Re: x server crashing - sometimes

Stephen wrote:
Ray Parrish wrote:

Stephen wrote:

Stephen wrote:


Dear All

Kubuntu 8.10

I want to reduce the resolution as a way of improving the graphics and
text size as these are to small. I have seen these setting in two places:
1) K > System > System Settings > Display
2) K > System > KR and RTray Screen Resize & Rotate

When I chose either of these, the server exits to a login screen and I
have to login again. Odd, as I have used these before.
The most recent change I have made was in K > System > System Settings >
Desktop -All Effects tab, where I unticked most of the 3D options and
improved performance.

I would also like to reduce colour depth. When I last looked at the
settings for changing the resolution I did not see anything about
reducing the colour depth. I have looked around System Settings.

Any help appreciated

Stephen



Dear All

This issue has proved problematic to resolve. I have tried some
suggestions about editing /etc/X11/Xorg.conf, but what doesn't crash X
at start up makes no difference to the display.

I still have the problems of
1) most of the time I cannot access Display or KR and RTray Screen
Resize & Rotate.
2) When I maximise a window it is too wide for the screen and goes off
the right edge so losing the X out icon and other bits
3) Windows render slowly
4) I cannot control the resolution enough to have text on screen of a
size that I can read - it is all too small
5) When I had a 17inch screen I used a res on 1024 X 768, now I have a
wide screen 17inch (16/9 ratio), I think I want a res of 1280 X 768.
But I cannot access the display options to change it.

I have looked in the BIOS and up to 8MB of memory is allocated to the
onboard graphics. The pc has 1GB of RAM. If I installed a PCI graphics
card I would not have to make a change in the BIOS as it is already
configured to select a user installed graphics card if one is installed.
One of the editions of Linux Format had an article that mentioned
onboard/Intel graphics are problematic. Now I am fed up with the problem.

I want to explore installing a graphics card. Has any one any
recommendations that will allow me to overcome these problems and not
have to be fiddled with.

I appear to have two PCI slots and a very short slot above that - not
sure what it is.

Any recommendations welcomed.

Stephen


Hello,

Since you have 1 GB RAM, you have plenty to spare that can be assigned
to your on board video card's use. You state that the BIOS shows 8 MB's
currently assigned to the video card. This is way too low, and you
should be able to change that setting right there where it's displayed
in the BIOS. On my motherboard I have selections that start at 8 MB's,
and go all the way up to 256 MB's.

Currently I have this set to 64 MB's out of my 512 MB's of available
system RAM. This setting allows running in the highest graphics mode
with 3D acceleration, all of the eye candy features of Compiz enabled,
all with no problems whatsoever.

When I got this computer, it was set to use 128 MB's for the video card
and this seemed to work pretty good, but at times programs would gray
out and be unresponsive for a few seconds up to as much as a minute or
two. Now that I have reduced the video card to 64 MB's, I no longer have
the gray out problem.

An easy way to test and change video resolutions is with xvidtune. It
works in conjunction with a terminal, but is actually a small GUI
program. You start it from Terminal, and it then uses the terminal
screen to write modelines fetched from your system or which you create
with xvidtune to so you can inspect or copy them. On the GUI portion of
it, there are buttons which allow cycling through your available video
resolutions in either the up or down direction. The resolution changes
take place when you press one of these buttons immediately.

xvidtune also presents you with sliders to change the hsyncstart,
hsyncend, vyncstart, and vsyncend values for the current mode, and a
Test button to try any changes you make to those settings. xvidtune will
then warn you if your selections result in an invalid combination.

There are also Apply and Restore buttons which allow you to write your
changes to the xorg.conf file.

Later, Ray Parrish


Dear Ray

Thanks for the responses. I tried the BIOS to adjust the video memory
and it only allows selection between 1MB and 8MB. Nice idea but thwarted.

xvidtune was revealing. I started it as root as I assumed it had to
write to Xorg.conf, and it showed that my res is 1440 X 900. I could
indeed use the Left/Right, Wider/Narrower, up/down, shorter/taller
buttons. No sliders I am sorry to say.

However, when I adjusted using Narrower/Shorter and then pressed Test I
got an error message that "Sorry you have requested a Mode-Line that is
not possible, or not supported by your hardware or configuration"

Not sure if this is user error. Should I have logged out of the GUI (if
so not sure how to do that)?

Should I have used Wider/Taller?

Dell have replied to my enquiry and confirmed that can only use PCI
(not PCI express) graphics cards. Any recommendations if I am not able
to increase onboard video memory

Hope to hear from you

Stephen

Hello,

Sorry I've been off for a while, but making changes to the current
resolutions start and end parameters usually result in a fail message as
you experienced. The main thing I wanted you to try with xvidtune, was
the Next, and Prev buttons, which allow you to change between the
available video resolutions as they are currently set by your system,
since you stated that you had no way to change resolutions to try another.

Later, Ray Parrish

--
Human reviewed index of links about the computer
http://www.rayslinks.com
Poetry from the mind of a Schizophrenic
http://www.writingsoftheschizophrenic.com/


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