RedHat 7.2 with a Radeon 8500..

[MrTux]

I did an install of RedHat 7.2 on my main rig which has a Radeon 8500.. however, the display settings were crippled since (so I've heard) that ATI cards don't play nice with Linux. Anyway, what do I need to download and what steps do I need to take to get some decent Radeion drivers for RedHat?

 

[FishTankX]

First of all Mr Tux, please get it straight. 😉 ATi has some of the most solid drivers for linux, ever! It's because of the fact that ATi releases the sourcecode and techdocs for all of their graphics processors to the public so they can mod them and mold them and shape them. The reason why your card doesn't play nice is because ATi hasn't released the linux shizaz for too long and they're still trying to work their butts off getting the drivers right!


AAaaahem..
www.linuxquestions.org will answer any easy questions. Here is a snippet from their forums

"I installed the video card ATI8500le 128, RH7.2 upgraded kernel2.4.9-31, XFree86 4.2.0 0-12, Xconfigurator4.9.39-2, It works excellent, the best Graphics Quality I have ever had on this system, but I'm not shure which module is being used to drive the video card."

Have you tried the steps listed above?

Now, i'm trying *not* to sound like a complete jerk i'm just an ATi fan and i'd like to set ya straight on the driver situation, and second of all I feel your pain. I'm gonna setup linux in a few days on my Radeon8500 based rig and I didn't know the answer to this question either. But when 5 seconds of searching can find what ya need....

 

[Tiger]

Mandy 8.2 picked up my Radeon 32M DDR no problems.

 

[MrTux]

<< First of all Mr Tux, please get it straight. 😉 ATi has some of the most solid drivers for linux, ever! It's because of the fact that ATi releases the sourcecode and techdocs for all of their graphics processors to the public so they can mod them and mold them and shape them. The reason why your card doesn't play nice is because ATi hasn't released the linux shizaz for too long and they're still trying to work their butts off getting the drivers right!


AAaaahem..
www.linuxquestions.org will answer any easy questions. Here is a snippet from their forums

"I installed the video card ATI8500le 128, RH7.2 upgraded kernel2.4.9-31, XFree86 4.2.0 0-12, Xconfigurator4.9.39-2, It works excellent, the best Graphics Quality I have ever had on this system, but I'm not shure which module is being used to drive the video card."

Have you tried the steps listed above?

Now, i'm trying *not* to sound like a complete jerk i'm just an ATi fan and i'd like to set ya straight on the driver situation, and second of all I feel your pain. I'm gonna setup linux in a few days on my Radeon8500 based rig and I didn't know the answer to this question either. But when 5 seconds of searching can find what ya need.... >>



Heh heh, thanks for setting me straight. 🙂 I guess all those nvidiots brainwashed me into thinking ATI support under Linux was no good. 😉

 

[Priit]

Yes, newest X supports Radeon 8500 in 2D mode, but not it's 3D features (OGL (GLX) support will follow soon I guess). You can get it from here. IMO, ATI drivers for linux are as good as 3Dfx and Matrox ones and work very vell (running Radeon 7500 under linux at work).

 

[FishTankX]

Yes, Mr Tux. They haven't gotten 3d straightned out under linux for the Radeon8500 yet, seeing it's a new typa 3d core with a different architecture. It will come eventually though...

Just be patient and in a month or two they'll be hammered out. But ATi sorta has a "Here's the driver code, do what you want with it but we're not responsible if you F!ck somebody's PC up with it" attitude. They give out the code. They're not responsible for it. Luckily the linux community handles such a stance well, they're just intrested in getting the code.

That must have been what the Nvidia zealots were talking about. Not the company's drivers, just it's attitude.
Oh By the way, the driver performance does suck a big one. 3d generally seriously lags behind Nvidia in that arena. You know Nvidiots and their performance thirst. It's never quenched. Then again, we ATi fans know that Performance is equally as important as price performance (AMD ring a bell?) or features and as long as you have a proper balance, it's OK.

As far as stability and 2d performance, ATi is a rock of refuge. As far as 3d performance, it pumps out acceptable performance. Just don't expect to exceed 100FPS. 😉

Personally, i'm fine as long as my Radeon8500 does well under linux. I'm not going to use linux to game anyways..