[Tfug] Most stable laptop video drivers

[Bexley Hall]

Hi Adrian,

>>> My current/dying laptop has a ATI Radeon x1100 in it, which always worked
>>> alright when setup, but was a pain in the butt to initially get working
>>> correctly or upgrading the driver. Do any of the above just work
>>> out-of-the-box with X? From what I can gather searching around, it looks
>>> like the nVidia probably has the best support, the 7570M the least...
>>> Anyone with personal experience?
>>
>> Do you have any other (e.g., performance!) criteria besides "robustness
>> of driver"?  Or, do you want to squeeze the balloon at *both* ends?
>
> No, not really... I want something that will have great 2D and good 3D out of
> the box without having to jump thru tons of config option/performance tuning
> debug sessions. It should run multiple smooth video streams and window
> display... Nothing fancy, I am not currently doing any 3D work, no fancy
> display managers/Compiz/Barrel/etc.

<grin>  Different ideas as to what we each consider "minimal
performance"  ;-)  For me, resolution and depth are the basic
driving criteria (assuming it doesn't take forever to redraw
the screen!).  Most of my time is spent looking at largely
static displays (source code listings, circuit schematics,
board layouts, datasheets, etc.) so I just want good, crisp
images and lots of real estate.  No real "motion" involved.

I.e., as long as the blitter is "decent" enough to handle
moving windows painlessly (i.e., refreshing the backing store),
I'm happy.

Even the 3D modeling work that I do doesn't seem to beat on the
video that hard (or, perhaps I have just learned to minimize
unnecessary motion when building and modifying the models?)

But, definitely, no "games", fancy dynamic 3D FX, etc.

> For example, my current laptop Radeon with the default X drivers has poor 2D
> performance and 3D is(was?) non-existent. With the ATI binary drivers, 2D is
> good and 3D is acceptable, but the ATI drivers completely fail to detect my
> laptop LCD correctly resulting in great pains initially installing the
> drivers (i.e. the ATI drivers want to launch a graphic setup screen on
> install.. which completely fails when it can't correctly detect the display
> dimensions).

And, since you don't have the sources to *those* drivers, no easy way
to "fix" the problem (or even jury-rig around it)

> Likewise, I had to jump thru hoops getting xine to pass frames
> to the video card without huge lag and CPU spikes.
>
> At some point I may do more 3D, maybe a nice auto-setup second diplay when I
> am docked (could never get this to work before), and I will probably being
> doing a second/third virtual machine with VT-d, but that is it. My laptop is
> primarily for work, multiple windows with lots of stuff going on, but nothing
> which should be straining graphics wise.
>
> My laptop requirements should be drop dead simple... but with the homogeneity
> in laptops today aimed at the lowest possible price point, there really isn;t
> much in the way of true customization it seems. Requirements (the non-HD is
> basically impossible for the last several years):
> - 15" LCD, non-HD display (i.e 4:3 or 16:10)

'non-HD' just so the '15"' is more usable?  (e.g., HD displays seem
like they need to be *much* larger than their 4:3 counterparts in order
to have the same "feel" as a 4:3 display)

> - Greater than 1000pix vertical resolution
> - Network and power plugs on the same side or corner of the laptop

Ha!  Interesting observation!  Makes sense.  E.g., I am very aware
of where the cords for a soldering station enter/exit the base
assembly for similar reasons.

> - Meager HD/RAM, ~200GB and 4GB
> - CPU not really important, preferably something with VT extensions and a
> large L3 cache
> - DVD-RW drive
> - Decent touchpad, centrally placed

I've gone back and forth on the pointing device choice.  I *detest*
nibs.  OTOH, touchpads have left me annoyed pretty often.  I think
mainly those that are too sensitive and "see" the heel of my palms
when I am typing (and my hands sag too low)

> It really shouldn;t be that hard, but apparently no one makes a decent work
> laptop anymore. Instead they are all positioned for watching movies on your
> laptop...

That;s what seems to amuse The Mindless Masses!  :<  My primary laptop
is an ancient P4.  Damn thing must weigh 10 pounds!  But, still has
a floppy alongside the DVD (handy when I have to service something that
*needs* a boot floppy created, etc.).  And, its heft at least makes it
feel less flimsy than many of the newer, sexier machines I've seen.

[I also keep a *tiny* -- 12"? -- P3 that I use when traveling or
just wanting to write code or send email.  Like a *giant* netbook.]

--don