#285957 - 24/08/2006 17:22
Dell 24" Monitor question
|
addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
|
I just got a new Dell 2407 widescreen monitor for my work PC. I'm replacing a 17" LCD which I planned to use as a second monitor. I had a nVidia GeForce FX5700LE lying around the house so I decided to install that since it has DVI. Card installed fine, hooked up the new Dell via DVI, set the resolution to 1920x1200 and everything worked fantastic. Next, I turned off the computer and hooked up the 17" LCD to the VGA port on the card. When I turned the computer back on, it automatically recognized the second display and went into nVidia DualView mode which treats each display seperately. Fine.
The problem is, now I can't set the resolution on the 24" to 1920x1200. The higest I can go is 1600x1200. Even when I turn off the second display and set nVidia settings to use only one monitor, I can't set the display to anything higher than 1600x1200. I turned off the computer, completely disconnected the 17" VGA monitor and rebooted. I still couldn't set the display to higher than 1600x1200. I tried hooking the 24" to the video card using the VGA and i found that this would allow me to set it to the max of 1920x1200. WEIRD.
So, for some reason, once I hooked up the second display, it limited my resolution on the main one to 1600x1200, even when the second display was taken completely out of the picture. If I'm unable to set it to the max resolution on the 24" when I have the second display up, thats fine I suppose, but how come I can't get the max res when the 2nd display is off?
Maybe someone has had a similiar problem before. I thought I'd try here before calling up Dell. Thanks.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285958 - 24/08/2006 18:07
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: visuvius]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
|
Do you need to turn off "DualView" in a control panel or something?
_________________________
Bitt Faulk
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285959 - 24/08/2006 18:09
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: visuvius]
|
enthusiast
Registered: 11/01/2002
Posts: 211
Loc: Qc, Canada
|
My guess is that it would be related to the video card and not the monitor.
The maximum resolution of that card seems to be 2048 x 1536, but the maximum for DVI is 1600x1200. I don't know why you could do 1920x1200 at first.
_________________________
Patrick
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285960 - 24/08/2006 18:18
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: wfaulk]
|
addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
|
I've tried going through the different options it has when you hook up two different monitors. None of them get the settings just right. Dualview seems like it should work since it treats each display seperately, but I'm still only able to set a max of 1600x1200 via DVI.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285961 - 24/08/2006 18:19
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: elperepat]
|
addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
|
I'm thinking you are correct. I wish there were some sort of workaround or something. I know it can do it, its just a matter of settings. I had no idea that max res via DVI was 1600x1200. I swear I had it hooked up with DVI at 1920x1200, but only until I hooked up the second monitor.
Too bad my 17" doesn't have DVI connection.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285962 - 24/08/2006 18:24
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: visuvius]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 13/07/2000
Posts: 4180
Loc: Cambridge, England
|
Quote: I had no idea that max res via DVI was 1600x1200. I swear I had it hooked up with DVI at 1920x1200, but only until I hooked up the second monitor.
DVI "officially" only does 1600x1200 (duhh, whose idea was that?), but many cards will do 1920x1200 over it with reduced refresh rates or blanking intervals. Maybe there's something in your driver or setup such that it doesn't like driving the two monitors at different refresh rates?
Peter
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285963 - 24/08/2006 18:26
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: wfaulk]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
|
Quote: Do you need to turn off "DualView" in a control panel or something?
Ordinarily, you need to turn "DualView" on. In my nVidia control panel, it offers the following options:
- Only use one display (Single) - The same on both displays (Clone) - As one large horizontal desktop (Horizontal span) - As one large vertical desktop (Vertical span) - Configured independently from each other (Dualview)
So, you almost always want to use Dualview, which allows Windows to handle the displays individually.
This has worked fine for me when I've had monitors of different sizes, although I'll admit that I didn't try to drive either monitor at more than 1600x1200.
Right now, both of my monitors are the same, so it's entirely possible that nVidia or Microsoft broke something.
_________________________
-- roger
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285964 - 24/08/2006 18:27
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: visuvius]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
|
Quote: So, for some reason, once I hooked up the second display, it limited my resolution on the main one to 1600x1200
I wonder if it's simply got a limit on frame buffer memory. That for two monitors, it can't allocate enough RAM for the higher rez on one of the displays. So the only way to get the highest rez is when you're running in a single display configuration.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285965 - 24/08/2006 18:46
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: tfabris]
|
enthusiast
Registered: 11/06/2003
Posts: 384
|
Quote: I wonder if it's simply got a limit on frame buffer memory.
