Announcement

**Rog131** · Aug 07, 2007, 10:59 AM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

Not one to be disheartened easily, I experimented with the various settings in both players, but without any change. Even at maximum post processing the videos still look inferior to the "pristine quality" when I run them from my Windows partition on the same machine.

Can anyone shed some light on this problem or offer suggestions?

What hardware/drivers are you using ?

Are you using vesa ?

From X.Org X server -- VESA display driver

This driver is not recommended for use unless you have a
problem with the normal driver for your card, because it will peform very
badly.

**Jay_Jay** · Aug 07, 2007, 08:23 PM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

What hardware/drivers are you using ?

Are you using vesa ?

Hi Rog... The graphics hardware is the ATI Rage Mobility P/M 8MB AGP 2X. as for the driver I'm not sure: how do I find this out please? If you could guide me, I'll obtain the info and post it on here for you to see.

Thanks,

Jay

**Rog131** · Aug 08, 2007, 03:51 AM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

You could try:

K > System Settings > Monitor and Display -> tab - hardware

Here it is showing:

Graphics card: ati
Driver: fglrx

or in the konsole:

Code:

:~$ cat /etc/X11/xorg.conf | grep Driver

Here it tells:

Driver "kbd"
Driver "mouse"
Driver "fglrx"

About drivers:

ati

X.Org X server -- ATI display driver
This driver for the X.Org X server (see xserver-xorg for a further description)
provides support for the ATI Mach, Rage, Radeon, and FireGL series. It
provides the 'atimisc', 'r128' and 'radeon' sub-drivers.

fglrx

Video driver for the ATI graphics accelerators
Video driver for the ATI Radeon and FireGL graphics accelerators.

This version of the ATI driver officially supports:
* RADEON X1300, X1600, X1800, X1900
* RADEON 8500, 9000, 9100, 9200, 9500, 9550, 9600, 9700, 9800
* RADEON X800, X700, X600, X550, X300 series (AGP and PCI Express)
* MOBILITY RADEON 9000, 9200, 9600, 9800, X700
* MOBILITY RADEON 9000/9100 IGP Series
* FireGL 8700, 8800, E1, E2, X1, X2, X3, Z1, T2
* MOBILITY FireGL 9100, T2
* RADEON XPRESS 200

**Jay_Jay** · Aug 08, 2007, 05:10 AM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

From K > System Settings > Monitor and Display -> tab - hardware I saw the following info:

Graphics card: ATI Rage Mobility P
Driver : ati

In the Konsole I typed :~$ cat /etc/X11/xorg.conf | grep Driver
and it reported:

Driver "kbd"
Driver "mouse"
Driver "synaptics"
Driver "wacom"
Driver "wacom"
Driver "wacom"

If you need more info, let me know and I'll post it, thanks.

Jay

**Rog131** · Aug 08, 2007, 08:50 AM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

Hmm -

In the Konsole I typed :~$ cat /etc/X11/xorg.conf | grep Driver
and it reported:

Driver "kbd"
Driver "mouse"
Driver "synaptics"
Driver "wacom"
Driver "wacom"
Driver "wacom"

There should be Driver "ati" or Driver "radeon" or Driver "vesa"

Could you post /etc/X11/xorg.conf.

**Jay_Jay** · Aug 08, 2007, 09:09 AM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

Thanks for getting back to me.

Could you post /etc/X11/xorg.conf.

I found five different files named xorg.conf, the other four were numbered from one to four- do you need those too? Let me know...

# /etc/X11/xorg.conf (xorg X Window System server configuration file)
#
# This file was generated by dexconf, the Debian X Configuration tool, using
# values from the debconf database.
#
# Edit this file with caution, and see the xorg.conf(5) manual page.
# (Type "man xorg.conf" at the shell prompt.)
#
# This file is automatically updated on xserver-xorg package upgrades *only*
# if it has not been modified since the last upgrade of the xserver-xorg
# package.
#
# If you have edited this file but would like it to be automatically updated
# again, run the following command:
# sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg

