Installing on the Dell Mini 12

I recently bought the Dell Mini 12 (unfortunately the Vista version, ubuntu hadn't been offered yet) and have been trying to install various distros on it for quite a while but have had no success. Dell just started selling the Ubunutu version so the laptop should support it, but I can never get the installer to load X. I've been copying the image to a USB drive and booting from it. It loads, but when it goes to start X it stops and simply brings up the commmand prompt. Trying to start X the usual way ("startx") simply gives an error message along the lines of "Screen found, but none have usable configuration....Fatal server error: no screens found".

I know that this laptop has the somewhat unusual GMA 500 chipset, but if Dell is selling a Ubuntu version, there must be a way to make it work.

On a side note, I've also tried the Ubuntu Mobile version as I thought it might have better hardware support, but still no dice.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by rigormotis

I know that this laptop has the somewhat unusual GMA 500 chipset, but if Dell is selling a Ubuntu version, there must be a way to make it work.

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You would think so, wouldn't you? No one has actually been shipped an Ubuntu-loaded Mini 12 yet. Who knows, someone at Tungsten may still be furiously coding away.

See also this thread: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=6300992

It suggests using VESA for now (ie, adding 'Driver "vesa"' to the "Device" section of xorg.conf). I haven't tried it yet, because I left my power adapter across town tonight.

Kyle

I'm sorry for coming in on your thread. However, is there a way you could post a picture of your 12 next to something familiar to get a size comparison? Is it really as small as the Macbook Air because if so I might be getting it! :)

CrazyDesi, just check the picture here: http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/1...ini-inspi.html

I think I found the driver (xf86-video-psb) on the moblin site:

http://git.moblin.org/cgi-bin/gitweb....git;a=summary

This code hasn't changed in a while- maybe it's just an early dev version. There's a lot of technical info under doc/ although I think it's outdated. I can't tell yet if this supports DRM.

any news here? just tried to start the live-cd but it cannot start the x-server.
i have to get rid of this vista ;)

I just installed the .deb file from

https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/intrepi...0.2.1-1ubuntu3

and set this driver in the xorg.conf (also had to set IgnoreABI to true) but it still does not work, i now get an undefined symbol while starting X.

Anyone got the VESA-driver working?

Here is the real issue:

https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+s...sb/+bug/269611

Intrepid has a regression that breaks support for Poulsbo. I'm going to try Hardy now, I think it should work out of the box.

And no, VESA doesn't work because Dell neglected to initialize the VESA modes in the BIOS.

ok i will also try hardy now but first i have to download the image...is there any chance that this driver will run in jaunty? perhaps i will try the daily-live later, too

I doubt it. The issue seems to be an incompatibility with some interface in newer kernel versions:

http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...ver...-683448/

Perhaps we should ask the Moblin folks if they have any plans to maintain this driver. I doubt Intel/Tungsten will ever touch it again.

hm...hardy boot-cd stops in initramfs, any idea?