[gentoo-user] Frame-buffer modes on an eee-pc

[gentoo-user] Frame-buffer modes on an eee-pc

[Peter Humphrey]

Hello list,

My wife has a nice new Asus 1005AH and I'm installing Gentoo on it so that 
she won't have to struggle with the likes of Lookout Inarush.

I've spent several days so far exploring blind alleys while getting the box 
to boot with a working Ethernet connection; eventually I discovered that I 
had to go to gentoo-sources-2.6.31, and I now have a running text-mode 
system.

While messing about at the weekend I found a frame-buffer mode I liked, but 
now I can't reproduce it. The graphics chip is an Intel 945GME Express, I 
have intelfb and i2c-dev compiled into the 2.6.31 kernel, and this grub 
entry:

root (hd0,4)
kernel /kernel-2.6.31-gentoo root=/dev/sda6 video=intelfb:mode=1024x600 
softlevel=no-x

When I accidentally hit on the configuration I liked, the display started at 
the standard 80x25, then when it got to "Waiting for uevents to be 
processed" the screen blanked and then continued in something like 60 lines 
(I didn't actually count them); finally at udev-postmount the line length 
was changef from 80 to something like 120 (I didn't count that either). A 
very pretty display, clear as crystal.

Can anybody point me to the config I need? I've tried google of course but 
no joy there.

-- 
Rgds
Peter

Re: [gentoo-user] Frame-buffer modes on an eee-pc

[Willie Wong]

On Tue, Sep 22, 2009 at 12:02:59PM +0100, Penguin Lover Peter Humphrey squawked:
> root (hd0,4)
> kernel /kernel-2.6.31-gentoo root=/dev/sda6 video=intelfb:mode=1024x600 
> softlevel=no-x
> 
> When I accidentally hit on the configuration I liked, the display started at 
> the standard 80x25, then when it got to "Waiting for uevents to be 
> processed" the screen blanked and then continued in something like 60 lines 
> (I didn't actually count them); finally at udev-postmount the line length 
> was changef from 80 to something like 120 (I didn't count that either). A 
> very pretty display, clear as crystal.
> 
> Can anybody point me to the config I need? I've tried google of course but 
> no joy there.

Is the framebuffer working? I mean, when you boot with the parameters
listed up there, are you stuck in 80x25 or are you in a framebuffer
mode that you don't like?

If you are stuck in 80x25 text-mode, the intelfb kernel documentation
suggests you try setting the vga mode, see the file vesafb.txt in your
kernel documentation directories for details. (The problem is that the
vesafb modes do not include one that is the native resolution for the
16:9 aspect ratio displays; on LCDs this will make the text look
crappy). 

If the framebuffer is working, maybe you just want to play with the
screen resolution? I think that 1024x600 is correct for the 1000
series though. Do you just want a certain number of rows and columns
of text on your console? That I think is determined by the FONTS
symbol, the configuration should be somewhere around where you enabled
framebuffer support. Changing the font size should also change the
number of rows and columns. 

On yres of 600, if you want something close to 60 lines, then you may
want to try using the 8x8 VGA font. The standard 8x16 fonts will
provide 30 someodd lines. 

W
-- 
REMEMBER: "Stressed" spelled backward is "desserts"
Sortir en Pantoufles: up 1019 days, 10:05

Re: [gentoo-user] Frame-buffer modes on an eee-pc

[Daniel da Veiga]

