Problems with the screen resolution on a Dell PC

[ckamin]

After trying many of these Live CD runarounds on Dell comuters and HP computers

Looks like you have not yet found a solution in Knoppix that works for you? Maybe it is the budget (cheap) hardware you are trying it on. Dells and HPs are notorious for budget graphics and numerous display issues, especially in notebooks. Resolution and display errors can often be caused by insufficient graphics memory, improper driver selection, improper bios settings (Video Memory especially), the need of a Bios Update, etc. It sometimes takes a little experimentation to find a solution. That's the challenge of running an alternate OS.

I don't want to make a career commitment to get them to run.

Then you might want to go back to windows?

Knoppix is a total insult!

Just because YOU don't know how to make it work, doesn't mean Knoppix or any other distro is a bust! There are people out there that need to have their hands held to accomplish most simple tasks in life. That's why tech support people will ask "Is it plugged in? Is it turned on?" and so forth. So if it "Insults" you by not holding your hand, go out and get a puppy......No Wait.....Better not get something alive that you would have to care for or spend time with! Maybe a "Pet Rock?"

If their quality control is that poor, I just throw that ISO in the can and say well I wasted a little time!

AND exactly what were you expecting for NOTHING? Mine works fine and I paid about the same as you did, unless you "Bought" a disk. I just spent a little time to learn how to make it work without blaming someone else for my ignorance! I have been able to get Knoppix to work on EVERY system I have tried it on. Some have different issues and some have none, it takes perseverance and some intelligence to get them working. Sometimes there might be an issue that requires some extra effort, a workaround, or sometimes it requires a wait for a bug fix. I see many success stories and people that have found solutions to their dilemmas. I have also seen people give up and become frustrated because they do not have the patience and ability to make something work. I guess you can give up and not learn anything useful. I also suppose you can try to blame it on something/someone other than yourself. What distro have YOU produced recently?