ATI Linux Driver 3.9.0
Several readers wrote in to point out that ATI has released a new Linux driver revision for their various lines of graphics cards. The release notes can be found here; changes include:
- Explicit regparm support for newer Redhat, Fedora and SuSE kernels
- VIA KT400 motherboard chipsets now recognized properly
ATI Linux Driver 3.9.0 Download: [ ati.com ]
May 27th, 2004 at 4:12 pm
It seem to work well about the same as the last one. (3.7.6). I lost about 300-400 glxgears from ~2200 to ~1800. But accual in game performance in UT2k4 feels compairable or better, (haven’t done any recording). Post your findings if you wish.
May 27th, 2004 at 6:25 pm
Actually, I think my glxgears went up by about 100 FPS. (2500 to 2600). No complaints there. In other respects, I’m finding that there are possibly some undocumented improvements to some of the GL extensions.
No complaints so far. It’s far from perfect, but it’s better than before (for me).
The installation was a pain in the ass and required that I patch it (what’s new?) in order to keep my kernel from flipping out.
May 27th, 2004 at 6:29 pm
When are we going to be seeing PPC support?
May 27th, 2004 at 6:57 pm
Yes, it sure would be nice to have some Radeon IGP support. The DRI developers do a wonderful job, but it would also be somewhat novel to have the vendor able to support the IGP.
May 28th, 2004 at 1:10 am
Seriously, not a troll… I would like to know how this compares to the free drivers.
Does one have more efficient accelloration than the other?
I know Gatos is required for video capture, anything else?
Stability?
ATI, if you’re reading this, we would REALLY like to be able to use our _very_expensive_ All In Wonder cards for what they’re designed for.
Gatos needs help in this area, capture is not fully functional yet, and it appears to be moving _very_ slowly.
May 28th, 2004 at 9:31 pm
Then your linux driver problems will be solved. :)
May 29th, 2004 at 7:42 am
Mobility 9700 support please?
May 30th, 2004 at 8:46 pm
Nvidia’s hardware under opengl only apps (ie Quake3) tend to have better framerates then ATI. Go to any benchmarking joint and see for yourself. ATI cards tend to have better performance in games which have DirectX in them. Linux will probably never have DirectX, so even if ATI’s Drivers are on par with Nvidia’s in the Linux world (which, to my knowledge they still as of yet are not), The Nvidia cards will perform faster under most pure opengl games. Additionally, shaders, antialiasing, and most features of the Windows Detonater driver can be found in its Linux counterpart, wheras ATI’s driver is spotty. It’s easy to fall for all the benchies that say ATI is better than Nvidia, but the benches are still done in Winders, which mainly uses DirectX and therefore is an apples to oranges comparison. If you like open source, then yes, ATI has open-source drivers, wheras Nvidia does not, but those are not for the latest cards. ATI is just as tight lipped about their latest cards as Nvidia is. When choosing a laptop, one must also consider that the ATI Mobillity is not well supported under Linux, wheras Nvidia supports all of their products, even NForce! Bottom line is Nvidia has been a friend to the linux community, long before it was even popular to do so. They officially support their product, even though they don’t make the cards… When have you gotten that kind of direct support from a chipset company? (Intel?… nah, diddn’t think so.) ATI does not officially support their product under linux, and if its ‘powered by ATI’, well, you’re really up a creek.
Support the people who support your decision to use Linux… If you are an open source zealot, then an older ATI card is for you. If you want to give your monitor a real hurtin’ under linux, then ignore all the hoopla and get the latest Nvidia. Nvidia has been good to me since 2000, and thats worth something. Until ATI gives me an easy to install driver that’s officially supported and works faster than what I’ve got, Ill have an Nvidia card in my tuxbox.
May 31st, 2004 at 10:13 am
Do these support AMD64 at all?