Need some hand-holding - Laptop to monitor display

[hyphenate]

y brain is turning into mush, and what I might have known yesterday, doesn't come so easily anymore! I know--it's tough to be getting old.

I have been working with my laptop for a long while, now that my desktop is not working properly. The main thing with the downtime of the desktop also meant a nearly brand new 21" monitor was not getting used, so I thought a brilliant idea! I wanted to connect the big monitor to the laptop, and use it to play movies from the DVD part of the laptop directly to the larger monitor. That way I could continue to work at the laptop, and use the HD monitor to see some hi-def films. My TIVO would also allow me to do some video-on-demand if I wanted to.

Two reasons I'd like to try this: 1) my current regular TV is not an HDTV, and it's a lot heavier than the monitor, and 2) I transfer all my TIVO programs directly to the computer where I can watch them, preferring to catch them at varying times when I can skip over the commercials, and send them to disk where I can catalog them.

I need someone who can tell me simply what I need to do in order to make this work--I don't mind someone telling me in the simplest language possible, because while I might have had no problem even working it out myself a year ago, for example, I'm forgetting things and becoming a lot more dense!

I always appreciate the help of others--I always enjoyed giving others help when I could.

Thanks.
Mary

[makntraks]

Attaching the monitor should be easy enough. Most notebooks have a standard VGA port which you can use to connect to your ext monitor (as long as the monitor has a VGA connection). Once done generally Fn+F8 will switch from the notebook screen to the ext monitor (this might vary by manufacturer of notebook). As for watching HD on the monitor that might depend on the video card installed on your notebook - in order to properly answer all your questions more details of your notebook will need to be posted.

makntraks

[ocgw]

y brain is turning into mush, and what I might have known yesterday, doesn't come so easily anymore! I know--it's tough to be getting old.

I have been working with my laptop for a long while, now that my desktop is not working properly. The main thing with the downtime of the desktop also meant a nearly brand new 21" monitor was not getting used, so I thought a brilliant idea! I wanted to connect the big monitor to the laptop, and use it to play movies from the DVD part of the laptop directly to the larger monitor. That way I could continue to work at the laptop, and use the HD monitor to see some hi-def films. My TIVO would also allow me to do some video-on-demand if I wanted to.

Two reasons I'd like to try this: 1) my current regular TV is not an HDTV, and it's a lot heavier than the monitor, and 2) I transfer all my TIVO programs directly to the computer where I can watch them, preferring to catch them at varying times when I can skip over the commercials, and send them to disk where I can catalog them.

I need someone who can tell me simply what I need to do in order to make this work--I don't mind someone telling me in the simplest language possible, because while I might have had no problem even working it out myself a year ago, for example, I'm forgetting things and becoming a lot more dense!

I always appreciate the help of others--I always enjoyed giving others help when I could.

Thanks.
Mary

No matter what card you have after you plug in the monitor the laptop should recognize it, then you right click on your desktop and go into graphics properties where you select "extended desktop", or "dual view", and you will probably have to make the monitor "primary" to play movies on it

ocgw

peace

[RabidDog]

You still wont be playing DVD's directly from the Drive to the second screen, you will still need some software like PowerDVD or WINDVD to read the disc and display to the correct screen. This all takes CPU and memory, thus slowing your machine down somewhat. Its still the computer being an expensive DVD player.

use it to play movies from the DVD part of the laptop directly to the larger monitor.

Eminently do-able tho, especially if your Laptop has a semi decent grafix adapter. Could be easier to rip the DVd to the hard drive and play from there, either as an .ISO file or VOB files.

[redwudz]

hyphenate, in the future please use a more descriptive subject title in your posts to allow others to search for similar topics. I will change yours this time. From our rules:

Try to choose a subject that describes your topic.
Please do not use topic subjects like Help me!!! or Problems.

Thanks,
Moderator redwudz