PCQ Linux 2008 .. Gui problem.
 

Hii..
I Have just Found PCQLinux 2008 in March issue and installed it on my Compaq v6106AU laptop with windows Xp on Dual boot.
I did nt get any problem on installing the Core.But when i tried to start Gui with 'startx' the Screen gets blank.I am a new user to linux..and i dont know how to fix it. please suggest me how to fix it..
and one more thing is - i saw on bootup an error message that /dev/hda open failed.No such medium found. No volume group Found..Is this error is creating some problem for the gui ..???

Well, that error message is definitely worth noting. /dev/hda is the linux notation for the first IDE controlled device attached to the computer (i.e. your hard drive). It might be that the kernel isn't mounting your FS right or some other type of hard drive error, so perhaps its time to check out your fstab (/etc/fstab). This is the file which contains all of the configuration information for your hardware devices. A great source of info on how to deal with fstab can be found <a href="http://www.yolinux.com/TUTORIALS/LinuxTutorialAdditionalHardDrive.html">Here</a>

My best guess as to what your problem is is that fstab isn't directed at the right partition of your hard drive. Please post the contents of yours as well as your xorg.conf (/etc/X11/xorg.conf). We'll go from there.

There Is no Such X11 Directory in etc

The most common cause of X not starting up is an incorrect video configuration. If you say there is no X11 directory, that would mean that X was not installed (but you say startx works). Perhaps you meant that there is no xorg.conf file.

Try running "xorgconfig".

Also, look at /var/log/Xorg.0.log Towards the end of the file look for warnings (WW) and errors (EE)

Better yet, I would encourage you to get a more mainstream distro--eg Ubuntu, Fedora, Mepis, PCLinuxOS. I'm sure PCQuest is a great magazine, but I am skeptical about their creation of their own distro.

Startx does not working coz after entering startx it shows no error but the laptop screen gets blank.

i tried to sudo apt-get instal ubuntu-desktop
but it shows that apt-get coomand not found.

OK--if there is no error, then the startx command works---i.e. it starts the process. The error comes later.

Have you tried my other suggestions?

yeah. i tried xorgconfig but the error shows that command not found.
and also the Xorg.0.log does not contain any entry.

This is sounding stranger every minute...are you sure that X is installed

Try deleting the Xorg.0.log and then running startx. If the log file is created, but has no content, then something is REALLY wrong.

How is this relevant? The implication is that your distro is based on Ubuntu, but what were you trying to do?

I won't repeat my suggestion to try a more mainstream distro......;)

how to delete that file...

cd /var/log
rm Xorg*

this removes all Xorg files in that directory

thanks.i have deleted the log.. and tried startx but the result is same.please help me out..

First, please go back and answer my earlier questions.

Also, please give us more information on this particular Linux, including any instructions that came in the magazine.

Do you have the following files/directories?:
/etc/X11
/usr/lib/xorg
/usr/bin/Xorg

sorry Sir.. im not getting ur question..Answer o which questions .please specify here.
any how i have found these 2 directories and one files..ie
/etc/X11
/usr/lib/xorg
/usr/bin/Xorg

and i have also found the xorg.conf. but dont know how to set screen which match my tft screen resolution that is .@ 1200* 800 resolution @ 60 hz.which is the only mode my screen supports in windows. and also it is @ 96 dpi....

the Screen Section in xorg.conf is;

section "screen"
Identifier "screen0"
Device "VideoCard0"
DefaultDepth 24
Sub Section "Display"
viewport 0 0
depth 24
end SubSection
End Section

hii is there anyone to help me out.

You can read the thread and see the questions and suggestions that you have not responded to.....

I suspect your monitor is 1280x800 (16:10) --or maybe 1200x750 or 1280x720 Every monitor I have ever seen is one of 3 aspect ratios: 4:3, 16:9, 16:10

Here an excerpt from my xorg.conf file:
Note that "server layout" contains reference to other thing, including the Screen. That is what we need to focus on.
Screen refers to "Device" and "monitor", each of which needs to be configured to match you system.

Device:
The main thing here is to specify the correct driver for your video card. Usually nothing else is required.

Monitor:
If you do not have a modeline, you have to specify the horiz and vert. rates.
The modeline is sometimes the most reliable way of getting the system to do exactly what you want. (That was the case on my system)

Screen:
You need to include a subsection "Display"

Before we go any deeper, we need to understand why you don't get anything in the Xorg log---that is what would tell you if--e.g.--your video driver was wrong.

One thing you can try is to change the driver entry to "vesa".