Hmmm... with 32 bit color 24 bit color 1600 x 1200 = ~59 Mb ~44Mb 2048 x 1536 = ~96 Mb (max frame buffer?) 1920 x 1200 = ~71 Mb ~52Mb 17" LCD likely 1280 x 1024 =~ 40Mb ~30Mb
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285966 - 24/08/2006 18:53
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: Mataglap]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
|
Umm, you did your math way wrong there. 1600*1200*24b=44Mb=5.5MB.
Well, I suppose not wrong, but you are implying that Mb=MB. Or at the very least, using a unit of measure no one is familiar with in measuring memory.
Edited by wfaulk (24/08/2006 18:54)
_________________________
Bitt Faulk
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285967 - 24/08/2006 19:05
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: peter]
|
old hand
Registered: 15/02/2002
Posts: 1049
|
I'm running this exact monitor over DVI at 1920x1200. Probably time to upgrade your video card.
Edited by TigerJimmy (24/08/2006 19:06)
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285968 - 24/08/2006 19:16
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: wfaulk]
|
enthusiast
Registered: 11/06/2003
Posts: 384
|
Easy to misread and assume Bytes, certainly. And lazy for not doing the 1/8.
But is there any value to coverting to bytes (B) from bits (b) in this particular case? The total memory (256MB or whatever) that the card has isn't all for the frame buffer, it's for textures and other stages of the rendering pipeline.
But ok. Based on the max res of the card given earlier, that would be 12MB for the fb. The LCD needs 5MB at 32bit, 3.75 @ 24. The widescreen 8.79 & 6.59.
In either unit, at 32 bit color Tony's speculation is reasonable.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285969 - 24/08/2006 19:41
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: wfaulk]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
|
Quote: 24b
Quite a lot of Windows drivers will run 24-bit colour-depth as 32-bits, just because it's faster; even though they're wasting 25% of VRAM.
_________________________
-- roger
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285970 - 24/08/2006 20:05
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: Mataglap]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
|
Quote: But is there any value to coverting to bytes (B) from bits (b) in this particular case?
Well, if you're looking to see if the video card has enough memory to fit those two frame buffers in memory, and given that video card memory is given in bytes, then you either need to convert the memory required to bytes or the memory available to bits.
And, unless I'm mistaken, none of a video card's memory is dedicated to either the frame buffer or textures, et al.
_________________________
Bitt Faulk
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285971 - 24/08/2006 20:16
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: Roger]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
|
True, but we're still talking less than 14MB for 1920x1200 plus 1280x1024, both at 32 bits-per-pixel. Was there ever a video card that had a DVI connector that had less than 16MB?
_________________________
Bitt Faulk
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285972 - 24/08/2006 20:28
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: Roger]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 12/11/2001
Posts: 7738
Loc: Toronto, CANADA
|
Wasting? Those 8 bits are full of Alpha-goodness.
Anyway, it's unlikely to be memory related. It could very well be pixel clock related. Maybe that card can't run 1920x1200 with reduced blanking interval (that's how they go beyond the VESA spec) while driving the second display. I know a number of Matrox cards had crapppy configurations like this.
I don't remember a single ATI card with dual displays where you could not run the maximum resolution on both outputs in any situation.
Even a current cheapy card should be able to handle both displays at full resolution.
Check in the Advanced properties to make sure there isn't some setting on one of the tabs that artificially limits the maximum resolution.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285973 - 24/08/2006 20:35
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: hybrid8]
|
addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
|
Darn, then I think I need to order a cheapo card off Newegg or something. I thought this would have worked just fine, and I suppose it does except for this one issue.
The only thing I can't wrap my mind around is WHY i was able to get 1920x1200 via DVI before hooking up the 2nd monitor.
BTW, this monitor is really sweet.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285974 - 24/08/2006 20:42
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: visuvius]
|
addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
|
A related question:
I think this might be a bad description of what I'm looking for but, what the hell. You know how you can maximize a window and it fills up the entire screen? Well, I want a program that will allow me to maximize a window on the 24" Dell, but when maximized, it should fit to a designated half of the screen. So the maximized window will fill the right side of the screen. Then i can maximize a second window and have it fill the other half of the screen.
Basically I would like to not have to do the resizing manually. If I maxmize a window now, it fills the entire screen. I want to be able to have two windows side by side filling up the screen, without manually sizing each one.
