Well, I won't find out what happens to a kernel compiled mistakenly under root, the compile failed around bttv (more lm sensor, or actually i2c joy ) which frankly I didn't think I even had enabled in the config.

Eco, please dink away at this, your input is much appreciated. I will take the 2.4.25-1 kernel under consideration, I have been trying all 3 methods of lm sensor installing (or rather i2c because I think that is where the prob lies): 1. outside of kernel but compiled against a "pure" 2.4.24-xfs running. 2. semi-patch of kernel tree and 3. running the mkpatch and then compiling the whole dang thing over with the newly patch i2c modules. Abysmal failure. Under no conditions have I ever had /etc/modutils/local which sensors dectect always tells me to edit to add alias char-major- 89 i2c-dev. I have checked several debian lm-sensor documentation and indeed there shold be a /etc/modutils/local <sniffle>

Where I am probably going wrong is it does say to use a vanilla and not a patched kernel no matter what method. I have been using 2.4.24-xfs for the xfs as something or another hadn't made it into unstable yet at the time this knoppix was mastered.

Cuddles, or anyone with a successful lm- sensors going, could you tell me the result of uname -r? I can't believe anymore that it is possible against a 2.4.24-xfs.anything. Once I can get the modules going properly, I don't care about which front-end, I have at times had ksensors going (they are working fine for fans and proc numbers) but don't have any preference.

I just don't know why I keep pounding away at this rather than switching distros. Or waiting for 3.4 which may have the newer i2c (2.8 whatever) already. Stubborn, I guess