black screen booting MDK10.0

[Guest POS51]

hi, I'm a newbie to linux. I move well around windows but I'm a complete lamer on linux. The thing is I was tired of windows crashes,bugs and microsoft crap so I decided to get linux running on my machine. As I was not shure if it will work I left winXP instaled and created a partition for linux.

Now, I download, burned, and instaled mandrake 10.0 with no problems, everything looked just fine, but when I first tried to boot linux I choosed the linux option on the bootloader (lilo i think?!) then a blue screen with a progress bar and some stars in the bottom right appeard. After the progress bar reached the end, that blue screen went off and I got a black screen from wich I could not get off.I think it crashed, since the only way I've managed to get out of it was reseting my machine.

I've tried many times, I've instaled MDK10.0 again and always the same problem

 

Can you help me solve my problem. I'm very entusiastic about getting linux to work so if you could be give some tips about my prob I would be very thankful.

 

any doubt that I can help about my machine or something just ask that I'll post it asap.

 

POS51

[devries]

Do you just get a black screen or do you see a cursor blinking and a login prompt? If the latter log in as root (type root and give a <enter>) and your root password. Then type XFdrake (notice: capital letters XF). Then choose setting that fits your screen.

 

If you get a completely black screen choose at the lilo screen 'linux failsafe'. Login as root, type 'init 3' and then type XFdrake.

 

Good luck.

 

edit: when you have choosen a setting, log out as root, login as your normal user and then type startx.

 

edit2 (I keep forgetting things :( ) Logging out as root you do by typing exit. Logging on as normal user is by giving at the login prompt your username and password.

 

That's all I hope....

Edited July 27, 2004 by devries

[Guest POS51]

thanks devries, I'll try it as soon as I get home (I'm now at work.Shouldnt be posting here.hehe) I'll report the results then.

 

I'm hoping it works.

[Guest POS51]

hi its me again.

bad news :(

 

I'tried to do what you've told me too but i couldnt get any results. I've tried all the boot options, I think, but almost of them run a several comand lines on screen and then reboot.

 

I dont bother if I have to reinstall linux (maybe its my best choice), so maybe you could give some kind of step by step tutorial of the instalation with all then options I should check and the ones I should not.

 

oh! almost forgot!!! once I could get to root (root its something like de DOS comand line right?) and I tried the XFdrake comand that you've told me. I configured the display options but when I tested it all I've got was a black screen with some kind of code or something in the bottom right of the screen.

 

So if you have any other ideia of what can I do to put linux to work, or the step by step tutorial that I've said before, please tell me.

 

Has I already told you I'm very entusiastic about getting linux to work, so I getting kinda paranoic here.lol

 

POS51

[bvc]

have you tried

linux splash=quiet vga=normal

?

 

at lilo press Esc and run the above.

[devries]

Try first what bvc advised.

 

When you told us about the black screens I thought you might be having a problem with X (the graphics server). Most problems with X when you installed Mandrake for the first time are just configuration errors. With XFdrake you can change your settings and you should be able to start KDE or whatever (KDE is a DE (desktop environment)).

 

Now you a problem that your computer reboots and that sounds like that there is something more serious wrong.

 

When Linux boots it starts all kinds of processes. You can tell Linux, sort of, what processes you want it to start. When you choose Linux fail safe very few processes get started so there is little change things can go wrong. When you type 'init 3' more processes get started (internet for example) and that means more things can go wrong but you can also do more things.

 

When you normally boot Mandrake it goes directly to stage init 5. That means X get started, the DE loads and you can do all kinds of things. But of course all kinds of things can go wrong to.

 

Now your situation. If what BVC advised you doesn't work the best thing to do is to reinstall. Just do a default installation (you can always tweak later). If that doesn't work check your CD's and your hardware.

 

It's alway nice to see some one enthousiastic about Linux but don't get to carried away.

There probably comes a time when you will almost curse it as much as windows (I said almost). But when you do get it to work as you want, you don't need anything else.

 

Good luck

 

And I keep forgetting things:

 

http://www.linux-mandrake.com/en/demos/Dem...ake9.0/Install/

 

Use this as a step by step introduction to installing Mandrake (it's old but the installation process hasn't changed much.)

Edited July 28, 2004 by devries

[Guest POS51]

hi It's me again

bad news :( !!!

 

I've tried to do what you've told me, the root and XFdrake thing, I configured my display but when I tested it I got stuck in a black screen with some kind of a code in the lower right corner.

In almost all the boot options I it appears that the OS is loading with many comand lines passing with "[OK]" in the end but I noticed that all these comand lines get cheked very quickly but when it gets to one that is something like "eth0" it takes a while to pass it and passes with "[PASSED]" instead of "[OK]" in the end. I dont know if this is normal or not, but maybe its useful to you for helping me solving my problem.

