I'd like to use uvesafb[*] with Slackware 12.1. I'm posting here in
case anyone's using it and has any pointers.

It looks like the fairly straightforward plan is to

1) make sure I have a kernel with CONFIG_CONNECTOR=y and
CONFIG_FB_UVESA=y

2) compile klibc against that kernel; install

3) compile x86v, statically linked to that klibc; install

4) make the initrd; configure the bootloader

I'm not surprised v86d isn't in Slackware 12.1, but I am a bit
surprised there's no klibc.
[*] <http://dev.gentoo.org/~spock/projects/uvesafb/>

In <news:20080515184231.30307e83@bellgrove.remarqs.ne t>,
»Q« <boxcars@gmx.net> wrote:

> I'd like to use uvesafb[*] with Slackware 12.1. I'm posting here in
> case anyone's using it and has any pointers.
>
> It looks like the fairly straightforward plan is to

The outline was fine, but there were a couple of details I'll post in
case it can save someone headaches.

> 1) make sure I have a kernel with CONFIG_CONNECTOR=y and
> CONFIG_FB_UVESA=y

I'm using a 2.6.25.2 kernel.

> 2) compile klibc against that kernel; install

The uvesavb site does not mention what version of klibc is needed. I
found I couldn't compile v86d against klibc-1.5 (latest stable), but
it compiled fine against 1.5.9 (latest testing).

The instructions in klibc's README worked for me, except they were a
bit unclear about where the linux symlink should be. It should be in
the source's root directory (which is not the directory just above the
README). I did need to use "make prepare" on the kernel tree before I
could compile klibc.

> 3) compile x86v, statically linked to that klibc; install

Oops, that should be v86d. Compile is simple.

../configure --with-klibc
make
sudo make install

> 4) make the initrd; configure the bootloader

I didn't make an initrd. I don't need anything other than this to
load, so I just copied the initramfs file from v86d's source package
to /usr/share/v86d/ and reconfigured the kernel to use it.

I use grub, and I don't know how lilo should look. With grub, this
kernel option gets me good framebuffer results:

video=uvesafb:1600x1200-32,ywrap,mtrr:3

<http://wiki.debian.org/HowToUseUvesafbWithDebian> was helpful, but
note it has an error -- you don't want to compile v86d with x86emu.

--
»Q«
Kleeneness is next to Gödelness.

In <news:20080520040459.63fad53d@prezmyra.remarqs.net >,
»Q« <boxcars@gmx.net> wrote:

> > 2) compile klibc against that kernel; install
>
> The uvesavb site does not mention what version of klibc is needed.--

It actually does, in a note at the bottom I hadn't picked up on.
>=1.5.8

--
»Q«
Kleeneness is next to Gödelness.