion and still is.

The smaller of the two monitors has H 64.0KHZ V 60.0HZ as I press the button

These figures from the monitors... is that what is being inputted or their actual op frequencies?

[Uber Nooblett]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

24in monitor specs as per manu website are : H:30-82KHz V:56-75Hz

however in windows, it would only allow up to 60hz... that might be due to the non-digital cable I guess

[dibl]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

This is like a test to see what I know about monitors, huh?

OK, when you push the button on the monitor, it tells you (truthfully, we hope) what the current refresh rates are. Note that they are different on the two different monitors. That's why you need the extra set of refresh rates mentioned by ukchucktown.

However, to do a proper job of operating the video display, which switches between character mode and graphics mode, and exercises different capabilities of your Nvidia card as the demands change via your commands to the computer, the Nvidia driver needs to be able to exercise the monitor appropriately -- sometimes trading off speed for quality of the display. It does this by using the refresh rate information. But, if you nailed it down to only a single refresh rate, such as the one that the monitor happens to be using at the moment, you totally destroy the ability of the driver to help you keep the display optimized. That is why I always advise folks to avoid setting a refresh rate when they run the nvidia-settings utility -- if you leave it on "Auto" it will have the maximum flexibility to optimize your display.

So, the "right" answer to this situation is to use the digital interface, I think. Everything else you can do, such as fiddling the refresh rates in xorg.conf to make the analog performance better is a sort of "poor relative" to the digital interface. :P

[ukchucktown]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

And a handy command in /usr/sbin is called ddcprobe. It dumps monitor timing information. You might need to run it with only one monitor plugged in at a time.

sudo ddcprobe
vbe: VESA 3.0 detected.
oem: Intel(r)Crestline Graphics Chip Accelerated VGA BIOS
vendor: Intel Corporation
product: Intel(r)Crestline Graphics Controller Hardware Version 0.0
memory: 7616kb
mode: 1280x1024x256
mode: 1280x1024x64k
mode: 1280x1024x16m
mode: 1024x768x256
mode: 1024x768x64k
mode: 1024x768x16m
mode: 640x480x16m
mode: 800x600x64k
mode: 800x600x16m
mode: 640x480x256
mode: 800x600x256
mode: 640x480x64k
edid:
edid: 1 3
id: 66cf
eisa: NEC66cf
serial: 01010101
manufacture: 48 2008
input: separate sync, composite sync, sync on green, analog signal.
screensize: 52 32
gamma: 2.200000
dpms: RGB, active off, suspend, standby
timing: 720x400@70 Hz (VGA 640x400, IBM)
timing: 720x400@88 Hz (XGA2)
timing: 640x480@60 Hz (VGA)
timing: 640x480@67 Hz (Mac II, Apple)
timing: 640x480@72 Hz (VESA)
timing: 640x480@75 Hz (VESA)
timing: 800x600@60 Hz (VESA)
timing: 800x600@72 Hz (VESA)
timing: 800x600@75 Hz (VESA)
timing: 832x624@75 Hz (Mac II)
timing: 1024x768@87 Hz Interlaced (8514A)
timing: 1024x768@70 Hz (VESA)
timing: 1024x768@75 Hz (VESA)
timing: 1280x1024@75 (VESA)
ctiming: 1280x1024@60
ctiming: 1400x1050@60
ctiming: 1280x800@60
ctiming: 1360x850@60
ctiming: 1440x1440@60
ctiming: 1600x1200@60
ctiming: 1680x1680@60
ctiming: 1920x1920@60
dtiming: 1920x1200@74
monitorrange: 31-94, 50-85
monitorname: LCD2490WUXi
monitorserial: 8Y109902YA

[Uber Nooblett]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

Ok, super thanks!

I'd better dump one new top for a cable and maybe, a few weeks or months down the line, I might buy another big monitor to make things easier :P

Thanks all

[dibl]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

Ok, super thanks!

I'd better dump one new top for a cable and maybe, a few weeks or months down the line, I might buy another big monitor to make things easier :P

Thanks all

heh heh heh -- new tops are for gals who actually go out in the daylight -- no worries there!



ddcprobe -- nice one, Mr. UK!

[Uber Nooblett]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

Ok, super thanks!

I'd better dump one new top for a cable and maybe, a few weeks or months down the line, I might buy another big monitor to make things easier :P

Thanks all

heh heh heh -- new tops are for gals who actually go out in the daylight -- no worries there!



ddcprobe -- nice one, Mr. UK!

Daylight is for humans; we screen dwellers survive on 50-60Hz artificial luminescence, it's pretty and it doesn't burn unless you lick the bulb

[Uber Nooblett]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

ack, now I have no sound in youtube vids... meh

[ukchucktown]

Re: Screen Tearing (movies, compiz, the lot)

After determining the sync and refresh on your monitors with ddcprobe, try updating your xorg.conf file (I provided a template based on your original). I don't have an nvidia card so I'm not sure the Option lines are in the right section but I'm going to assume they go in the "Monitor" section. Stick in your secondary monitor's sync and refresh, reboot and give it a shot. I'm curious if it works.

Section "ServerLayout"
  Identifier   "Layout0"
  Screen   0 "Screen0" 0 0
  InputDevice  "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
  InputDevice  "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
EndSection

Section "Files"
EndSection

Section "Module"
  Load      "dbe"
  Load      "extmod"
  Load      "type1"
  Load      "freetype"
  Load      "glx"
EndSection

Section "ServerFlags"
  Option     "Xinerama" "0"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"

  # generated from default
  Identifier   "Mouse0"
  Driver     "mouse"
  Option     "Protocol" "auto"
  Option     "Device" "/dev/psaux"
  Option     "Emulate3Buttons" "no"
  Option     "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"

  # generated from default
  Identifier   "Keyboard0"
  Driver     "kbd"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
  Identifier   "Monitor0"
  HorizSync    31.5 - 80.0
  VertRefresh   56.0 - 75.0
  Option     "SecondMonitorHorizSync" "<secondary HorizSync>"
  Option     "SecondMonitorVertRefresh" "<secondary VertRefresh>"
  Option     "DPMS"
EndSection

Section "Device"
  Identifier   "Device0"
  Driver     "nvidia"
  VendorName   "NVIDIA Corporation"
  BoardName   "GeForce 8800 GTS"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
  Identifier   "Screen0"
  Device     "Device0"
  Monitor    "Monitor0"
  DefaultDepth  24
  Option     "TwinView" "1"
  Option     "TwinViewXineramaInfoOrder" "CRT-1"
  Option     "metamodes" "CRT-0: nvidia-auto-select +1920+296, CRT-1: nvidia-auto-select +0+0"
  SubSection   "Display"
    Depth    24
  EndSubSection
EndSection