Monitor not detected during Knoppix-on-CD bootup

[george5]

My monitor is a Gateway2000 Crystalscan 1024, or so it says on the front panel ...

My system is a PSET6-ML with a Celeron processor running at 333MHz with 128MB memory, in which I'm attempting to boot Knoppix on a CD that I downloaded from this site and burned with CDRToaster on a debian PC.

There's no hard drive (problems detecting a Maxtor D540X-4K regarding the user-entered settings). If you can tell me those BIOS settings, too, I'd be tickled pink.

All's well until Knoppix starts ... it goes all the way through the setup process, but all that I can see is a four-fold version of the screen - four identical columns overlapping each other like a newspaper page. Can't begin to see what I'm doing, of course. I could could burn another CD and then watch that while entering data from the keyboard, sorta like operating a Mars rover ...

I'm hoping to dig up some linux-compatible drivers that I can write to a floppy disk and then access during the Knoppix bootup.

Thanks,
George (aka george5)

[Harry Kuhman]

I doubt if you will need drivers at all, just the right "cheat code(s)". Cheat codes are input parameters included after the word knoppix on the boot prompt line that help Knoppix through it's hardware detection process, or (as in this case) when the default option doesn't work right for you. In your case I expect that Knoppix is starting the display at a scan rate or a resolution that is wrong for your monitor (and from the name of the monitor that you gave I would guess it's a scan rate issue). Follow the Documentation link near the top of this page and read the wiki section on cheat codes, look for ones that let you lower the scan rate or resolution. I don't know the specs for your monitor, if you do just use something that should work, if not 60 frames per second is usualy safe, and if all else fails force the display to 800x600 until you get something else working.

Good Luck.

[george5]

Harry Kuhman said:
> ... In your case I expect that Knoppix is starting the display at a scan rate or a resolution that is wrong for your monitor (and from the name of the monitor that you gave I would guess it's a scan rate issue).

Sounds right - After my first post I discovered the other tools available on the CD and I'm just now finishing a memory test. The monitor is perfectly happy in what looks like sixteen color VGA. So it must be KDE that needs the nudge in the right direction.

The board is a recent acquisition which I'm testing stark naked - the board, that is. It took a while to discover how to start it without a start switch. Then it took a few tries until I realized the board was expecting a momentary-contact switch. Now I can start it just fine. Runs stone cold during the memory test ... that's a good sign.

However, what I've tried so far:
"knoppix xvrefresh=60"
"knoppix screen=1024x768"
"knoppix screen=1024x768 xvrefresh=60"
All give me four penguins spread across the screen ...

Best regards,
George

[UnderScore]

try
knoppix vga=normal

[george5]

Underscore suggested:
> try
> knoppix vga=normal

Unsuccessful so far:
knoppix vga=0
knoppix vga=normal

Aha ! See:
http://cvs.sourceforge.jp/cgi-bin/viewcvs.cgi/ya-knoppix-jp/yak-hwdata/MonitorsDB?rev=HEAD
where it says:
> Gateway; Gateway CrystalScan 1024; cs1024; 31.5-35.5; 50-90; 1
So I tried:
knoppix vga=normal xvrefresh=33

During shutdown I got a couple of messages:
> Pid 2004 [id3] seems to hang
> Pid 2014 [id4] seems to hang

Now I'll try:
knoppix vga=normal xvrefresh=33 xhrefresh=70

Some progress ... System tried several different X windows, then gave up:
> Knoppix: Starting the X Window System.....
> Retrying with Server XFree86(vesa) .
> Retrying with Server XFree86(fbdev) .
> Unloading unneeded AGP modules ...
> Error: No suitable X-Server found for your card.

Different error messages:
> Pid 2003 [id2] seems to hang
> Pid 2027 [id3] seems to hang
> Pid 2028 [id4] seems to hang

So I tried a spare video card ...

> Knoppix: Starting the X Window System.....
> Retrying with Server XFree86(vesa) .
> Retrying with Server XFree86(fbdev) .
> Unloading unneeded AGP modules ...
> Error: No suitable X-Server found for your card.

None of those other error messages. That's progress !

Same result: X-Server didn't start. I'm out of ideas for a while.

