Interesting. I note a 64-bit openSUSE-11.1 with the 2.6.27.29 kernel and the basic 1.0.17/1.0.18 version of alsa that is packaged with openSUSE. Your PC’s is a Gigabyte EP35-DS3L with an ALC888 hardware audio codec.
Note that for the basic 2.6.27.29 kernel (and also the previous versions up to the 2.6.27.9 kernel) the alsa sound driver is included in the kernel and is approximately 1.0.18 of alsa (possibly a 1.0.18 RC version - I’m not certain of the exact alsa content in the kernel). Hence the 1.0.17/1.0.18 alsa packages you listed are support packages to what is in the kernel.
In the case of alsa driver, which is a kernel module loaded upon boot, it is possible to force a different model configuration. From 1.0.18 alsa’s alsa-configuration.txt file, I note this list of different model configurations (which where applicable may be applied one at a time): pastebin - alc888 models for 1.0.18 alsa - post number 1589573
If one also does a search on the alsa web site for the ALC888 one obtains this: Search results - AlsaProject where it is clear there were various updates to the alc888 between 1.0.18 and the current 1.0.21 of alsa.
If one looks at the HD-Audio-Models.txt file for 1.0.21 of alsa (where that file replaces the alsa-configuration.txt file’s relevant models) one will see this list: pastebin - alc888 models for 1.0.21 of alsa - post number 1589576
Clearly there have been a lot of model definitions added between 1.0.18 and 1.0.21 of alsa to the ALC888.
Hence I recommend rather than mess around with applying the 1.0.18 model options to your sound configuration, you instead update to 1.0.21 of alsa, and see if its auto probe (upon boot) works any better. And if it does not work any better, then and only then start applying different model options to force the alsa configuration upon boot. (One of the applications to update will be alsa-driver-kmp-default which will replace the alsa driver kernel module).
There is guidance here for updating alsa (where one must send six zypper commands to update from the internet): Alsa-update - openSUSE
In your case please send the following six commands to update your user space for alsa (from a terminal with root permissions, in sequence, one at a time, with your pc connected to the internet):
zypper ar http://download.opensuse.org/repositories/multimedia:/libs/openSUSE_11.1/ multimedia
zypper install alsa alsa-docs libasound2 alsa-plugins alsa-oss-32bit alsa-utils alsa-plugins-pulse alsa-oss
zypper rr multimedia
zypper ar http://download.opensuse.org/repositories/multimedia:/audio:/KMP/openSUSE_11.1_Update/ multimedia
zypper install alsa-driver-kmp-default
zypper rr multimedia
then restart your pc to load the new alsa driver, and test your sound.
If that does not work then IMHO the choice is to either (or both) (1) update to the daily snapshot of alsa, or (2) apply one by one (restarting alsa after each application) the various model options for the ALC888. If it gets to that point, I can help you with the syntax needed for the /etc/modprobe.d/sound file.
Good luck.