On Tue, Sep 22, 2009 at 08:02, Peter Humphrey <peter@humphrey.ukfsn.org> wrote:
> Hello list,
>
> My wife has a nice new Asus 1005AH and I'm installing Gentoo on it so that
> she won't have to struggle with the likes of Lookout Inarush.
>
> I've spent several days so far exploring blind alleys while getting the box
> to boot with a working Ethernet connection; eventually I discovered that I
> had to go to gentoo-sources-2.6.31, and I now have a running text-mode
> system.
>
> While messing about at the weekend I found a frame-buffer mode I liked, but
> now I can't reproduce it. The graphics chip is an Intel 945GME Express, I
> have intelfb and i2c-dev compiled into the 2.6.31 kernel, and this grub
> entry:
>
> root (hd0,4)
> kernel /kernel-2.6.31-gentoo root=/dev/sda6 video=intelfb:mode=1024x600
> softlevel=no-x
>
> When I accidentally hit on the configuration I liked, the display started at
> the standard 80x25, then when it got to "Waiting for uevents to be
> processed" the screen blanked and then continued in something like 60 lines
> (I didn't actually count them); finally at udev-postmount the line length
> was changef from 80 to something like 120 (I didn't count that either). A
> very pretty display, clear as crystal.
>
> Can anybody point me to the config I need? I've tried google of course but
> no joy there.
>

Have you tried:
http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/Intel_GMA

Specially the part that explains the new Kernel Modesetting?

The new GEM and some new features in newer kernels are pretty much all
I neeeded for my framebuffer.
-- 
Daniel da Veiga

Re: [gentoo-user] Frame-buffer modes on an eee-pc

[Peter Humphrey]

On Tuesday 22 September 2009 12:33:59 Willie Wong wrote:

> Is the framebuffer working? I mean, when you boot with the parameters
> listed up there, are you stuck in 80x25 or are you in a framebuffer
> mode that you don't like?

No, the fram buffer is not active - I just get 80x25, or some others if I 
pass a vga= parameter to the kernel.

> If you are stuck in 80x25 text-mode, the intelfb kernel documentation
> suggests you try setting the vga mode, see the file vesafb.txt in your
> kernel documentation directories for details. (The problem is that the
> vesafb modes do not include one that is the native resolution for the
> 16:9 aspect ratio displays; on LCDs this will make the text look
> crappy).

And I haven't been able to get the fesa fb to work either.

Incidentally, if I have both intelfb and vesafb compiled in (*), vesafb 
takes over in spite of have intelfb specified via grub. Not what I 
expected.

> If the framebuffer is working, maybe you just want to play with the
> screen resolution? I think that 1024x600 is correct for the 1000
> series though. Do you just want a certain number of rows and columns
> of text on your console? That I think is determined by the FONTS
> symbol, the configuration should be somewhere around where you enabled
> framebuffer support. Changing the font size should also change the
> number of rows and columns.

1024x600 is correct, I'm sure of it. Fiddling with the fonts may help but 
I'd rather get the underlying screen resolution right first if I can.

> On yres of 600, if you want something close to 60 lines, then you may
> want to try using the 8x8 VGA font. The standard 8x16 fonts will
> provide 30 someodd lines.

Thanks for the ideas.

* Thanks also to Daniel; I'd overlooked gentoo-wiki, where there seems to be 
lots of good advice. I'll have a go at that later.

-- 
Rgds
Peter

Re: [gentoo-user] Frame-buffer modes on an eee-pc

[Daniel da Veiga]

