Help with video (nvidia 8400gs 256mb)

[the_ravid]

Hey,

 

First off thanks to everyone in the forum as I'm pretty close to have a working install however I've run into an issue with my video card.

 

First off my hardware:

Intel Q6600

Gigabyte GA-EP45-UDP3

Cooler Master 550watt PSU

IDE Lg DVD/CD burner

250gb Sata HDD (plugged into yellow ports)

4gb RAM

Nvidia 8400GS 256MB

 

I'm attempting an install using the iPC 10.5.6 installer and dual-booting with Vista (the dual boot part seems to be working just fine thanks to a guide I found on here).

 

Attempt #1

Installed using:

 

- Nvinject 256mb

- Intel ICH10 Sata Support (Chipset)

- Realtek 1000 (networking)

- Sleep/Restart Patch

 

Installed and restarted fine. However didn't start initial setup (the flying welcome video, language etc) just sat at a blue screen (could move my mouse).

 

Attempt #2

Installed using same as above, but this time not selecting ANY video driver. Installed rebooted just fine. This time, i got the setup program, and even got to a (semi) working desktop. Everything seemed to be working but the graphics weren't redrawing properly anytime I scrolled or moved a window.

 

I then tried to add the Nvidia driver by openint UInstaller and adding an EFI boot string for Nvidia GeForce 8400GS 256MB.

 

When I rebooted, I had a beautifully "rendered" desktop, however I couldn't click anything (mouse still worked tho). It was as though it was just a static image of the desktop.

 

Attempt #3

Installed using the same as Attempt 1, however this time, I tried using Nvdarwin 256mb for video. Installed and booted just fine, but again, I ended up with the same "rendered" desktop as I did at the end of Attempt #2.

 

 

I'm pretty knowledgable when it comes to computers (linux and windows mostly), however I'm at a loss as to what my next step should be. I tried booting with -v all times (everything seemed to load fine) and tried -x. This worked on attempt 2 when i didn't actually have any drivers installed (didn't work after adding boot string).

 

Am I missing some important step? Also, is there anyway for me to beable to try different video drivers, without having to reinstall every time? (I never manage to make it to a "working" desktop whenever there's a video driver installed). I'm more than comfortable with a command line. Is there a terminal or TTY that I can get to some how and edit some config files?

 

Any suggestions would be helpful! I would like to get it working using the iPC installer, however if I can't figure it out, I'll try using one of the Retail install methods that are kicking around the forums for my mobo.

 

TIA!

RaViD