can I add a second monitor?

EM
Posted By
Eric_Matthes
Nov 25, 2003
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411
Replies
13
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Closed
I would like to add a second monitor, but I’m not sure what I would need, or even if I can hook one up. I have an hp 735n running Windows XP Home. I have an nVidia GeForce4 MX Integrated GPU, which I believe supports dual monitors. I’m not sure what the difference between a GPU and a video card is, if there is one. I’m also unclear how the second monitor connects to the computer.
I know this topic has come up, but I found nothing specific enough when I searched the forum.
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AT
A.Translator
Nov 25, 2003
On Tue, 25 Nov 2003 00:52:21 -0800, wrote:

I would like to add a second monitor, but I’m not sure what I would need, or even if I can hook one up. I have an hp 735n running Windows XP Home

The topic came up not long ago, but I’ll gladly tell you of my recent experience:

I run Win XP Pro, and have two monitors going.
You need two video cards (or one with two connectors) that support dual view (I have come across different terms here: twin monitors, twin view, dual display etc – all meaning the same).
Your original card will probably take up your AGP slot, so the other will have to go in a PCI one, but that caused no problems.

This set up unables you to for instance have all your tools and palettes out of the way. It is wonderful to work with!

Good luck.

—
Groet, Adriana.
[ceterum censeo Balkenendum Secundum esse delendum]
RB
Ralph_Brannon
Nov 25, 2003
Eric, check out this site:

<http://www.realtimesoft.com/multimon/>

It has not only an amazing FAQ, they have a database of what two cards work together, and what doesn’t. Also about single cards designed for 2 monitors.

Good luck,
Ralph
<http://www.darkstar.us>
JC
Jane_Carter
Nov 25, 2003
Mac info:
Most Macs will also let you use 2 monitors, but some only let you "mirror" meaning that the 2 monitors only show the same thing.
Most of them, like my G4, will let you see "extended", meaning that they act like one big screen and you move things across both monitors.
I haven’t done it yet, as I have a big monitor, but friends say it is nice for PSE, you have your tools on the left monitor and your picture on the right.
Jane
RL
Richard_Lynch
Nov 25, 2003
I have used 2 monitors since about 1995, and wouldn’t want to work any other way…allows you to be sloppy and open every palette you have.

Neither Macs or PCs are limited to ‘mirroring’. It may be for the case where you are running two monitors off a graphics card that was not really intended to run two monitors. If it is the case that you can only set up mirroring, the solution would be to add a graphics card that will allow you to plug in a second monitor using a second controller. For example:
Radeon 7000 < http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000065U8S/newwriting />

With a second card you can have an extended desktop, and can manage the configuration using control panels.

That help?
EM
Eric_Matthes
Nov 25, 2003
Thanks for the suggestions. I’ll try to look into them tonight after work. A quick question: Am I going to have to open up my computer to hook up a second card, or is there any way to hook it to a serial connection or any other port on the back of the computer?
RB
Ralph_Brannon
Nov 25, 2003
You will have to either add an additional card, or replace your existing card with one that can do 2 monitors. Matrox has dual head cards, and I believe ATI has them. But I highly recommend you check out the site I left you above before you go to get any card.
Some cards don’t play well with others, and some dual monitor cards don’t work well. But no way I can think of to keep from opening your computer.

Ralph
<http://www.darkstar.us>
BB
Barbara_Brundage
Nov 26, 2003
If it is the case that you can only set up mirroring, the solution would be to add a graphics card

The consumer macs–imac, emac, ibook–do not allow you to use extended desktop. They are firmware disabled and do not have any way to install an additional graphics card. There is an illicit hack that some people have used successfully, but it has also caused other people to lose their original monitor as well as their warranty.
AT
A.Translator
Nov 26, 2003
On Tue, 25 Nov 2003 13:00:26 -0800, wrote:

Am I going to have to open up my computer to hook up a second card,

Yes, but it is not as daunting a task as it may seem to you. If this old lady could do it, anyone can!

Your nVidia GeForce4 MX is fine. I have the same and added a Taiwanese one of the little known brand Sparkle(!) without problems. The Sparkle was recommended by my local pc shop.

(B.T.W are you by any chance related to the Matthes family in the Netherlands?)
—
Groet, Adriana.
[ceterum censeo Balkenendum Secundum esse delendum]
EM
Eric_Matthes
Nov 27, 2003
Ralph, thank you for the lead. I learned a lot poking around that website. Now that I’ve been looking into it, I can’t wait to use one whole monitor for the image and a separate one for toolbars and menus. When I turn the computer off tonight I’ll open it up to see what slots are available. I still have one question about the physical setup. I understand that I open up the computer and plug a card into an open slot. When I close the computer back up, how does the monitor connect to the card? Do I take out a gate or something so the card shows through the back of the monitor?

I have always liked that I meet very few people with my same last name, especially spelled this way. My grandfather moved to the US from Germany in the early 20th century. I am not sure where we come from before that. Every once in a while, I type my name into a search engine and see what pops up. It’s fun finding that there are more Matthes’s out there. I take it you know this Matthes family?
AT
A.Translator
Nov 27, 2003
On Wed, 26 Nov 2003 22:05:22 -0800, wrote:

I still have one question about the physical setup. I
understand that I open up the computer and plug a card into an open slot. When I close the computer back up, how does the monitor connect to the card?

When you put the card into the right slot, the connector will be accessible from the outside. Just have a look to see how it works now with the cards already in (and read the manual of your pc).

Every once in a while, I type my name into a search engine and see what pops up. It’s fun finding that there are more Matthes’s out there. I take it you know this Matthes family?

Yes. I went to school (a long time ago) with a Marianne Matthes and knew the rest of her family. We lost touch, so I wondered if you knew her.

Good luck with your monitors!

—
Groet, Adriana.
[ceterum censeo Balkenendum Secundum esse delendum]
DS
Dick_Smith
Nov 27, 2003
Adriann,

Would you be so kind as to translate the tag on your Signature? It’s really got my curiosity up!

Dick
AT
A.Translator
Nov 27, 2003
On Thu, 27 Nov 2003 07:22:26 -0800, wrote:

Would you be so kind as to translate the tag on your Signature? It’s really got my curiosity up!

Sorry, I should remove it when posting in international groups: it is of course a variation on "ceterum censeo Carthageniensem esse delendam" but in stead of Carthage I would like to see the Dutch Government disappear (the second cabinet of prime minister Balkenende – but it is not entirely serious and most likely not proper Latin.)

I’ll leave it on for a few more days, and then think of something really useful 😉

—
Groet, Adriana.
[ceterum censeo Balkenendum Secundum esse delendum]
EM
Eric_Matthes
Nov 29, 2003
It works!!!

Thank you all for the encouragement and the help. Ralph, that website was extremely helpful. I went to it in the computer store to find out if what they had in stock might be compatible. Here in small town Alaska, I was hoping I might find something in stock that would work, rather than having to order something.

Will my final images be better now?! No matter, as long as the process is more enjoyable.

Thanks again!

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