Jay Estabrook [Jay.Estabrook@compaq.com] wrote:
>
> Most PCI devices (installed in an Alpha :-) don't need their BIOS run;
> can you think of devices other than VGA and SCSI where it's really
> necessary? And most SCSI can deal with it *not* running, via some set
> of defaults, I believe.
Yeah VGA and SCSI.
> Well, what Pete meant by "the firmware" _was_ SRM, and if he says the
> BIOS emulator ain't there, he knows.
;)
> Hmm; this is with XFree86 4.1.0-29.1, ie the latest available under
> RH 7.2 for Alpha?
This is with 4.2.1, the latest available under debian unstable.
> What does "lspci -v" show?
01:04.0 VGA compatible controller: Matrox Graphics, Inc. MGA G200 (rev 01) (prog-if 00 [VGA])
Subsystem: Matrox Graphics, Inc. Marvel G200
Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 32, IRQ 52
Memory at 0000000209000000 (32-bit, prefetchable) [size=16M]
Memory at 000000020aa10000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16K]
Memory at 000000020a000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=8M]
Expansion ROM at 000000020aa00000 [disabled] [size=64K]
Capabilities: [dc] Power Management version 1
I wonder if manually programming the PCI configuration space would be
helpful? I could put the card in another machine and read the PCI
config space (when it's working) with 'lspci -xxx', and then write it on
the cs20 with 'pcitweak' from XFree86. There is probably more that the
BIOS does though...
> I've actually got one of those beasties, but I won't be able to commission
> it until next week to look into this. Can you wait?
Certainly! Thanks for your time! I realize I'm trying to do something I'm not
really supposed to do, so ignore me if you like.
An interesting datapoint: this is a Marvel (TV-card) and using the linux
marvel drivers I can record video from the card just fine in the cs20.
It just won't put anything on the video out except text.
Also, I just compiled-in matroxfb, and I get boot penguins.
I've tried all combinations of the kernel command-line parameters
video=matrox:init:nobios . Also this post:
http://www.directfb.org/mailinglists/directfb-dev/2002/03-2002/msg00042.html
claims that matroxfb can initialize this card...
Cheers,
Bob McElrath [Univ. of Wisconsin at Madison, Department of Physics]
"You measure democracy by the freedom it gives its dissidents, not the
freedom it gives its assimilated conformists." -- Abbie Hoffman
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