On Tue, Sep 22, 2009 at 14:20, Peter Humphrey <peter@humphrey.ukfsn.org> wrote:
> On Tuesday 22 September 2009 12:33:59 Willie Wong wrote:
>
>> Is the framebuffer working? I mean, when you boot with the parameters
>> listed up there, are you stuck in 80x25 or are you in a framebuffer
>> mode that you don't like?
>
> No, the fram buffer is not active - I just get 80x25, or some others if I
> pass a vga= parameter to the kernel.
>
>> If you are stuck in 80x25 text-mode, the intelfb kernel documentation
>> suggests you try setting the vga mode, see the file vesafb.txt in your
>> kernel documentation directories for details. (The problem is that the
>> vesafb modes do not include one that is the native resolution for the
>> 16:9 aspect ratio displays; on LCDs this will make the text look
>> crappy).
>
> And I haven't been able to get the fesa fb to work either.
>
> Incidentally, if I have both intelfb and vesafb compiled in (*), vesafb
> takes over in spite of have intelfb specified via grub. Not what I
> expected.
>
>> If the framebuffer is working, maybe you just want to play with the
>> screen resolution? I think that 1024x600 is correct for the 1000
>> series though. Do you just want a certain number of rows and columns
>> of text on your console? That I think is determined by the FONTS
>> symbol, the configuration should be somewhere around where you enabled
>> framebuffer support. Changing the font size should also change the
>> number of rows and columns.
>
> 1024x600 is correct, I'm sure of it. Fiddling with the fonts may help but
> I'd rather get the underlying screen resolution right first if I can.
>
>> On yres of 600, if you want something close to 60 lines, then you may
>> want to try using the 8x8 VGA font. The standard 8x16 fonts will
>> provide 30 someodd lines.
>
> Thanks for the ideas.
>
> * Thanks also to Daniel; I'd overlooked gentoo-wiki, where there seems to be
> lots of good advice. I'll have a go at that later.
>

As an owner (701 and 900), I researched a lot, and found this:

http://code.toofishes.net/cgit/dan/eee.git/tree/kernel-eee/kernelconfig

Its an Arch developer that makes a binary package (an eee specific
kernel), but he publishes all info using git (including the kernel
config file). You can use that to compile your own kernel and it will
give you a perfectly working framebuffer at native resolution (800x480
in 701, and 1024x600 in 900).

-- 
Daniel da Veiga

Re: [gentoo-user] Frame-buffer modes on an eee-pc

[Peter Humphrey]

On Tuesday 22 September 2009 18:33:30 Daniel da Veiga wrote:

> As an owner (701 and 900), I researched a lot, and found this:
>
> http://code.toofishes.net/cgit/dan/eee.git/tree/kernel-eee/kernelconfig

An interesting link - thanks. His hardware differs from mine and it's not 
easy to pick out the differences I want from those I don't; I think I've 
got most of the right things though.

> Its an Arch developer that makes a binary package (an eee specific
> kernel), but he publishes all info using git (including the kernel
> config file). You can use that to compile your own kernel and it will
> give you a perfectly working framebuffer at native resolution (800x480
> in 701, and 1024x600 in 900).

I do now have a 127x37 text console, which looks like the one I described 
but is activated earlier. It'll do nicely. I assume it's 1024x600.

Two problems remain (until I solve those and expose the next layer!):

1.	On starting X I find that the keyboard and mouse are not connected. I can 
ssh in and reboot the machine, so it's still alive - just not responsive to 
me at the keyboard. I've tried an xorg.conf from X -configure, and I've 
tried without. More investigation to do here.

2.	The wireless network. This uses an Atheros chip, device 168c:002b, not 
quite the same as the chips described on gentoo-wiki. Has anyone here got 
this system working? Do I need madwifi, for instance? The old laptop this 
netbook will replace has a madwifi installation that I could plagiarise.

-- 
Rgds
Peter

Re: [gentoo-user] Frame-buffer modes on an eee-pc

[Peter Humphrey]

On Thursday 24 September 2009 16:19:15 I wrote:

> Two problems remain (until I solve those and expose the next layer!):
>
> 1.	On starting X I find that the keyboard and mouse are not connected. I
> can ssh in and reboot the machine, so it's still alive - just not
> responsive to me at the keyboard. I've tried an xorg.conf from X
> -configure, and I've tried without. More investigation to do here.

This one was easy, though I didn't find the answer straight away - it seems 
I'd omitted to add hald and dbus to the default run-level.

> 2.	The wireless network. This uses an Atheros chip, device 168c:002b, not
> quite the same as the chips described on gentoo-wiki. Has anyone here got
> this system working? Do I need madwifi, for instance? The old laptop this
> netbook will replace has a madwifi installation that I could plagiarise.

No problem here either.

If anyone wants to know what I did to get the wlan working they've only to 
ask.

-- 
Rgds
Peter