Random notes from my debian using days:

to reconfigure X server in debian:
dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xfree86
                                                                                
stable  woody   3.0
unstable sid
apt-get upgrade --show-upgraded
                                                                                
Kernel upgrade the debian way:
apt-get install kernel-source-2.4.10
apt-get install kernel-package
apt-cache search kernel-patch
pick patches
apt-get install kernel-patches-I-want
untar kernel source
go into dir
external modules like nvidia go into /usr/src/modules
patches will be in /usr/src/kernel-patches
instructions in /usr/share/doc
make-kpkg --config=menuconfig||xconfig||config --aded-patches=patches
--revision=mykernelrevision kernel-image
dpkg -i ../kernel-image-xxxx.deb
                                                                                
man make-kpkg
                                                                                
/usr/sbin/update-alternatives --config x-window-manager
                                                                                
apt-get clean
                                                                                
dpkg-reconfigure debconf
                                                                                
dpkg --configure -a
                                                                                
apt-get -o=APT::Force-LoopBreak=true dist-upgrade
                                                                                
                                                                                
source in .tgz files in /usr/src
patches in /usr/src/kernel-patches
export PATCH_THE_KERNEL=yes
make-kpkg       (in kernel-package deb)
 
fakeroot make-kpkg --revision=1 kernel_image
 
To compile nvidia module:
cd into kernel src dir
make-kpkg modules_image
install deb sitting in ../