 

As I said before I cant wait to get linux working, so if you have any more ideas about how I can do this, their welcome.

I dont mind to reinstall linux again (maybe its my best choice) so if you dont have any clue about how can I put to work, maybe you could guide me step by step in the instalation process, maybe I'm doing something wrong.

 

Also, I've noticed in many posts at this site ppl say their machine characterics, so if this is any help here are mine:

 

intel celeron 2.2ghz

256mb ram

80gb HD at 7200rpm

geforce fx 5200 - 128mb

 

I'm saying this from my mind so if I lack something tell so I can post it here.oh! my motherboard is an asus P8(something, lol)

 

I hope you can help me, any information about my machine or smothing esle just tell me so I can post it here.

[Guest POS51]

sorry about my last, but I thought the one before wasnt posted

[Guest infiltr4tor]

i'm having a similar problem, but whenever i try to test my graphics configuration i get an error telling me to change parameters.

 

any suggestions?

[Pzatch]

POS51 whats the code exactly?

Eth0 Is your ethernet card. Mandrake is trying to start your card and also find an internet connection. It seems to fail at this. Thats fine it can be started at anytime later.

 

For both POS51 and infiltr4tor retry configuring your vidio cards this time using the genaric VESA driver and a 800x600 genaric 60hts monitor. On the lowest settings.

 

If your systems cant use this to get you to something better than there is more then just a video card problem. These are the settings used for a graphical install. If you installed by GUI then your system can use them.

[Guest POS51]

hi again

:)

finaly I got passed the black screen problem, following pzatch steps.

So I've got into the graphical interface, but now I've got another 2 problems.

First, the error with the eth0 thing isnt fixed yet, I think thats why I cant get internet to work.

Second, I've got no sound, and when I try to play music in the media player I got an error message saying I've got no sound device.

 

so if you have any ideia of how can I solve this problems, fell free....

 

Also, almost forgot, I've done the pzatch thing about seting everything in XFdrake to de minimum and seting the vesa driver, after I entered the graphical interface I've changed the resolution and frequency to the right ones, everything ok till here, but when I've tried to set the graphic card back to geforce FX, I've got the black screen again. I'm just wondering if leting this set to vesa, I could take the same performance out of my card, and if not, how can I change this so that I can take the best performance out the card.

 

Thanks ;)

 

POS51

[bvc]

f your systems cant use this to get you to something better than there is more then just a video card problem. These are the settings used for a graphical install. If you installed by GUI then your system can use them.

I install graphically and I can't use them. Not when nvidia is installed. I can uninstall nvidia and use the nv driver and have high fb though.

[Pzatch]

BVC

Do you meen you can do a normal GUI install without passing anything to the kernel. But then the system will not use the new nvidia driver but it can use the nv driver?

I haven't had a vidio card yet that couldn't use the basic VESA driver. But i'm sure theses one out there that can't use it.

I do have a problem with the new Nvidia 6106 driver though. The old 5336 nvidia driver gave me 1920x1440 resolution on my Digital monitor but the new driver will not let me go that high. I have to use a custom monitor setting set all the way up to get back up that high. Though now I have some real low setting I didn't have before. And thats on an old GForce2-32meg card.

 

Pos51 if you haven't tried installing the Nvidia drivers from their site go get them and try them out. Nvidia loves linux. Just follow the instructions that come with the driver. Post back any questions about install it.

If after that if you can't get a good enough resolution out of the factory settings for your monitor you might have to try using a custom setting.

[bvc]

yes, exactly, but why does installing the nvidia driver screw up my vga? Silly! The actual nvidia driver isn't even loaded or used yet. Yet, I get the blank screen with framebuffer. Fine at install. Fine with nv. Fine EVERYYWHERE in windows, so if nvidia loves linux why don't they produce a good driver? I haven't had one in 3 years :P Windows has smoked lin on 2 pc's, 2 video cards, and 20 distros. PPL that say their gaming in linus is better are full of it, linux zealots, and blowing hot air. Period. I've helped enough people and seen the fps's to know better. Yeah, I get the noname cards, I currently have the Apollo chipset. Cheap. Guess what, most don't go and buy the gamming cards. NVIDIA needs to wake up, smell the coffee, give the majority a driver that'll install w/o the kernel-source, and tend to the masses. Then, and only then, can anyone truly say, they love linux B) Do you think all these NVIDIA threads exist because they love linux? Hah!

Edited July 30, 2004 by bvc

[Guest aerobraga]

Hi! I'm having a similar problem. I'm using MDK 10 in a Toshiba notebbok Satellite A10 (Celeron 2.5, RAM = 256MB, HD = 40GB) but whenever I try to test my graphics configuration I get an error telling: UNABLE TO RESOLVE SCREEN LAYOUT. And I don't know what to do can you help me? :unsure: