slack 8.1 no screen found

[menjaha]

wanted to try linux several times but not gotten around to try it until now..i got it all installed but i cant start "startx" because i problably dont have the drivers or the setup is wrong..
got a VIA EPIA-V mini-ITX C3-533MHz motherboard with a onboard grafix chip, so i guess the via4in1 would work. but how do i install it? got a cd-rom in the machine and internet to it(but dont know if it works to download anything yet, ive set it to DHCP anyway)

anyone could guide me through this problem?^_^
or is it also the setup that is wrong? what should i do to make it work?

[sclebo05]

for your graphics card, log in as root (or su) and run xf86config

it should set up your hardware for you

[menjaha]

i tried that but doesnt seem to work..

[JohnT]

Break your problem down a bit better, if youcould.....I'm not sure I understand all the components of it.Do you have Slack installed and just are not able to start a GUI? Are you connected to the net? If so you can upgrade your 8.1 to Slack current via swaret, which is what I would suggest, as a newer version of XFree86 would more than likely solve your problem. From boot to the first login....login as root and at that point run xf86config ....dont login as user then su to root to run xf86config. I'm not saying it cant be done but in this case dont.

[JohnT]

Originally posted by menjaha
i tried that but doesnt seem to work..


Please not so much detail as to the results of running it that way<sarcasm>:p

[voidinit]

Originally posted by sclebo05
for your graphics card, log in as root (or su) and run xf86config

it should set up your hardware for you

Well, not exactly. Slackware 8.1 doesn't really have a utility to help you set up X. The only utitlity I've ever been able to configure slack with has been vim.

I'm sure someone out there has a similar chipset/config. I recommend going to http://www.google.com/linux and keying in your graphics chipset +XF86Config. Replace the your graphics chipset with the chipset you are actually using. It might return some hints about what your /etc/X11/XF86Config should look like in order to start an Xserver for your specific graphics chipset.

[menjaha]

Originally posted by JohnT
Please not so much detail as to the results of running it that way<sarcasm>:p
im total newb so ^_^

anyway i followed (just typed xf86config to run it)the instruction where it said give resolution and hz..didnt do anything manual.
tried the standard setting(640x480), 800x600 super vga, and some 1024x768

gonna try google for it
how can i open it so i can edit the xf86config freely? thanks^_^

[serz]

Try opening it with mcedit, you probably have it. installed in your system.

[sclebo05]

Lol, i started using slack at 9, you mean there are no X config tools at all in 8.1? man, i am embarrassed!

[menjaha]

there are tools its just that i dont know how to use them^_-
gonna try "mcedit" later see what i can do

btw: is there a command to shut the computer off? now im just pressing the power button

[JohnT]

Were you able to bring up the xf86config script? If yes,
Post the name and model of your monitor.
Slack comes with "Pico" which is easier than "Vim" for a new user if you need to edit, but I would try bringing up the "xf86config" script at "root" login first.

[menjaha]

aaaw god..cant find it(dont know how to) ;)
both mcedit, vim, pico worked..but i cant figure out how to open the xf86config with any of them
and i understand even less of vim..what does it do?

thanks for help;)
btw i tried to search for it in mcedit..but didnt find it(probalby not that simple:p)

[JohnT]

Pico..or any:

pico /etc/X11/XF86Config


Pico commands are at the bottom of the screem. Most start with the key combo....Ctrl + ?

[phiber]

If you're running Slackware, you shouldn't even have to find 'xf86config'; as it has been included in Slackware since longer than I can remember. When I installed Slackware for the very first time it was Slackware 3.6, and 'xf86config' was included in that.

Just make sure that you're logged in as root - or doing a 'su -' to get all of roots environment variables set.

If you still don't have 'xf86config' in your path, I suppose (I don't run Slackware) that it should be in /sbin, so try '/sbin/xf86config'.

[voidinit]

Originally posted by sclebo05
Lol, i started using slack at 9, you mean there are no X config tools at all in 8.1? man, i am embarrassed!

I'm not 100% sure but if there was one I couldn't find it, or it didn't work or something. 8.1 was the first time I successfully wrote an XF86config file by hand.

[sclebo05]

ha! so i wasn't crazy! i thought there was a xf86config somewhere

log in as root (or su)

the helper scripts i am referring to are in:
/usr/X11R6/bin/

doing a ./xfree86setup as root in that directory wil run that script. i prefer this one for ease of use. if your version of slack doesn't have it, try xf86cfg or xf86config.

try the above scripts if hand-editing seems to be a deadend

don't worry, we'll get you there. :cool:

[tmcG]

In reference to shutting down your system, turning it off at the power button will sooner or later cause major damage!

btw: is there a command to shut the computer off? now im just pressing the power button

To shutdown your system, you can do it with a number of commands:

As root, type one of the following to shutdown your Slack box:

halt

or

shutdown -h now (the -h means halt but you can also use the -r switch which means reboot)

or

init 0 (changes the run level to 0 which is shutdown, 6 is reboot)

I hope this helps!!

[menjaha]

tmcG:
yeah figured it would be best to learn the normal way:P

the rest:
..i can run xf86config and it gives me numerous questions about my system..but the problem is after i run it(and ive tried several screen resolutions) i cant start startx "no screen found".
i want to edit(or just start it to check for the monitor /JohnT)
to try to search what i did wrong.. startx works good i think, only that i get the message "no screen found"

i can start pico.. but what do i do now?:D
have no idea how to open the files your asking me to do~.~

sorry if it seems like crazy talk..just another noob wanna learn^_^
if you help me out there is one less;)

[JohnT]

i can start pico.. but what do i do now?

When you type the word ...pico.... into your terminal that executes the editor pico. To make pico open up a text file to edit you have to tell it where to go to get the file. This is called the path. In other words by typing into the terminal the phrase/command "pico /etc/X11/XF86Config" (notice the space between the command "pico" and the path) your are telling pico to go to the /etc directory and then look inside that directory and find a folder called "X11". Then open that folder and find the file "XF86Config. Once it is found then it will be displayed. The operation of "pico" is carried out using the keyboard. All the operations are listed at the bottom of the "pico" screen. Scroll down to the lines you would like to edit, edit then save. Do not confuse "pico" or any other editor with using the command "xf86config" as this invokes a shell script enabling you to set up your XF86Config file and/or modify it.

[menjaha]

sorry for the delay...
i keep getting "fatal server error: addscreen/screeninit failed for driver 0"
´maybe i should how told that in the first post^_^..
what should i do? tried some other configs when i ran "xf86config" but not one of them seems to help