Installing Ubuntu - screen res problem?

[koocha]

Hey

I've installed Ubuntu for my first ever Linux distro. Had a few probs but sorted them all out apart from one:



I guess it's the resolution that my monitor can't handle.

So the question is, how can I change it? Please bear in mind I know nothing about linux

Cheers

Tim

[jamin]

To me it looks like theres a problem with the vid card driver in gnome, monitors normally shut off or go into stndby rather than displaying gobbledegook like that if the res is wrong. Out of interest which version of Ubuntu did you use? The latest one is 6.06. Does the monitor display anything on boot up? ie does it display text when booting and then switch to rubbish?

I use Ubuntu on a couple of systems and have not seen anything like this!

[koocha]

Hi

I'm using 6.06 (dapper?)

It loads fine, says Ubuntu in the middle in brown/orange with the writing underneath and then...BAM!

It's running on the machine in my sig

[Splash]

Can you get to console from there?

http://linux.about.com/od/ubuntu_doc/a/ubudg24t8.htm should help!

[aidanjt]

Hi

I'm using 6.06 (dapper?)

It loads fine, says Ubuntu in the middle in brown/orange with the writing underneath and then...BAM!

It's running on the machine in my sig

You're using the wrong/buggy drivers, you didn't happen to try to install nVidia's driver on Ubuntu?.. I don't know Ubuntu very well so i don't know any nice ways it has for doing this stuff, but default Xorg (the windowing system on UNIX) is configured by /etc/X11/xorg.conf, change the driver type to 'vesa' or something to get your desktop back up.

To be honest, SuSE has much better automatic hardware support and is better supported by companies who insist on releasing binary only drivers/software.

[koocha]

You're using the wrong/buggy drivers, you didn't happen to try to install nVidia's driver on Ubuntu?.. I don't know Ubuntu very well so i don't know any nice ways it has for doing this stuff, but default Xorg (the windowing system on UNIX) is configured by /etc/X11/xorg.conf, change the driver type to 'vesa' or something to get your desktop back up.

To be honest, SuSE has much better automatic hardware support and is better supported by companies who insist on releasing binary only drivers/software.

I don't fancy downloading a whole distro again. I havewn't had chance to try and install nvidia drivers yet.

So is SuSE the best distro for newbies?

[aidanjt]

I'd say so, configuring all system stuff is done entirely in Xorg with YaST, and SaX2 for changing Xorg configurations, and testing them too, so you wont get nasty Xorg initiation problems like you're having now.

[koocha]

Can you get to console from there?

http://linux.about.com/od/ubuntu_doc/a/ubudg24t8.htm should help!

I'll give it a go when I get home. Tansk for that.

But what do I do once I'm there...

[aidanjt]

I'll give it a go when I get home. Tansk for that.

But what do I do once I'm there...

You'd have to learn Linux

Edit your /etc/X11/xorg.conf file until you have a working X again.

[jamin]

So is SuSE the best distro for newbies?

Don't give up so easily!!!! The only way you will learn linux is by working through the problems as they happen! The learning curve going from Windoze to linux is steep but very rewarding!

[aidanjt]

Don't give up so easily!!!! The only way you will learn linux is by working through the problems as they happen! The learning curve going from Windoze to linux is steep but very rewarding!

Fixing Xorg.conf problems is never straight foward, and it's the one sure way of putting a newbie off Linux forever, SuSE keeps Xorg stuff simple and they can start actually learning Linux and bash in Konsole (or whatever) instead of fumbling around in the dark.

[mike_w]

You should be able to view /etc/X11/xorg.conf by typing nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf. To make changes, you'll need to type sudo nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf.

Once you've done that, there should be a little section for your graphics card. Mine looks like this:

Section "Device"
        Identifier      "NVIDIA Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600/GeForce 6600 GT]"
        Driver          "nvidia"
EndSection

From there, you can tell what driver Ubuntu is using. If it isn't already, you can try changing the driver from "nvidia", "nv" or what is there to "vesa". Hit Ctrl and X to exit, save the file, and try rebooting.

[koocha]

You should be able to view /etc/X11/xorg.conf by typing nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf. To make changes, you'll need to type sudo nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf.

Once you've done that, there should be a little section for your graphics card. Mine looks like this:

Section "Device"
        Identifier      "NVIDIA Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600/GeForce 6600 GT]"
        Driver          "nvidia"
EndSection

From there, you can tell what driver Ubuntu is using. If it isn't already, you can try changing the driver from "nvidia", "nv" or what is there to "vesa". Hit Ctrl and X to exit, save the file, and try rebooting.

Thanks for helping me out, I can get to the console so I'll print your instructions and see what happens from there

[koocha]

Right, here's how it went

I got to the console, logged in, typed nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf and found the bit I wanted. It was listed as "nv".

Like you said, it wouldn't let me save the file so I then typed sudo nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf and it went straight back the the prompt underneath it.

Any ideas?

[dom_xbox]

I like LiveCd Distros... Knoppix, DSL

I tried debian sarge something had a problem with a video card driver as well (ATi i think it was)..

Mandrake 10.1 was quite user friendly but was a 2gb ISO..

does ubunto come with Gnome by default or does it allow you to use KDE or IceWm etc?

And yes i am a Linux noob too

[mike_w]

Right, here's how it went

I got to the console, logged in, typed nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf and found the bit I wanted. It was listed as "nv".

Like you said, it wouldn't let me save the file so I then typed sudo nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf and it went straight back the the prompt underneath it.

Any ideas?

How odd. I rarely use sudo so I'm not sure why it isn't working (assuming sudo is the problem). You should get a prompt asking for your password when you try and use sudo. Can you use sudo in conjuntion with other commands? (Just try something simple, such as sudo ls)

You could download a very small LiveCD (such as Damn Small Linux) to try and edit the file, or you can log in as root, which requires a little fiddling (and also assumes that sudo is actually working). It's all detailed here: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Ro...27208117e9499d, although it is far from long or hard. To quote:

To enable the root account (i.e. set a password) use:

sudo passwd root

Enter your existing password
Enter password for root
Confirm password for root

If that worked, you should then be able to log in as root by typing su, then using your new root password. From there, you can just type nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf, and edit away.