Using my graphics card to drive two monitors...

[Cobra]

Hello

I have a PNY GeForce4 Ti4600 graphics card. I recently read something about using nView software to power two monitors. However, I only have one VGA connector on the back of my card. I do, however, have a white rectangular one, and an adaptor that converts this to a VGA socket.

Would this drive a normal monitor, or am I risking damage to either device by doing this?

Thanks

CobraDMX

[Faustus]

It sounds like a DVI port, used for LCD monitors, adapting it over with a converter is fine. I did so myself recently to play with dual monitors.

Doing duals with the nView software can be a little odd, some things didn't work the way I assumed they would. For example I couldn't get it to work with different REzes on the monitors,and there was a problem doing backgrounds if you used the "Stretch" option.

Other then that it worked fine.

[Cobra]

I have both monitors hooked up now, but my DVI port doesn't seem to be active at all. When I plug either monitor in, they just stand by.

How to I tell them to go?

CobraDMX

[freak_in_cage_10k]

make sure u have enabled it with all the nvidia software

if all else fails, buy a cheap second hand PCI card (8 meg one or sumthing!) and use that! im sure it would be possible to do!! (although i dunno how 2 do it, sorry man)

[Faustus]

You need to go into the advanced video adapter propeerties and mess with the nView settings, dont remember the exact thing cause I'm not at the computer but its in there, when its enabled you'll know.

[Cobra]

Well, it's working now. It's brilliant, even if the secondary monitor is a bit crap!

Only question is: can two monitors side-by-side interfere with each other?

Thanks

CobraDMX

[Faustus]

Possible yes, but it would be something you would notice real quickly if so.

We used to have issues network playing doom and Duke3d at the dinning room table with some monitors too close, funny thing was we'd just rearrange with different people in different spaces and it usually turned out fine. No clue why.

I plan to go dual monitor for the long term if I could ever afford another monitor to be an exact match for my new one, that sadlly is a ways off.

[Cobra]

Unlucky, but at least you got a nice monitor as it is.

The monitor I just added is a 15" goldfish bowl that provides a basic image. It's at a lower resolution to my other monitor which makes for interesting effects when dragging stuff from monitor to monitor!

Still, I'm in the thick of exam revision right now, so it helps to have one monitor for watching the web to get info from, and another to take notes on. For my purposes, I don't need a decent second monitor, just one that lights up!

Thanks for the help, by the way!

CobraDMX

[Faustus]

Neither of my monitors actually is bad, it just the rez shift thing I find disorenting. Also its hard to not get disgruntled when you compare an NEC 17" without a flat screen to the NEC/Mitsu 19" with the sony tube.

[DeadLamb]

Whole reason I got an dual head vidcard (8500) back in the day was just to drive dual monitors.. For those of ya still holding back being screen one is nice, screen two is a bit ghetto Heck it's still pretty cool to have that 2nd screen... If it is just to drop winamp into or notepad to cut and paste txt back and forth etc etc...

Main down side it the heat from two crt can warm up a room with.. blah..

anyways.. my reason for posting was to suggest an application called Ultramon if your running dual screens all the time. Ya can search for it on google (I'm too lazy to find the link).. Pretty cool little application being it will spawn the tool bar over both monitors or let you one one huge wall paper over both screen. (ok that is a bit strange if they are not running the same rez). One mouse click to turn 2nd screen off etc....

Down side is the thing is like $40 and I think that is way too high for a program like this but not like I have anything to do with what a company sells there stuff at. Should be like maybe $25...

I they have a demo so it might be worth checking out.

[Cobra]

Actually, i have another slight problem.

I downloaded a very nice nVidia screensaver, but there doesn't seem to be an option to run it on both monitors. As it is, monitor 1 gets the screensaver and monitor 2 is ignored!

Does anyone know of a system option, of an option within nView that allows me to run two screensavers too?

Thanks very much!

CobraDMX

[rallynavvie]

I tried the dual monitor thing on my Ti4400 but nView isn't a true dual display feature. I think the true dual display cards like the Matrox allow you far more flexibility as to what the different screens will display. Using a game that support dual-displays doesn't seem to recognize the second monitor and everytime I go into a program that takes up the whole monitor (like games) I lose the picture on the other monitor. What I'd really like is to be able to put up another view from MS Flight Simulator on my other display, like have on be my instrument cluster and a moving map and the primary display have my window view (or vice-versa for IFR practice). I'm pretty sure I'm getting a Parhelia for my new PC, but partly because I need to be able to designate a preview monitor.

BTW both my displays are Viewsonic 19" CRTs (G90f) and I can't say enough good things about them. My other computer has a 23" Apple cinema LCD which is a very nice monitor as well