Thomas, Again, many thanks for your prompt help and invaluable insights. Alex wrote (among other things): >> I do not know a way to ?switch off the monitor detection in >> Windows and use a fixed rate there?. I?d appreciate a pointer >> from you here ? Thomas replies: > Haven't been using Windows for ages, but I guess you'll find this > in the Display properties somewhere. I?ve seen Windows pretty recently so I strongly believe there isn?t such a way (actually the main reason for starting this thread). While new to this forum, I have to assume that beside the expected hard-core Linux aficionados who wouldn?t touch Windows with a ten-foot pole, one might encounter many disaffected Windows users and, with any luck, even recent, disgusted Windows defectors for whom the notion of not being able to fix the refresh rate of the Windows video driver was too much to bear and the last straw. Any comments pro/con are warmly invited and details dismissing my above claim will be happily appreciated and followed. By a really strange coincidence, ever since I converted to 4.4 I?ve been fascinated by what I perceived to be the impossibility of fixing the video driver parameters in _Linux_. (that was before I discovered the subject problem with Windows). Thomas, I sent you an E-mail to this effect at the time, probably lost in the cyber fog. I never expected to be so fortunate to meet you here in this forum, so I?m now taking the liberty of reproducing in full, unedited, the letter (and the questions included therein, at the end) below, so you can comment. The E-mail is dated Aug 25, 2004. Subject: XF86Config Mode Questions Dear Dr. Winischhofer, First and foremost, many thanks for your excellent Linux SiS drivers. I have an ASUS machine (P4S533-MX) with SiS651 as North Bridge. I worked with your 4.2 driver (on 2.6.7) and now I'm happily stable on 4.4 and 2.6.8.1. Also, your Linux/SiS/vga page is absolutely impressive! Good to know there are still professionals around! Everything is AOK; however, I'm a little confused about how XFree86 and your SiS driver handle the "modes" feature. I'd very much appreciate if you can clear me up on a few questions below (at your leisure, of course - as I said, everything is just fine, SiS driver-wise). ------------------------------------------------------------------ In my '/etc/X11/XF86Config' file there are only two "modes" lines, one a comment: # Default "1024x768": 94.5 MHz (Dot Clock), 68.7 kHz (Horiz.), 85 Hz (refresh) and the other one the "main" line: ModeLine "1024x768" 94.50 1024 1072 1168 1376 768 769 772 808 +hsync +vsync Then, in the Section "Screen", this I got this Subsection: Subsection "Display" Depth 24 Modes "1024x768" ViewPort 0 0 EndSubsection The '/var/log/XFree86.0.log' file has these related lines (excerpt): XFree86 Version 4.4.0 Release Date: 29 February 2004 X Protocol Version 11, Revision 0, Release 6.6 ... Markers: (--) probed, (**) from config file, (==) default setting, (++) from command line, (!!) notice, (II) informational, (WW) warning, (EE) error, (NI) not implemented, (??) unknown. ... (II) SIS(0): SiS driver (2004/08/20-1) (II) SIS(0): Copyright (C) 2001-2004 Thomas Winischhofer> and others (II) SIS(0): Compiled for XFree86 version 4.4.0.0 ... (II) SIS(0): Not using default mode "1024x768" (vrefresh out of range) (II) SIS(0): Not using default mode "1024x768" (hsync out of range) ... (--) SIS(0): Virtual size is 1024x768 (pitch 1024) (**) SIS(0): *Mode "1024x768": 94.5 MHz, 68.7 kHz, 85.0 Hz (II) SIS(0): Modeline "1024x768" 94.50 1024 1072 1168 1376 768 769 772 808 +hsync +vsync (**) SIS(0): Default mode "1024x768": 94.5 MHz, 68.7 kHz, 85.0 Hz (II) SIS(0): Modeline "1024x768" 94.50 1024 1072 1168 1376 768 769 772 808 +hsync +vsync (**) SIS(0): Default mode "1024x768": 78.7 MHz, 60.0 kHz, 75.0 Hz (II) SIS(0): Modeline "1024x768" 78.75 1024 1040 1136 1312 768 769 772 800 +hsync +vsync (**) SIS(0): Default mode "1024x768": 75.2 MHz, 56.6 kHz, 70.2 Hz (II) SIS(0): Modeline "1024x768" 75.17 1024 1048 1184 1328 768 771 777 806 - hsync -vsync ... (**) SIS(0): Default mode "320x200": 12.5 MHz, 31.3 kHz, 70.9 Hz (D) (II) SIS(0): Modeline "320x200" 12.53 320 328 376 400 200 206 207 221 doublescan -hsync +vsync (--) SIS(0): Display dimensions: (370, 280) mm ... (II) SIS(0): Restoring by setting old mode 0x03 -------------------------------------------------------------- Questions: 1. My monitor (Hitachi CM715) display is perfect at 1024x768 @ 85 Hz, i.e. as "suggested" by my (only) Modeline. 'XF86Config' does not contain the other "Default mode" lines, contrary to what the log seems to indicate (by the ** marker) 2. I noticed in your 'XF86Config' examples that you no longer seem to favor the usage of Modelines. If the many "Not using default mode ... " log entries represent some sort of "probing" - with its expected delay of X's startup - shouldn't a Modeline like mine still be useful to force a direct, immediate setting of the driver parameters and thus avoid all this extra work of checking out all the other (unnecessary) configurations? 3. What does the single star in front of the ?*Mode 1024x768?: ...? mean? Once again, very appreciative of your body of work and thankful for the outstanding drivers, Best Wishes, -- Alex _______________________________________________ XFree86 mailing list XFree86@xxxxxxxxxxx http://XFree86.Org/mailman/listinfo/xfree86
