Re: X server through the xsrc sets on PowerBook G4 with NVidia card

[Taylor R Campbell <campbell%mumble.net@localhost>]

   Date: Wed, 31 Mar 2010 00:03:29 -0400
   From: Michael <macallan%netbsd.org@localhost>

   That looks like the vgahw module trying to map the legacy VGA  
   framebuffer - quite useless on macppc even if it was enabled.
   There is a hack in the kernel to allow mmap()ing the first 128kB of  
   video memory at 0xa0000 - doesn't do any good but it shuts up that  
   particular error, enable it with
   options GENFB_FAKE_VGA_FB

Thanks.  It's spelled `WSFB_FAKE_VGA_FB', and enabling that got me
further.  I wonder why this wasn't a problem under NetBSD 4?  Was that
option formerly enabled, or did the driver formerly not try to do
anything with vgahw?

Next, the X server complained about the keyboard, and instructed me to
add `Options "Protocol" "wskbd"' and `Options "Device" "/dev/wskbd"'
to the input device section of my xorg.conf, after which the X server
launched, but seems to think I have a different keyboard model or
layout from my actual one.  Here is the stanza I have tried putting in
my xorg.conf, the rest of which was generated by `X -configure':

Section "InputDevice"
        Identifier  "Keyboard0"
        Driver      "kbd"
        Option      "Protocol" "wskbd"
        Option      "Device" "/dev/wskbd"
        Option      "XkbRules" "xorg"
        Option      "XkbModel" "macintosh"
        Option      "XkbLayout" "us"
        Option      "XkbOptions" "ctrl:nocaps"
EndSection

I have also tried omitting the last three lines (with no effect), and
replacing `macintosh' by `macintosh_old' (which caused openbox to
abort!) and `powerbook' (which seemed to have no effect).  X seems to
see consistent keyboard input which is just wrong; for example, what
should be read as `qwertyuiop[]' is instead read as `ijklnm352641'.
Any ideas?

For what it's worth, on a previous incarnation of this system, I had
successfully used xorgconfig to generate a working xorg.conf, with the
following stanza for the keyboard:

Section "InputDevice"
    Identifier  "Keyboard1"
    Driver      "kbd"
    Option "XkbRules"   "xorg"
    Option "XkbModel"   "macintosh"
    Option "XkbLayout"  "us"
    Option "XkbOptions" "ctrl:nocaps"
EndSection

   in your kernel config or keep Xorg from loading vgahw which may  
   involve some hacking in the nv driver - basically, all vgahwWhatever()  
   calls need to be #ifdef'ed out. They're for saving and restoring VGA  
   text mode state ( things like the actual mode used, custom fonts  
   etc. ) - since we never use text mode on macppc these calls are a  
   waste of time either way.

Can the vgahw module in the X server just be replaced by a bunch of
noops on macppc?  That would be simpler than going through every
driver that uses vgahw stuff and #ifdef'ing it out.

   I don't have any nvidia hardware myself but it may be worth your time  
   to check the driver's options for something to disable VGA access /  
   using vgahw.

Alas, from the source code, I see no obvious way to do that.