Ok, /etc/X11/xorg.conf does not exist so I guess this means I'm using xfree86. I don't know how to compile a new kernel, but I did try recompiling the nvidia stuff and that didnt work.

there are a lot of guides on the net and this forum - it comes down to downloading the source, configuring it and leaving it for a while to compile.

Ok man, thanks for all your help. I'll see what I can do from here. If nothing works I'll probably reinstall from scratch. Thanks again.

good luck.