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A Look at the State of ATI Linux Drivers
Linux PaPa writes "LinuxHardware.org has just posted a great new review on the current state of ATI drivers under Linux. The review is specifically a look at the Connect3D's Radeon X800 and it exposes many of ATI's current problems in their latest drivers. While the drivers seem to have plenty of speed to them now, some stuff still just doesn't work."
if it does 80x24, it's enough for me, everything beyond that is just bonus
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On a laptop, the state is that you go to ATI's website, dig around for a bit, find a page for downloading the drivers, get a note saying that there are no laptop drivers and that you should contact your laptop OEM (and exactly how many of them are distributing LINUX drivers for their system even for OS-less laptops like my own?), search the web, find a websit with a guy who says he modified the ATI linux drivers to operate on a number of cards, including the Mobility Radeon 9700 128MB, take the guy at his word and trust that they're fine, download and recompile your laptop's kernel, download the source for the ATI driver, download another source bundle, compile the two along with your new kernel, say a prayer and hope that everything works.
For the life of me, I don't know why everyone isn't running linux already. Hmm...!
From the article: The ATI proprietary drivers are easy to install under almost any distribution and the setup is not too painful using their X configuration utility. Really. Any laptops as example?
fglrx is getting better and better. We can't it to suddenly become perfect. fglrx today is much better than flgrx a year ago. As far as I know, fglrx supports the graphic cards on laptops aswell. Read the release notes to see which cards are supported: http://www2.ati.com/drivers/linux/linux_8.14.13.ht ml#172394
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ATI's development cycle is far too slow for linux. They develop for it to work on the current *stable* kernel, rather than the mm kernel or the development kernel. Naturally when it comes out, the development kernel is the stable kernel by that time, and it doesn't work any more. This wouldn't be as bad a problem if they didn't use heavily deprecated kernel features when they're developing (if you can make it build, look at the amount of deprecated errors).
.. 6x slower in my experience. I think it was based off of really old XFree radeon drivers or something and they haven't changed it.
They also use CRAP 2d drivers
Their state with windows and linux laptop drivers confused me at first, but their linux drivers work on mobility products, and windows drivers require a hack. My laptop manufacturer doesn't release drivers so I needed to get them to get the updated drivers.
I don't understand why they don't have a nightly driver release.. and they could help by releasing everything that they possibly can opensource and a binary module (see the madwifi drivers for an example), then get a load of OSS developers who know X really well to maintain them. The madwifi drivers work really well for most parts, ATI should learn from them and nvidia.
Once linux on the desktop is relevant, they'll care, but until then they're putting all their resources into their windows drivers.
My main machine is a desktop replacement (pre-upgradeable video cards), and is an ATI 9600. Nice card on windows. Plays FarCry and Counterstrike pretty well, but quake3 on linux is another story.
Next time I'll be sure to get Nvidia. Of course, by that time ATI will probably the good guys again.
I spent days trying to get stupid ATI 64-bit drivers working on AMD64 Linux. Don't bother. Just buy an nVidia card and be done with it.
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It seems odd to write a review of hardware for linux and only consider proprietary, binary-only drivers. The R300 project has progressed to the point that they now list what is left to do, and its shorter than the list of what is already done. Many games are playable, and it looks like they could use some testers who have a wider range of cards.
No kidding. I've a GF2MX-200 that is ridiculously slow rendering a BIOS setup screen. Paired with this card, a machine with an Athlon 2600+ will render that screen more slowly than my old 486SX-25 with Paradise SVGA accelerator did.
It's not this machine, BTW. I replaced that card with a Radeon 9600XT and the BIOS screen just flies.
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E pluribus sanguinem
After a few hours of messing around with xorg.conf, I managed to get my CRT/LCD display up and running in dual headed/Xinerama mode on my Radeon9600pro.
Fast foward a few months and I upgrade from FC3 to 4. X performance is now not even usable. I grab the latest ati drivers. After a few hours more in xorg.conf I get X starting up, but no matter what I try dual headed displays elude me.
The solution I eventually found was a cheap nvidia card purchase on trademe. I still needed a few more hours in xorg.conf, but ultimately I did get that dual headed setup back.
Until there is some change to the driver status quo I'll be buying nvidia over ati on my Linux systems.
Want better Linux driver support? Vote for Linux friendly vendors using your checkbook at your local computer store.
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No really. I have a Dell Latitude D600 with (what is labelled as) a Radeon 9000 Mobility, and although ATi's drivers *sort*of* work, inasmuch as having a completely mangled screen which just barely shows wdm's login prompt is working. Of course this is after a few re-boots trying to figure out exactly which kernel options they want in and out. And using *THEIR* X.Org configuration script, which is more confusing and only slightly more useful (only for ATi cards), which means nothing because the end result is worse than just SVGA.
Fortunately, between Linux 2.6 and X.Org I get DRM and OpenGL and all of that, so it's not a huge loss. But the performance (glxgears) on this card compared to a non-mobile R9000 is roughly 1/3rd. It renders nedit and aterm so I'm satisfied. I don't need to keep re-emerging the nVidia drivers with each kernel install either.
However, with or without the ATi drivers, xv output doesn't work at all on an external monitor (laptop screen works). Blank screen. I have to use vo=x11 in MPlayer to get any imagery, which means expensive software scaling and more broken frames. Somebody really messed something up there. Well let's be fair, in ATi's drivers it claims it HAS no xv support, so in that respect XOrg is doing much better (half support is better than none).
Still, I'd rather have a card that is supported in-tree in all my favorite operating systems (Linux and Net/Free/DFly BSD), than one I have to find and apply drivers to as is the case with nVidia. None of this would matter if I had an unusual architecture where hardware is well supported and relatively non-volatile. Mm. non-x86. *begins accepting donations*
Sam ty sig.
If you look at how M$ has put the stranglehold in the past to OEMs, you'll appreciate why the development cycle tends to be slower, if not prehistoric for proprietory drivers under the Linux Kernel or any OSS based OS. That's why currently you often need to find developers willing to take on the task of porting drivers in OSS, but that also needs the cooperation (and openness) of the OEM's in releasing their source..see the conflict?
"some stuff" ???
Yeah, like support for the 2.6.12 kernel, which is not exactly new anymore, and despite claims to the opposite is still largely non-existent. There's a patch to at least compile the module, but it locks some systems (including mine) up.
As much as I dislike NVidia's close-mindedness, but their drivers at least work, work reliably, and with a fraction of the hassle.
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Not sure why the comparison is being done between two cards in different prices ranges. The 6800 Ultra is 30-40% more expensive than the x800 XL. And as seen in results it's at least that much faster. Subpar review.
OK, I'll go out and buy an NVidia video card, now can you show me how to install it in my laptop?
Actually, I've got a laptop with an NVidia card, and it's pretty powerful stuff... but the newer models are mostly carrying ATI. Also, the newer/better brands/models seem to have more compatible components (soundcard, modem, wireles, etc) for Linux... but lack the NVidia card.
Personally I'd just like to see ATI release some good drivers, but I guess that's still hoping for too much.