Section "Files"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/misc"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/cyrillic"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/100dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/75dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/Type1"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/100dpi"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/75dpi"
# path to defoma fonts
FontPath "/var/lib/defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/TrueType"
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "i2c"
Load "bitmap"
Load "ddc"
Load "extmod"
Load "freetype"
Load "int10"
Load "vbe"
load "glx"
load "GLcore"
load "dri"
load "v4l"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Generic Keyboard"
Driver "kbd"
option "CoreKeyboard"
option "XkbRules" "xorg"
option "XkbModel" "pc105"
option "XkbLayout" "gb"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Configured Mouse"
Driver "mouse"
option "CorePointer"
option "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
option "Protocol" "ImPS/2"
option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
option "Emulate3Buttons" "true"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Synaptics Touchpad"
Driver "synaptics"
option "SendCoreEvents" "true"
option "Device" "/dev/psaux"
option "Protocol" "auto-dev"
option "HorizScrollDelta" "0"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Driver "wacom"
Identifier "stylus"
option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
option "Type" "stylus"
option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4"# Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Driver "wacom"
Identifier "eraser"
option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
option "Type" "eraser"
option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4"# Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Driver "wacom"
Identifier "cursor"
option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
option "Type" "cursor"
option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4"# Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "Device"
identifier "Generic Video Card"
boardname "ATI Rage Mobility P"
busid "PCI:1:0:0"
driver "ati"
screen 0
vendorname "ATI"
option "MergedFB" "off"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
identifier "Generic Monitor"
vendorname "Generic"
modelname "Flat Panel 1024x768"
HorizSync 31.5-55
VertRefresh 40-70
modeline "640x480@60" 25.2 640 656 752 800 480 490 492 525 -vsync -hsync
modeline "800x600@56" 36.0 800 824 896 1024 600 601 603 625 +hsync +vsync
modeline "800x600@60" 40.0 800 840 968 1056 600 601 605 628 +hsync +vsync
modeline "1024x768@60" 65.0 1024 1048 1184 1344 768 771 777 806 -vsync -hsync
gamma 1.0
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Device "Generic Video Card"
Monitor "Generic Monitor"
DefaultDepth 24
SubSection "Display"
depth 24
virtual 1024 768
modes "1024x768@60" "800x600@60" "800x600@56" "640x480@60"
EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Default Layout"
screen 0 "Default Screen" 0 0
InputDevice "Generic Keyboard"
InputDevice "Configured Mouse"
InputDevice "stylus" "SendCoreEvents"
InputDevice "cursor" "SendCoreEvents"
InputDevice "eraser" "SendCoreEvents"
InputDevice "Synaptics Touchpad"
EndSection

Section "DRI"
Mode 0666
EndSection
Section "device" #
identifier "device1"
boardname "ATI Rage Mobility P"
busid "PCI:1:0:0"
driver "ati"
screen 1
vendorname "ATI"
option "MergedFB" "off"
EndSection
Section "screen" #
identifier "screen1"
device "device1"
defaultdepth 24
monitor "monitor1"
SubSection "Display"
depth 24
modes "640x480@60"
EndSubSection
EndSection
Section "monitor" #
identifier "monitor1"
vendorname "Plug 'n' Play"
modelname "Plug 'n' Play"
modeline "640x480@60" 25.2 640 656 752 800 480 490 492 525 -vsync -hsync
gamma 1.0
EndSection
Section "ServerFlags"
EndSection

**Rog131** · Aug 08, 2007, 10:02 AM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

I found five different files named xorg.conf, the other four were numbered from one to four

Those are automatic backupfiles: when you move settings at K > System Settings > Display&Monitor: xorg.conf -> xorg.conf.1 (xorg.conf.2...)

I wrote:

There should be Driver "ati" or Driver "radeon" or Driver "vesa"

there is driver "ati"

What to try:

Backup first:

Code:

:~$ sudo cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf /etc/X11/xorg.conf_my_backup_001

So: if you mess xorg.conf -> log in text mode and :

Code:

:~$ sudo cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf_my_backup_001 /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Edit xorg.conf:

a) press alt +F2 and kdesu kate /etc/X11/xorg.conf
Replace driver "ati" with driver "radeon"

Or

b) In the konsole:

Code:

sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

This reconfigures xorg (ask questions - what you want to do) and makes backup.

