[NTLUG:Discuss] Boot Up Parameters - Keeping them in LiveCD

[David Simmons]

Just can't make this work.....I'd like to try out a few LiveCD's of
upcoming versions of Linux....unfortunately, all are failing at the same
point!?  (it starts the GUI - pops up the box to show me it's loading
in different sub-systems....then that box get's scratchy and system locks
- except for mouse movements).

Thinking it was my video (which
is a nVidia GeForce 7800 GT) I did the following kernel boot config:

vga=795

that worked for when I would normally get the
system messages - now I get a nice graphic screen instead....but it
doesn't carry that resolution over into the actual session?!  It
reverts to some really high resolution (I have a dual-head setup - one
monitor can display it, other is 'out of range')

then tried the
following kernel / boot options:

nomsi noapic nolapic
pci=noacpi acpi=off clock=pit ide=nodma

again with no luck (no
luck meaning that I get to the same point and then scratchy video, lock
up)

I've updated the motherboard (ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe) to the
latest BIOS and tried the following liveCDs:

Fedora 10
Preview
Fedora 9 LiveCD
OpenSuSE 11.1 Beta 2
Linux Mint
5
Ubuntu 8.10 Desktop (Beta)
CentOS 5.2 Live CD

all
stopping at the same point.....any ideas?

Thanks in advance,

-dave

P.S.  on a side-note.....this same rig is
running OpenSuSE 11.0 and has run a few other distros w/o problems. 
And if you search online and find the HPET issue...I've already turned
that off in the BIOS.....I'm outta ideas?