Do I make sense?
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285975 - 24/08/2006 20:57
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: visuvius]
|
pooh-bah
Registered: 12/02/2002
Posts: 2298
Loc: Berkeley, California
|
I would have sworn that was the default behavior, but it's been a while since I used a windows computer with multiple screens. Make sure you've got it set up so windows sees them as seperate screens which are arranged next to each other.
As to why it won't go back to working, it beats me. I'd delete the graphics card in the device manager and let it get reinstalled with just the 2407 hooked up.
Matthew
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285976 - 24/08/2006 20:57
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: visuvius]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 29/08/2000
Posts: 14493
Loc: Canada
|
That was a standard capability of fvwm2, back when I used it as my windowing system on Linux. It has roughly similar sophistication to the default MS window manager, plus nifty features like that.
Nowadays I use KDE, and miss that fancy function very much! Though it does have "Pack Grow Window horizontally/vertically" functions, which do almost the same thing.
Cheers
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285977 - 24/08/2006 22:16
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: visuvius]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 12/11/2001
Posts: 7738
Loc: Toronto, CANADA
|
You're looking for something to do "Window Tiling." There should be numerous windows shareware apps that let you control how this works. Windows itself also has a tiling command I believe but I can't remember how well you can control what gets tiled.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285978 - 25/08/2006 01:23
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: hybrid8]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
|
Quote: Wasting? Those 8 bits are full of Alpha-goodness.
Not in a frame buffer. Alpha channels don't make sense in a final rendering.
_________________________
Bitt Faulk
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285979 - 25/08/2006 04:23
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: matthew_k]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
|
Quote: I would have sworn that was the default behavior, but it's been a while since I used a windows computer with multiple screens.
Yeah, that is the default behaviour if you've got dualview (or whatever your video card manufacturer calls it). If Windows sees the monitors separately, then a window will only maximize to a single monitor.
A tip: if you do have multiple monitors, buy a copy of UltraMon (30 day free trial). It gives you a separate task bar for each monitor, quick buttons for moving windows between monitors, a different screen saver on each monitor, and lots of other goodness.
_________________________
-- roger
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285980 - 25/08/2006 05:10
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: visuvius]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
|
Quote: Well, I want a program that will allow me to maximize a window on the 24" Dell, but when maximized, it should fit to a designated half of the screen. So the maximized window will fill the right side of the screen. Then i can maximize a second window and have it fill the other half of the screen.
You're talking about two windows on the same monitor, right? Not one window on each monitor? Right?
By definition, maximizing fills the screen. What you're looking for is window tiling. Same thing as what you want, but it just has a different name.
Not sure how this works on a dual monitor configuration, but try this: Right click on a blank area of the task bar and select TILE WINDOWS VERTICALLY, and I think that does what you're asking for. At least that's what it's doing on my single widescreen configuration when I try it.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285981 - 25/08/2006 09:13
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: tfabris]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
|
Quote: You're talking about two windows on the same monitor, right?
Ah, I missed that distinction. Yeah, right-clicking on the taskbar and selecting one of the 'Tile Windows' options is what you want. Unfortunately, it applies to all windows, not just the ones on the screen you're looking at (even with UltraMon), so it's not great.
_________________________
-- roger
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285982 - 25/08/2006 10:02
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: Roger]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 19/01/2002
Posts: 3584
Loc: Columbus, OH
|
Quote: A tip: if you do have multiple monitors, buy a copy of UltraMon (30 day free trial). It gives you a separate task bar for each monitor, quick buttons for moving windows between monitors, a different screen saver on each monitor, and lots of other goodness.
Seconded.
_________________________
~ John
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285983 - 25/08/2006 14:47
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: tfabris]
|
addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
|
Hey! That pretty much works perfect. At first Tile Windows Vertically wasn't working the way I wanted but then I realized you have to hit CTRL and click on each window. Works great. Except for with Access for some reason. lol. Oh well.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285984 - 25/08/2006 14:47
Re: Dell 24" Monitor question
[Re: Roger]
|
addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
|
Sweet program. I think its a keeper. THX.
|
Top
|
|
|
|
#285985 - 29/12/2006 12:19
Dell 30" - 'cheap' in the UK
[Re: visuvius]
|
carpal tunnel
Registered: 10/06/1999
Posts: 5916
Loc: Wivenhoe, Essex, UK
|
_________________________
Remind me to change my signature to something more interesting someday
|
Top
|
|
|
|
|
|