getting started

[kelly_s]

k so im up and running on debian 3.1 and i am starting to get the hang of it i think. i have no idea to set my screen resolution higher and expand my desktop onto my dual monitor. my resolution is at 800x640 and i have a ati 9000 pro. i tried to download the driver for the card but i have no idea how to install it. it just goes to gedit and says taht it isnt the right codec. thanks a lot guys

[antidrugue]

To install the ATI drivers, check out this thread :
http://www.linuxforums.org/forum/deb...850-x-run.html

To change the resolution, you need to edit the file /etc/X11/XF86Config-4. As there are many threads on that subject, searching the forum for the exact answer is left as an exercice

[kelly_s]

i tried to do that in terminal when im in root but it says permission denied. is the terminal the command line. im a total newb at this but once i get my head wrapped around a few thing ill learn pretty fast.

[antidrugue]

is the terminal the command line.

Yep, it is.

First, download the latest ATI driver : https://a248.e.akamai.net/f/674/9206...ler-8.28.8.run

Then install "fakeroot" (you need to be root for that -- check the end of this post for more info on root) :

apt-get install fakeroot

Second, prepare the ATI packages from the file your downloaded (as a normal user, so "exit" root mode):

chmod +x ./ati-driver-installer-8.28.8.run 
fakeroot ./ati-driver-installer-8.28.8.run --buildpkg Debian/sarge

Third, install the required resulting packages (only those 2 are required) -- you need to be root to install them:

dpkg -i fglrx-driver_8.28.8-1_i386.deb fglrx-kernel-src_8.28.8-1_i386.deb

Then install the kernel headers (being root as well)

apt-get install kernel-headers-$(uname -r)

At this point you must build the "fglrx" module with module-assistant (still being root):

apt-get install module-assistant 
cd /usr/src
m-a prepare 
m-a a-i fglrx

Finally make sure your /etc/X11/XF86Config-4 file is correctly configured. A little hint there :
http://www.stanchina.net/~flavio/deb...html#configure


***************
You can use the terminal and become root by typing :

su

and then type your password (it won't appear as you type it).

To exit root and be a normal user again, type :

exit

[kelly_s]

thanks a lot. i guess the driver is installed. i made it all the way down but when im in the terminal and i put in /etc/X11/XF86Config-4 while im su it says permission denied. i really appreciate all the help.

[antidrugue]

/etc/X11/XF86Config-4 while im su it says permission denied.

While being root, you can edit a file with any text editor, like nano for example :

nano /etc/X11/XF86Config-4

[NickKisialiou]

Antidrugue, thank you for the installation notes. I can confirm that it works fine on Debian/sarge-2.4.27-2-386 with ATI Radeon XPRESS 200.

As an interesting thing I noticed that the KDE is a bit faster now with the new driver. A standard "vesa" driver works OK with ATI Radeon XPRESS 200 as well, and it took me a while to install a real driver.

Nick Kisialiou

[kelly_s]

k i got the resolution fixed. the nano was the trick. thanks a lot. one thing i noticed is that i dont think that the driver is installed correctly. in the XF86Congif-4 it says
Section "Device"
Identifier "Generic Video Card"
Driver "vesa"
EndSection

sorry if im being a pest but im learning and really appreciate the patience. thanks a lot

[NickKisialiou]

k i got the resolution fixed. the nano was the trick. thanks a lot. one thing i noticed is that i dont think that the driver is installed correctly. in the XF86Congif-4 it says
Section "Device"
Identifier "Generic Video Card"
Driver "vesa"
EndSection

sorry if im being a pest but im learning and really appreciate the patience. thanks a lot

You have to manually change it (as root) for
Driver "fglrx"
save the config file and restart your x-server.