Linux Desktop Hacks

Optimize Your Refresh Rates #94

Chapter 11, Hardware

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285

HACK

To determine your optimal refresh rate, visit http://xtiming.sourceforge.net/

cgi-bin/xtiming.pl, and enter your monitor specifications in the Basic Config-

uration section. Do not enter a value for Refresh Rate; that is what you are

seeking to calculate. Unless you have a widescreen display, your Aspect

Ratio is 4:3. Most modern monitors are noninterlaced, but if your monitor is

more than four years old, you should double-check whether it is noninter-

laced by Googling for specifications. There is seldom a reason to check Dou-

blescan. Once you have filled out the information, click the Calculate

Modeline button at the bottom.

When the web page refreshes, a new section at the top will provide you with

a modeline to use in your

XF86Config-4 file. Copy this so that you can use it

later.

Configure Your Monitor

To optimize your monitor settings, you need to adjust your X configuration

file (usually

XF86Config-4, but if you are using Xorg, the file is xorg.conf).

Before you change anything in your X configuration, though, you should

back up your X configuration file with this, or a similar command:

foo@bar:~$ cp /etc/X11/XF86Config-4 /etc/X11/XF86Config-4.backup

Now you need to modify the configuration file. Within the XF86Config-4 is a

section called

Monitor where you can configure general monitor settings.

Adjust the section using the information ...