What's the "1" mean at the end of the data for the monitor ?
> Gateway; Gateway CrystalScan 1024; cs1024; 31.5-35.5; 50-90; 1

Thanks,
George

[Harry Kuhman]

I know that you have every reason to expect the monitor to work at 1024x768 mode and want it to work at that mode, but just for the sake of science try "knoppix screen=800x600" and see if it helps. Also, if the monitor has OSD (on screen display), look at the frequency settings for the display when it is displaying at 1024x768 mode in that other operating system, and those scan rates will be ones that you know that you can safely use in Linux also.

[george5]

Harry Kuhman suggested:
> "knoppix screen=800x600"

There was something missing there ("wrong screen mode ...") so I tried:
knoppix vga=normal screen=800x600 xvrefresh=33 xhrefresh=78
But that was also unsuccessful, with essentially the same results as before.

However, at some point I saw:
> Video is TGVI9660 (generic)|TGVI 9660/968x/968x, using XF86_SVGA(vesa) Server
> Monitor is Generic Monitor, H:28.0-96.0kHz, V:50.0-75.0Hz

Those numbers are at odds with the Sourceforge data quoted before:
> Gateway; Gateway CrystalScan 1024; cs1024; 31.5-35.5; 50-90; 1
That is, the xvrefresh is 50-75Hz where Crystalscan1024 wants [only] 33Hz.

Therefore, just for the scientific fun of it, I tried:
knoppix vga=normal screen=800x600 xvrefresh=60 xhrefresh=78
This time it managed to start the GUI, but in four-penguins format, which is where this all started.

What I'm seeing at the end of the startup process is four copies of the main Knoppix screen. I also see four pointers, which I can move around with the mouse, and I can get some menus to open, but I can't quite read enough to find out where to change the screen resolution.

BTW, in another debian system, I have managed to get this monitor to work OK.
Also in that "other" OS. It wasn't easy - lots of hunting for drivers.

Thanks,
George

[Harry Kuhman]

so I tried:
knoppix vga=normal screen=800x600 xvrefresh=33 xhrefresh=78
But that was also unsuccessful, with essentially the same results as before.
I'm not certain but I suspect that the vga=normal may be conflicting with the other settings; I would try the above but leave the vga normal out. Or try knoppix screen=800x600 xvrefresh=33 xhrefresh=70 since the information below indicates that the system thinks that 70 is the top vertical frequency for the monitor. Or even knoppix xvrefresh=33 xhrefresh=70


However, at some point I saw:
> Video is TGVI9660 (generic)|TGVI 9660/968x/968x, using XF86_SVGA(vesa) Server
> Monitor is Generic Monitor, H:28.0-96.0kHz, V:50.0-75.0Hz

Those numbers are at odds with the Sourceforge data quoted before:
> Gateway; Gateway CrystalScan 1024; cs1024; 31.5-35.5; 50-90; 1
That is, the xvrefresh is 50-75Hz where Crystalscan1024 wants [only] 33Hz.

No, I think your monitor is saying that it supports 50-90 hz, so a generic setting of 50-70 should be suitable (although some people can see the flicker a bit and prefer to get as high a frequency as they can). the 31.5-35.5 for your monitor should be in khz and the horizontal frequency (as opposed to the vertical 50-90 hz). But note that the generic setting thinks it can use a much wider range here of 28-96khz. This is most likely the source of the problem, Knoppix is likely trying to use a frequency outside of what the monitor will lock into for the horizontal frequency (you are also cautioned to not leave the monitor run at the wrong frequencies for any length of time, as it can damage some monitors).

[george5]

Solved !

Harry Kuhner figgered it out:
> the 31.5-35.5 for your monitor should be in khz and the horizontal frequency (as opposed to the vertical 50-90 hz). But note that the generic setting thinks it can use a much wider range here of 28-96khz.

So I tried:
knoppix screen=800x600 xvrefresh=60 xhrefresh=33
Then I ignored the dire warning about passing an improper mode (or some such ... not a kidney stone) ...
and pressed on ... Bingo ! Success at last. Now I can trust the video driver & motherboard.

Thanks to Harry especially for sticking with me for the entire duration - most of the day.

Best regards,
George