Ubuntu, Nvidia, kernel upgrades. Ouch

For the last couple of years I have used Ubuntu without any problems. Kernel updates etc have gone fine. Recently though, using Jaunty, I tried the latest kernel version update (the one that comes up during normal update procedures) and X stopped booting up.

For a while I just used Grub to boot back to a previous version, but this meant every time the update window appeared, I needed to deselect the kernel upgrade. So eventually I decided to fix the X problem.

A lot of investigation later, and I determined that what had happened is that the Nvidia driver I was using was no longer binary compatible with the kernel - it needed recompiling to get it up to date. So, I decided at the same time to upgrade to the very latest driver. Mistake. v180 of the driver does not have support for my ancient MX440 card. So I ended up not being able to boot at all on the older kernel versions, and the Nvidia driver refused to install on the latest one. So that just left me with a command prompt Linux, without networking.

So, to cut a long story short, I needed to edit the xorg.conf file and force X to start up using the Vesa driver (find the driver section, change nvidia to vesa). This allowed me to boot to a GUI with wireless networking. From there I used the Synaptic package manager to uninstall all the nvidia180 driver code. Then I reinstalled the v96 code (the most recent one supporting the card). Once reinstalled, I needed to run sudo nvidia-xconfig from a command prompt, then reboot, and hey presto, it now all works.
Hurrah.

Next time X wont start, I'll just uninstall then reinstall the Nvidia driver I think!

Component Video Out on the Wii

Just bought a cheap component out cable for the Wii from Amazon - wasn't expecting much for £3.20 delivered, but the improvement in quality is really quite noticeable. Happy Bunny running at 480p, easily worth the money (as was Mario Kart!)

ABS Fault Code on Honda Shuttle

The ABS light is intermittent on my Honda Shuttle (R Reg, UK spec), and it took a while to find out how to find out what is wrong. Most internet info said stick a paper clip in the terminal under the glove box. Close...but there are two blue terminal under there, both stored in a blue female housing. The one you need is the two pin one. Pull out of the housing (the housing is only for storage), and connect the two pins using a bent paper clip. Then turn the ignition on, but not the engine. The ABS light will then blink. There are two sets of blinks on my car, one long start blink, then a number of short one (count these), then a pause, then a number of long blinks - count those. This gives a two digit number, which is the fault code.

See this Honda Odyssey site (the USA version of Shuttle) for the fault code. This is a good site for Shuttle owners.

Fault Code Table

Mine appears to be 5-8 which is a left rear wheel lock. Info seems to indicate this means the sensors thought the wheel was locked i.e. not turning. Its probably just a grubby sensor, so will post results when I have time to investigate. The light is off at the moment, so won;t worry until the MOT is due - Note an ABS light on is an instant MOT fail, even if the brakes are working fine (albeit with no ABS)

First Random Thought

OK, so I have finally succumbed to writing some blog entries. Not as a diary though, but just as a way of recording random information that I have learned/discovered/made up. For example, how to recover the ABS fault codes from an R reg Honda Shuttle. It took me a while to find this stuff on the internet, so if I put it in my blog, I won't lose it, and it may be useful to others.

Well, that's the idea anyway.....