triple column screen Dell Inspiron 8000

[Mdmint]

Hello!
I'm trying to boot Linux Mint (tried all versions) on a Dell Inspiron 8000 with ATI Rage M4 video. When the desktop loads the screen is dissected into three columns with the left column being the left side of the screen and the middle and right columns being the far right side of the screen. I had installed mint in safe graphics mode and struggled through an install (hard to get to bottom of windows in such a small screen window) and then tried to update Envy and got an error that I was unable to do this.

Any suggestions greatly appreciated! I have Linux Mint on a Dell Dimension L600R and a Gateway Profile 3 and love them both, but this Dell laptop is giving me fits.

Thanks !
MDMint

[Husse]

I have seen that there are issues with the M4

then tried to update Envy and got an error that I was unable to do this.

What error do you get?
That Envy can't install drivers or what?

[Mdmint]

It shows an ati driver installer error with an MD5 error, then finds and installs ati installer and then proceeds to install and tries to startx, getting the blue screen and round and round we go I have been running envy via text mode (sudo envy -t).

BTW, I have spent time upgrading the whole distro and then running Envy and it hasn't worked yet. When I would boot the livecd I coujld get full screen, but with the three columns described above. Then I booted in safe graphics mode to install and now am at this point. I know there is just some tweak - but can't quite get it.

mdmint

[Mdmint]

I tried sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg and it worked! I now have a normal screen without three columns. Not sure why Envy wasn't cooperating.



Mdmint

[Husse]

sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

does things that an install of the driver does not and vice versa
It seemed to me like a broken driver - which it was not as your command worked - so I did not consider it