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Re: Semi-Old Video Card Recommendation



On Wed, Jan 21, 2004 at 04:41:59AM +0800, Ryan Mackay wrote:
> If you dont choose this chipset i would suggest sticking with nVidia
> none the less, they do support Linux (or Xwindows should i say) alot
> more/better than other companies.

Hmm, I'm constantly advising people NOT to buy nVidia stuff because they
are LESS Free-software friendly than other companies. They may provide Linux
drivers but they are binary-only. No source code or hardware specs are
available, so you're really in the same boat as you are with Windoze.

For example, <http://dri.sourceforge.net/dri_status.phtml> lists plenty of
ATI support:

> ATI
> 
> Supported Chipsets
> 
>     * Mach64 (Rage Pro)
>     * Rage 128 (Standard, Pro, Mobility)
>     * Radeons up to R9200 are supported
> 
> Important Notes
> 
>     * The Radeon naming scheme explained.
>     * For Radeon PCI support see the FAQ
>     * Rage Fury Maxx is NOT supported by the DRI.
>     * The Mach64 (Rage Pro) is undergoing heavy development. To see if your
>       card is supported check Leif's status page.
>     * The Radeon seems to have problems with certain early VIA chipsets.
>       Your best bet is to try and see if it works.
> 
> Example Graphics Cards
> 
>     * Rage Fury
>     * Rage Magnum
>     * Xpert 2000
>     * Xpert 128
>     * Xpert 99
>     * All-in-Wonder 128
 
but when it comes to NVidia, all we get is:

> NVidia
> 
> NVidia provides their own closed source, binary drivers. Hardware specs
> are not available to the DRI developers and NVidia cards are therefore 
> not supported by the DRI.

ATI may only release their hardware specs to developers under NDA but that's
a lot better than not releasing them at all. At least we get ATI source code.

-- 
Pigeon

Be kind to pigeons
Get my GPG key here: http://pgp.mit.edu:11371/pks/lookup?op=get&search=0x21C61F7F

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