[TeknoJnky]

This is mainly a simple FYI in case anyone has a similar laptop and was wondering whether or not the xbmc live worked on it... (attemped only live cd, not usb)

ATI Mobility FireGL V5200 512mb pci express x16 (1600x1200 native resolution)
CoreDuo 2ghz
2 gig ram

XBMC-Live ATI driver = boot to black screen
XBMC-Live Nvidia driver = boot to endless self-repeating login prompts
XBMC-Live Intel drive = Boots to XBMC interface, but screen info shows .6 hz and is extremely slow pretty much impossible to use (software mode I assume).

I am not really a linux guru and with it being a work laptop, I can't risk any changes to the existing partitions/system.

I did not find via casual google searches which open gl revisions this display supports.

The technical details for the curious (via CCC):

Graphics Card Manufacturer Powered by ATI
Graphics Chipset ATI MOBILITY FireGL V5200
Device ID 71C4
Vendor 1002

Subsystem ID 2007
Subsystem Vendor ID 17AA

Bus Type PCI Express
Current Bus Setting PCI Express x16

BIOS Version 009.012.001.021
BIOS Part Number BK-ATI VER009.012.001.021.025044
BIOS Date 2007/05/02

Memory Size 512 MB
Memory Type HyperMemory

Core Clock in MHz 398 MHz
Memory Clock in MHz 324 MHz

Primary Display No