Can someone tell me if I get a video card with a DVI connector can that be connected to the DVI on my HDTV (Sony 40XBR800).

What I am trying to do is have two displays using my monitor and my HDTV. I am thinking I could do this by getting a dual DVI card and a DVI to VGA adaptor.

Any input would be great.

Looking at your tv specs, it says something about a DVI interface. I'm not sure how that would work, but all recent ATI Radeon cards can always use this. And on the Recent Radeon cards with both VGA and DVI, both can be used at the same time, and can both display different things.

I'm assuming any recent NVidia card should be capable of running both DVI and VGA at the same time, and independant of each other.

Yes the tv has a DVI connector but I didn't know if there were mutiple kinds all the video cards I have looked at say the dvi is for a plasma monitor. I saw the radeons have the component outputs that would probably work just as good.

The couple of cards I looked at could use the DVI or the VGA but not both at the same time. The closest thing I have found so far that would do what I want is a dual DVI one I haven't checked nvidia yet just ATI and matrox.

As far as I know, all ATI and Nvidia cards with a VGA and DVI connector can use both at the same time.

The ATI Fire GL4 has dual DVI outputs and costs $1700.00
Newegg has it "refurbished" for $500.00. Seems like a great deal, but you probably don't need such a crazy video card.

My Gainward GF4ti200 http://www.gainward.com/c-1.html?id=18 has a standard monitor output, an S-video output, and a DVI connector next to it (came from Newegg for about $180). I hadn't tried it before until now, but I can do exactly what you're describing with it. Pretty cool really...

Under one tab, I can tell it to use the "second monitor" to clone the main one. Elsewhere I can turn the second monitor on and off. I'm running the HDTV off the S-video output, but I really have to beleive the DVI will work as well. There are some built-in "detect displays" features that should handle that.

The dual DVI one I was thinking of is a matrox one. But you are right about the Ati cards I went to circuit city and looked at a radeon 9000 (I think, it was 150.00) an according to the box it supports using both outputs after reading the ATI website I got the impression that I could only use one at a time.

If I can find a store that sells or even knows what a DVI cable is I will probably try the ATI one in my old tank otherwise I will just order it when the SB51G comes out (hurry up already)

Does anyone know how well the radeon supports dual displays under W2K.

The SS51G comes with an AGP card that adds a DVI port to the onboard video. It is not a video card, it just adds a DVI interface. This may be a feature of SiS video onboard, but perhaps the SB51G will also come with this feature?

The SB51G also has that I think it is sold seperate from the machine. But I am guessing that doesn't support using the vga and the dvi outputs together.