Video Cards for Linux / Accelerated Graphics

carbonbased

Ubuntu is running my ATI X1550 card without any tweaking, but there's no accelerated graphics, even though the card is capable at basic levels.

If you have had success with your graphics card on Linux, with full acceleration functions, I'd appreciate it if you'd list your card & driver source. I want to replace my card with one that is fully capable under Linux. I am not a gamer, but I am looking at cards at newegg.com in the $100-150 range. I want perfect graphics under Linux for a change. I just wrote over my last WinXP partition last night for a total Linux machine and I want it fully capable.

I appreciate your input.

Goineasy9

Radeon and Radeon HD drivers are getting more mature, but I still don't know if they can handle the advanced graphics that the proprietary drivers can do. Only problem, ATI proprietary drivers are a problem installing in Linux. Depending on what kernel your running and what version driver you need to install. Some folks have good luck installing, some have no luck. One app to install proprietary drivers for Debian and Ubuntu distros is called sgfxi. I hear that it's been having some luck with ATI drivers recently. You can search Techpatterns,com if your interested for download instructions.
If you really want good graphics with Linux, get a Nvidia card to replace the ATi card. Their drivers are easy to install and work perfectly on all my boxes.

Of course, I'm sure their are many other opinions.

carbonbased

Goineasy9 wrote:

Radeon and Radeon HD drivers are getting more mature, but I still don't know if they can handle the advanced graphics that the proprietary drivers can do. Only problem, ATI proprietary drivers are a problem installing in Linux. Depending on what kernel your running and what version driver you need to install. Some folks have good luck installing, some have no luck. One app to install proprietary drivers for Debian and Ubuntu distros is called sgfxi. I hear that it's been having some luck with ATI drivers recently. You can search Techpatterns,com if your interested for download instructions.
If you really want good graphics with Linux, get a Nvidia card to replace the ATi card. Their drivers are easy to install and work perfectly on all my boxes.

Of course, I'm sure their are many other opinions.

I appreciate the info. I heard an interview with Linus about the latest kernel in which he stated, if my bio-memory serves, that ATI had released a large amount of code to the kernel team and it was incorporated in the last release. 2 yrs. ago OpenSUSE just could not run this card correctly, even for basic video; but 3 wks. ago Ubuntu 9.10 runs all perfectly. I figured it was due to the code to which Linus referred.

Nevertheless, I keep reading, here and elsewhere, that Nvidia, generally, is the most Linux friendly, which matches what I read 2 yrs. ago. I have been experiencing difficulty getting reliable info on this matter, although I'm sure that my vague understanding of graphics lingo is not helping me to decipher what I do find.

mfillpot

Due to stability issues I stopped using ATI card years ago and moved to Nvidia. I recently setup Slackware on a laptop with a newer ATI card, the video quality was lacking, so I installed the propriety driver (it would not work with a 2.6.32 kernel so I had to roll back to a 2.6.29 kernel), after the update the card is working for the most part but it still throws some seg faults and dropped the enhanced effects randomly. I personally prefer older cards because the bugs have been worked out, I am currently using a fanless Nvidia 8400GS, it is low performance, but extremely stable and has had not issues running with the proprietary drivers.

Goineasy9

You know, one day there's going to be a great Radeon/HD driver that is all open source, unless some recent corporate takeovers leave some agreements hanging. But now, the Nvidia blob rules. It's too bad, there are a lot of nice laptops and motherboards out there with great ATI GPU's on board. Too bad they don't come with drivers that work other than in windows.

mfillpot

what is necessary for ATI to grasp that comparability is for then to do more than release specs and outdated code, but to have their engineers work with the opensource community and refine the opensource drivers to give them full compatibility. This will also hep ATI because they can use the input of the community to enhance their specifications and technology.

carbonbased

mfillpot wrote:

what is necessary for ATI to grasp that comparability is for then to do more than release specs and outdated code, but to have their engineers work with the opensource community and refine the opensource drivers to give them full compatibility. This will also hep ATI because they can use the input of the community to enhance their specifications and technology.

Corporate attitudes about ownership--locked in brain-loops.

carbonbased

As for cards with some age on them, the GeForce 9600 GT has been around a while, no?

mfillpot

That is technically an older card because it is what I used prior to the purchase of the 8400, the 9600 died from a power surge during a storm. MY general rules for hardware purchases is to give them a year to work out the kinks and write stable drivers.

Goineasy9

I have currently a 5200, 7300, 8400 and a 9800 Nvidia all working using the Nvidia blobs. I still haven't found a Nvidia card that won't work under Linux with their drivers.

carbonbased

Goineasy9 wrote:

I have currently a 5200, 7300, 8400 and a 9800 Nvidia all working using the Nvidia blobs. I still haven't found a Nvidia card that won't work under Linux with their drivers.

Thanks, I've been eying a 9800 today.