I don't seem to have any notable issues with AMD/ATI's proprietary driver and a two-monitor setup. Maybe this is caused by the differences in in how X and Windows handles this? I think X gives you more alternatives in terms of desktops and such.
I have generally experienced that the Radeon driver is not very usable. As for the frontbuffer issue, that is not something I have tried. I use shaders for everything in what I do at work, but it is not the most advanced type of application (in terms of shininess).
I have generally experienced that the Radeon driver is not very usable. As for the frontbuffer issue, that is not something I have tried. I use shaders for everything in what I do at work, but it is not the most advanced type of application (in terms of shininess).