Here is good page of sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg:
http://users.bigpond.net.au/hermanzone/p7.html

Links
Direct Rendering on ATI Rage Mobility P/M AGP 2x
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=507150

Topic: HOWTO : Disaster Recovery and xorg.conf
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3082808.0

Topic: How to get started with no GUI
http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/inde...opic=3085112.0

**Jay_Jay** · Aug 08, 2007, 11:36 AM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

Just had a go and changed the driver from ATI to Radeon, when I restarted the display was blank apart from the flashing cursor. Forewarned is forearmed and thanks to your post, all I had to do was an ALT-F2 then:

~$ sudo cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf_my_backup_001 /etc/X11/xorg.conf

and startx restored me back with the ATI driver and the KDE desktop.

Attempting to change the driver to the Radeon one through a direct edit with Kate didn't work, should I try the following next?

b) In the konsole:
Code:

sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

This reconfigures xorg (ask questions - what you want to do) and makes backup.

Jay

**Rog131** · Aug 08, 2007, 12:11 PM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

should I try the following next?

Well - you need to try

.

You could get cleaner (human-readable) xorg.conf.

**Jay_Jay** · Aug 09, 2007, 09:02 AM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

b) In the konsole:
Code:

sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

This reconfigures xorg (ask questions - what you want to do) and makes backup.

Ran the reconfiguration and under Monitor & Display my hardware is now listed as:

Graphics card: ati
Driver: ati

Still experiencing the same problems as before with video formats, along with random pausing/slowdown during graphical operations. I can always boot into Win2k whenever I need to watch video images, but It does defeat the object of migrating...

Are there any other options left or is it a case of the hardware being not fully supported under Linux?

Jay

**Rog131** · Aug 09, 2007, 03:39 PM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

Are there any other options left

There are lot of options.

Check system:
in the konsole

Code:

xvinfo

Man xvinfo:

NAME
xvinfo - Print out X-Video extension adaptor information

SYNOPSIS
xvinfo [-display displayname]

DESCRIPTION
xvinfo prints out the capabilities of any video adaptors associated
with the display that are accesible through the X-Video extension.

From X video extension
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X_video_extension

The X video extension, often abbreviated as XVideo or Xv, is a video output mechanism for the X Window System. Its main use today is to rescale video playback in hardware (namely in the hardware of the graphics card), in order to enlarge a given video or to watch it in full screen mode. Without XVideo, this scaling would have to be done in software, which is possible but requires a considerable amount of processing power, sometimes to the point of slowing down/degrading the video stream.

Check xorg log (/var/log/Xorg.0.log)

Any warnings in the xorg log ?

Code:

cat /var/log/Xorg.0.log | grep '(WW)'

or errors ?

Code:

cat /var/log/Xorg.0.log | grep '(EE)'

You could try to change:
DefaultDepth 24 -> DefaultDepth 16

from sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg:

Usually 24-bit color is desirable, but on graphics cards with limited
amounts of framebuffer memory, higher resolutions may be achieved at the
expense of higher color depth. Also, some cards support hardware 3D
acceleration only for certain depths. Consult your video card manual
for more information.

How much memory do you have ?

What kind of xorg.conf do you have now ?

Links:
Editing basics for the xorg.conf file
http://www.linux.com/feature/118108

**goforthis** · Aug 09, 2007, 10:41 PM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

I think the flgrx drivers will work if you replace the libGL.so.1.2 in usr/lib with the older one the new one is broken for all 200 series chipset on the radeon cards
but if you use the flgrx driver it will work with the fix

try this link
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=185033

there is another link here to get the old libgl.so.1.2 file
and instructions

this should help with the vid problem
Worked for my 9200 which has the 200 series chip I think it is the RV280

**Jay_Jay** · Aug 11, 2007, 08:31 AM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

Thanks for all the help with this so far, appreciate it... Apologies in advance for the long post, it includes all the info you requested.

I think the flgrx drivers will work if you replace the libGL.so.1.2 in usr/lib with the older one the new one is broken for all 200 series chipset on the radeon cards but if you use the flgrx driver it will work with the fix

try this link
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=185033

there is another link here to get the old libgl.so.1.2 file
and instructions

this should help with the vid problem
Worked for my 9200 which has the 200 series chip I think it is the RV280

Thanks, but I'm not using the 200 series - my chipset is the (considerably older) ATI Rage Mobility P/M1 AGP 2X.

