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    #1

    Video problem and printer problem

    Here's the info on what I'm running

    -Kubuntu 9.04
    Not installed on on WUBI... it has the full harddrive
    KDE 4.2.2
    --GRUB 1.5
    -No other OS's are installed on this system

    Hardware
    -Laptop Dell Inspiron E1705/9400
    CPU --- Duo Core/Intel (It was the first dual core architecture for laptops)--32 bit proc
    GPU Nvidia 7900 I believe
    2 GB ram
    1 Harddrive
    1 Optical drive

    A few weeks ago,I was watching Youtube, and I received an error stating something in KDE crashed, and a bunch of squiggly lines appeared on the screen... I do not recall the exact message. I turned off my machine, restarted it ( the squiggly lines actually appeared in the Dell start screen) and the lines appeared again. I shut down my ccomputer and the lines disappeared. That was just a bandaid fix. The lines have reappeared and shutting down no longer fixes the problem.

    Also, I have a Dell 1110 laser printer and I have to reinstall it at every start up. Is it possible for me to make the installation and default printer designation permanent?

    Thanks
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    #2
    Re: Video problem and printer problem

    Just a suggestion... Kubuntu 9.04 is not a Long Term Support release. Kubuntu 10.4 is.

    Save yourself a lot of upgrade time and do a fresh install of Kubuntu Lucid Lynx (or, if you don't care about long term support then Kubuntu Maverick 10.10).

    Then upgrade KDE4 to KDE 4.5.1
    "A nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.”
    – John F. Kennedy, February 26, 1962.
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      #3
      Re: Video problem and printer problem

      Squiggly lines or any other odd characters, artefacts, etc. displayed when booting are a symptom of a dying video card.

      I had an old Nvidia card that, for some unknown reason, decided to start disliking outputting to digital (DVI port) and the graphical part of my boot screen consisted of random characters and colours. The analogue (VGA port) still worked perfectly. It's odd, but it happens.

      Any chance you have or can borrow a spare card that will work with your computer? Another Nvidia card would be ideal, but really any card would help to narrow down the problem. Or, it is possible you have onboard video (most motherboards have them anymore whether you want/need it or not) and you could try that.

      Cheers
      Man by his very nature is dependent on other men.
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        #4
        Re: Video problem and printer problem

        Initially, Kubuntu had me using an onboard video card, but I installed the nvidia drivers... how do I go back to using that? Or, I did try to install a second monitor, which I would be happy to use as an external... but whenever I tried to add it, I got some error saying it could not save the xconfig...
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          #5
          Re: Video problem and printer problem

          Sorry, I seem to have missed the fact that you have a laptop.

          Another issue that has the symptoms you describe (still along the same lines as a dying video card) is heat problems. By any chance did the problem disappear after you left the laptop off for a long period of time and turn it back on?
          Man by his very nature is dependent on other men.
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            #6
            Re: Video problem and printer problem

            Originally posted by SIR_Taco
            Squiggly lines or any other odd characters, artefacts, etc. displayed when booting are a symptom of a dying video card.

            I had an old Nvidia card that, for some unknown reason, decided to start disliking outputting to digital (DVI port) and the graphical part of my boot screen consisted of random characters and colours. The analogue (VGA port) still worked perfectly. It's odd, but it happens.
            ...
            Was it because of THIS?
            Some chips of the GeForce 8 series (concretely those from the G84 and G86 series) may suffer from an overheating problem. NVIDIA states this issue should not affect many chips,[38] whereas others assert that all of the chips in these series are potentially affected.[38] NVIDIA CEO Jen-Hsun Huang and CFO Marvin Burkett were involved in a lawsuit filed on September 9, 2008 alleging that their knowledge of the flaw, and their intent to hide it, resulted in NVIDIA losing 31% on the stock markets.[39]

            The reason for the high failure rate was because of faulty solder material; when the GPU heated up and then cooled over its use, particularly when used in GPU intensive operations like games, the solder would become soft when hot, and when cool, that solder would crack, causing failure in the 8600M GT, 8600M GS, 8400M GT, and 8400M GS cards. It is widely acknowledged that these cards have a universal design flaw. It has also been speculated that mobile cards prior to the GeForce 8M series like the GeForce Go 7600 and earlier also have this design flaw, although it has not been proven
            "A nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.”
            – John F. Kennedy, February 26, 1962.
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              #7
              Re: Video problem and printer problem

              I have let the machine sit for sometime, and the problem still returns. Perhaps the problem is the video card. When I first installed Kubuntu a few weeks ago, I had to install the Nvidia drivers myself. Is it possible for me to revert back to an onboard card? I really don't need dedicated graphics on that system anymore.

              Thanks
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                #8
                Re: Video problem and printer problem

                Sure. Just open the BIOS at boot up and set the graphics back to the on board chip. Then shut down down and remove the card. When you boot back up the on board graphics chip will be the one used.
                "A nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people.”
                – John F. Kennedy, February 26, 1962.
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                  #9
                  Re: Video problem and printer problem

                  It is possible... but the problem is, from how I see it.... If you're having video problems when the computer starts (ie; before any operating system, drivers, etc. are loaded) then it's a hardware problem.
                  Man by his very nature is dependent on other men.
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                    #10
                    Re: Video problem and printer problem

                    I am trying to set up an external display, as the primary display for this laptop. When I try to activate my external monitor, I get this error.
                    "Unable to create new X config backup file '/etc/X11/xorg.conf.backup'." Can someone please explain to me how I can make my external monitor the default display for my laptop? I was told that while my laptop display may be pooped, the vga connector may still work.

                    Thanks
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