Hi !!
I generated a new Xorg.conf file by Xorg -configure.
It is like :
Section "Server Layout"
Identifier "x.org configured"
Screen 0 "screen0" 0 0
InputDevice "mouse0" "corepointer"
InputDevice "Keyboard0" " CoreKeyBoard"
EndSection
Section "Files"
Rgbpath " /usr/share/X11/rgb"
ModulePath "/usr/lib/xorg/modules"
FontPath "unix/:7100"
Fontpath "Built-ins"
EndSection
Section "Modules"
Load "extmod"
Load "record"
Load "dri"
Load "xtrap"
Load "glx"
Load "dbe"
EndSection
Section "Input Device"
Identifier "keyboard0"
Driver "kbd"
EndSection
Section "input Device"
Identifier "mouse0"
option...
option ....
EndSection
Section "monitor"
Identifier "Monitor0"
VendorName "MonitorVendor"
ModelName "MonitorModel1"
EndSection
Section "Devices"
###.
.
.
.
.
Identifier "card0"
Driver "nv"
VendorName "nVidia Corporation"
BoardName "c51 PCI express Bridge"
Build "PCI :0:5:0"
EndSection

Section "screen"
Identifier "Screen0"
Device "Card0"
Monitor "monitor0"
SubSection "Display"
Viewport 0 0
Depth 1
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Viewport 0 0
Depth 4
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Viewport 0 0
Depth 8
SubSection "Display"
Viewport 0 0
Depth 16
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Viewport 0 0
Depth 24
EndSubSection
EndSection


...
Now when i tried to Test this xorg.conf.new using Xorg -config xorg.conf.new it gives me the same result as the screen gets blank.and one thing more i noticed that cltrl + altr+ backspace or ctrl + altr + delete or anyothr keys eg numlock or caps lock did not work at that time , when the sreen gets blanck, also the mouse pointer is not visible.
Also .. i copied this file to /etc/X11 as xorg.conf and tried startx which did nt worked .I have already removed the log file.now the log directory does not have the log file xorg.0.log. and it is not created when i have used startx or xinit.

I have re-installed OS 2 times. but get the same result..
One thing more I want to say that i made a small change in the inittab for GUI ..i changed 3 to 5.now the Bootup is in full Graphical mode.. but after starting the smartd service when it comes to login interface the screen gets blank.....

Please Help me . i will be very thankful to you..

hiiii is thre no one to help me..please tell me how to fix the driver..
hey i tried one thing that in place of nv in driver section i replaced it with nvidia..but now startx gets an error saying that no screen found..no matching drivers found..
it seems that nvidia driver for my adapter Geforce go 6150 is not installed ..please tell me how to download and install this driver from commands . and from where to download..coz hp is not providing the driver for linux....

ajeet84;

You still have not responded to some questions and suggestions....

Did you ever try the vesa driver?

The file you posted has no entries for horiz and vertical scan rate (see my example). It also has no modes specified.

I'm lost as to why you do not get an Xorg.0.log file---please try to post some more detail on exactly what happens during startup.

AND--consider trying a different distro as I suggested earlier.

Depending on the distro, the nvidia driver is sometimes available with the package manager. Otherwise, go to the Nvidia website.

For this last example, did a log file get written?

yes sir..
I tried xorgconfig .but it gives error that command not known..
I dont know how to load vesa driver..

Sir i added the modes in display sub section as 1280 * 800 and horizon 48 vertical refresh rate 60 in monitor section..and saved it as xorg.conf in /etc/X11
..
but my result are not changed..the screen get blank and i need to forcible turn off the lappy.
untill this time i had not get log file.

then i made a little change in xorg.conf .i changed in the device section..driver nv to nvidia
then tried startx .now i got an error that no screen found..now i have the log file which shows me a error message that no matching driver found for nvidia.
and no screen found..

Sir i don't know how to change to some other distro...

Change It!!!
 

Okay ajeet, I'm sorry to hear that you're still having problems with your
linux but I have to agree with pixellany in that you are going to be far better off with another distribution of linux. I think that your best bet is either going to be Ubuntu or Freespire, which are both awesome distros. Go to

<a href="www.ubuntu.com">www.ubuntu.com</a>

For Ubuntu and

<a href="www.freespire.org">www.fresspire.org</a>

for Freespire. What you need to do in order to switch to either of these is to go to your internet able computer and either download a copy of their installation DVDs/CDs or order a premade DVD/CD from their online store. Buying one is easier and provides you with some sort of guarantee on the quality of data, as well as providing the developers with much needed cash. If you end up just downloading the CD/DVD image, you will need to burn the image properly in order for your installation to work. If you choose to go that route then reply on this thread and I'd be happy to help you from there.

Hopefully you decide to change your distro and leave PCQ Linux to others who are more willing to deal with it. Happy Hunting!

try system-config-display command (utility)