This has been quite cumbersome as I've had to save the results to my FAT32 partition and then come online to post with Win2K as Kubuntu refuses to connect to the wireless router

Grrrrrrr

Check system:
in the konsole
Code:

xvinfo

Here are the Xvinfo results:

X-Video Extension version 2.2
screen #0
Adaptor #0: "ATI Mach64 Back-end Overlay Scaler"
number of ports: 1
port base: 65
operations supported: PutImage
supported visuals:
depth 24, visualID 0x23
depth 24, visualID 0x24
depth 24, visualID 0x25
depth 24, visualID 0x26
depth 24, visualID 0x27
depth 24, visualID 0x28
depth 24, visualID 0x29
depth 24, visualID 0x2a
number of attributes: 12
"XV_SATURATION" (range -1000 to 1000)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 391)
"XV_BRIGHTNESS" (range -1000 to 1000)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 15)
"XV_COLOUR" (range -1000 to 1000)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 391)
"XV_COLOR" (range -1000 to 1000)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 391)
"XV_AUTOPAINT_COLOURKEY" (range 0 to 1)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 1)
"XV_AUTOPAINT_COLORKEY" (range 0 to 1)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 1)
"XV_COLOURKEY" (range 0 to 16777215)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 197121)
"XV_COLORKEY" (range 0 to 16777215)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 197121)
"XV_COLOURKEY_MASK" (range 0 to 16777215)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 16777215)
"XV_COLORKEY_MASK" (range 0 to 16777215)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 16777215)
"XV_SET_DEFAULTS" (range 0 to 0)
client settable attribute
"XV_DOUBLE_BUFFER" (range 0 to 1)
client settable attribute
client gettable attribute (current value is 0)
maximum XvImage size: 720 x 2048
Number of image formats: 4
id: 0x32595559 (YUY2)
guid: 59555932-0000-0010-8000-00aa00389b71
bits per pixel: 16
number of planes: 1
type: YUV (packed)
id: 0x59565955 (UYVY)
guid: 55595659-0000-0010-8000-00aa00389b71
bits per pixel: 16
number of planes: 1
type: YUV (packed)
id: 0x32315659 (YV12)
guid: 59563132-0000-0010-8000-00aa00389b71
bits per pixel: 12
number of planes: 3
type: YUV (planar)
id: 0x30323449 (I420)
guid: 49343230-0000-0010-8000-00aa00389b71
bits per pixel: 12
number of planes: 3
type: YUV (planar)

Check xorg log (/var/log/Xorg.0.log)

Any warnings in the xorg log ?

Code:

cat /var/log/Xorg.0.log | grep '(WW)'

When I typed in the command, this was the result

WW) warning, (EE) error, (NI) not implemented, (??) unknown.
(WW) The directory "/usr/share/fonts/X11/cyrillic" does not exist.
(WW) ATI(0): Cannot shadow an accelerated frame buffer.
(WW) ATI(0): Option "MergedFB" is not used

or errors ?
Code:

cat /var/log/Xorg.0.log | grep '(EE)'

Again, the result for the above command:

(WW) warning, (EE) error, (NI) not implemented, (??) unknown.
(EE) AIGLX: DRI module not loaded
(EE) xf86OpenSerial: Cannot open device /dev/input/wacom
(EE) xf86OpenSerial: Cannot open device /dev/input/wacom
(EE) xf86OpenSerial: Cannot open device /dev/input/wacom

How much memory do you have ?

8MB (however System Settings states the video ram is 256K!)

What kind of xorg.conf do you have now ?

