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I am a noob and I am trying my best to learn everything Linux.
I have one question that I really want to know the answer to.
Considering that linux all use the same kernel, why is it that different distros tend to make differences when detecting stuff like your monitor, refresh rate, resolution etc.
I have used 3 different linuxes recently. Suse, Slax, and ubuntu.
Suse is the only one that can properly detect my monitor which is a Viewsonic G71f+ , and set everything to it's optimum settings.
Slax and Ubuntu detect only a Default Monitor
Slax only sets to 75Hz refresh rate, while ubuntu sets to 60hz.
Why is this so?
Also, If I copy Suse's xorg.conf file into SLAX or UBUNTU, would that work or just cause problems?
Originally posted by CrazyDelta I am a noob and I am trying my best to learn everything Linux.
Slax and Ubuntu detect only a Default Monitor
Slax only sets to 75Hz refresh rate, while ubuntu sets to 60hz.
Why is this so?
As far as I know, the kernels are not all the same (you can tune a Linux kernel anyway you want, and I suspect that different distros have different flavours, even if the kernel macro-version is the same. As for the X stuff, I think that each distro's compilers (i. e. the people that put it together) decide what hardware they are going to support and how far they will take autodetection of stuff like graphics cards. In real terms, how well a particular distro detects your hardware has nothing to do with the kernel version it is using (except in certain special instances, I suspect).
The answer might then be that the people who put together Suse, included a wider range of drivers for common hardware than the people whoe put together Ubuntu. They might (thought not neccessarily) use the same kernel versions, but that does not neccessarily mean they will detect the same hardware and use it in the same way. It also depends on exactly what X windows version is packaged with the distro.
Now with the refresh rates. The refresh rates are not the same because the shared video memory size is not enough. The size is set uniquely by different distros.
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