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Nvidia, the worldwide leader in programmable graphics processor technologies, released a new beta of its Linux video driver, version 173.08, which introduces support for some GeForce 9800, 9600, 9500 and 8400 graphic cards, among other bugfixes and improvements. But we'd better take a closer look
at the highlights of this beta release:
Added support for the following new GPUs:
· Quadro FX 3600M
· GeForce 9800 GX2
· GeForce 9800 GTX
· GeForce 9600 GT
· GeForce 9500M GS
· GeForce 8400
· GeForce 8400 GS
Added support for Quadro FX 5600/4600 SDI and Quadro G-Sync II;
Fixed a problem that caused OpenGL to stop rendering to windows with origins at or beyond 4096 pixels (horizontally) on GeForce 8 and 9 GPUs;
Fixed OpenGL rendering corruption with textures compressed using the DXT5 compression algorithm;
Fixed a regression that caused invalid EDIDs to be detected for the internal display device on some notebooks;
Improved hotkey switching and power management support on some GeForce 8 notebooks;
Fixed a bug that prevented the console from being restored correctly in SLI mode on GeForce 6 and 7 GPUs;
Fixed a problem that caused the synchronization signal polarity to always be positive for DVI devices on GeForce 8 and 9 GPUs;
Fixed a problem that caused TV output on secondary TVs to be black and white on some GPUs;
Restored compatibility with recent Linux 2.6 kernels.
As you can see, this new driver fixes some important bugs and brings support for Linux kernel 2.6.25, which will be in its final version quite sooner then you think.
How to install?
Log out of your current session and hit CTRL+ALT+F1 key combination, in order to enter a text mode session. Log in as root (System Administrator), go to the folder where you've downloaded the Nvidia driver installer (see below for links) and type:
sh NVIDIA-Linux-x86-173.08-pkg1.run
Then, follow the on-screen instructions to install the video driver.
I guess Nvidia made some Linux users (read: GeForce 9 users) happy with this driver which will let them fully enjoy their video cards capabilities. However, be aware that this is still a beta release and it may have flaws.