See below:

# /etc/X11/xorg.conf (xorg X Window System server configuration file)
#
# This file was generated by dexconf, the Debian X Configuration tool, using
# values from the debconf database.
#
# Edit this file with caution, and see the xorg.conf(5) manual page.
# (Type "man xorg.conf" at the shell prompt.)
#
# This file is automatically updated on xserver-xorg package upgrades *only*
# if it has not been modified since the last upgrade of the xserver-xorg
# package.
#
# If you have edited this file but would like it to be automatically updated
# again, run the following command:
# sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg

Section "Files"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/misc"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/cyrillic"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/100dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/75dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/Type1"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/100dpi"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/75dpi"
# path to defoma fonts
FontPath "/var/lib/defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/TrueType"
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "bitmap"
Load "ddc"
Load "extmod"
Load "freetype"
Load "int10"
Load "vbe"
load "glx"
load "GLcore"
load "v4l"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Generic Keyboard"
Driver "kbd"
option "CoreKeyboard"
option "XkbRules" "xorg"
option "XkbModel" "pc105"
option "XkbLayout" "uk"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Configured Mouse"
Driver "mouse"
option "CorePointer"
option "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
option "Protocol" "ImPS/2"
option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
option "Emulate3Buttons" "true"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Synaptics Touchpad"
Driver "synaptics"
option "SendCoreEvents" "true"
option "Device" "/dev/psaux"
option "Protocol" "auto-dev"
option "HorizScrollDelta" "0"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Driver "wacom"
Identifier "stylus"
option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
option "Type" "stylus"
option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4"# Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Driver "wacom"
Identifier "eraser"
option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
option "Type" "eraser"
option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4"# Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Driver "wacom"
Identifier "cursor"
option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
option "Type" "cursor"
option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4"# Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "Device"
identifier "ATI Mobility P/M AGP 2X"
boardname "ati"
busid "PCI:1:0:0"
driver "ati"
screen 0
option "MergedFB" "off"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
identifier "Hitachi LCD Monitor"
modelname "Custom 1"
modeline "640x480@60" 25.2 640 656 752 800 480 490 492 525 -vsync -hsync
modeline "800x600@56" 36.0 800 824 896 1024 600 601 603 625 +hsync +vsync
modeline "800x600@72" 50.0 800 856 976 1040 600 637 643 666 +hsync +vsync
modeline "800x600@60" 40.0 800 840 968 1056 600 601 605 628 +hsync +vsync
modeline "1024x768@60" 65.0 1024 1048 1184 1344 768 771 777 806 -vsync -hsync
gamma 1.0
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Device "ATI Mobility P/M AGP 2X"
Monitor "Hitachi LCD Monitor"
DefaultDepth 24
SubSection "Display"
depth 24
virtual 1024 768
modes "1024x768@60" "800x600@60" "800x600@72" "800x600@56" "640x480@60"
EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Default Layout"
screen 0 "Default Screen" 0 0
InputDevice "Generic Keyboard"
InputDevice "Configured Mouse"
InputDevice "stylus" "SendCoreEvents"
InputDevice "cursor" "SendCoreEvents"
InputDevice "eraser" "SendCoreEvents"
InputDevice "Synaptics Touchpad"
EndSection

Section "DRI"
Mode 0666
EndSection
Section "device" #
identifier "device1"
boardname "ati"
busid "PCI:1:0:0"
driver "ati"
screen 1
option "MergedFB" "off"
EndSection
Section "screen" #
identifier "screen1"
device "device1"
defaultdepth 24
monitor "monitor1"
EndSection
Section "monitor" #
identifier "monitor1"
gamma 1.0
EndSection
Section "ServerFlags"
EndSection

Here's the graphics hardware specifications from the Omnibook 6000 service manual if it helps:

Omnibook 6000:
14.1- or 15.0-inch XGA active-matrix (TFT) display (1024 × 768) or 15.0-inch SXGA+(1400 × 1050).
External monitors up to 1600 × 1200 × 64K or 16M colors, and at least 75 Hz refresh rate (only 60 Hz at 1400 × 1050).
Zoomed Video support for lower PC Card slot.
3D and OpenGL graphics support.
Celeron models: ATI Mobility M graphics accelerator with 4-MB display RAM, 2x
AGP graphics capability.
Pentium III models: ATI Mobility M1 graphics accelerator with 8-MB display RAM, 2x AGP graphics capability.

**Rog131** · Aug 11, 2007, 12:16 PM

Re: Poor quality playback of video formats

xv seems to be ok

How about DefaultDepth 16 ?
Did it anything ?

You may find this useful:
xorg-edit: GUI for editing xorg.conf
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=156243

Because I found it very complex to manually edit the X-Server config file (xorg.conf in Ubuntu) to add my monitor refresh rates

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Poor quality playback of video formats

Poor quality playback of video formats

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