Setting Up Two Displays on One Computer in Windows 98, ME, and XP... http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=bph07109&t...

HP Customer Care > Compaq Presario 6019WM Desktop PC > How to

Setting Up Two Displays on One Computer in Windows 98, ME,

and XP
Support details

This document applies to HP and Compaq desktop computers with TV compatible video
connectors using Windows 98, Me, and XP.

This document explains how to connect and set up a television (TV) or a second monitor as a second
display. Using the secondary video connection on the graphics adapter, you can connect a TV (S-Video,
RCA) or another monitor (DVI, HDMI) to your computer.

If you added a video card and are using the video connectors on the card, see the documentation that
came with the video card before using this document.

NOTE: Not all HP and Compaq computers ship with a secondary video connector. If your computer
does not have a second video connector, install a graphics adapter with a video connector
or buy special video signal processing equipment before using a TV as a monitor.

Connecting a TV or second monitor to the computer

To connect a second display to the computer and configure the computer for your viewing environment,
complete the following steps:

1. Position the monitor and television .

2. Identify the type of cables you need .

3. Connect the cables .

4. Configure the display settings .

Position the monitor and television

Place the monitor and television in their respective locations, depending on how you want to use
the displays:

Environment Placement
Classroom Position the computer monitor on a desk so you can view both displays and
the audience. Place the television where any member of the audience can
Presentation easily view it.
Work desktop Place the computer monitor and television side by side. Allow a little more
viewing distance between the two displays and the viewer's eyes.
Home computing
desktop

Identify the type of cables you need

The type of video cable you need depends on your TV and monitor.

1. Select one TV cable and one monitor cable:

Video Out Use Connector
Description
connector/cable with color
Video (composite) TV Yellow The composite video signal combines white
(luminance) and color (chrominance) video
information onto a single line (wire).

This cable is the most common video format

of the National Television Systems Committee
(NTSC).
S-Video TV Black The S-Video signal separates the white
(luminance) and color (chrominance) signal
components and transmits the components
separately using multiple lines (wires).
Separate luminance and color signals provide
a higher vertical resolution than composite
video devices.

S-Video equipment was originally designed for

high-end television production, but is now
available to the consumer market. S-Video is
also known as Y/C video.
VGA Monitor Blue (Video Graphics Array) Analog computer
graphics standard that supports a maximum
resolution of 640 x 480 pixels.

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NOTE: A TVs resolution is roughly half the quality of a monitor that is set at 640 x
480. Image quality can appear worse when using higher display resolutions
because higher resolutions bring out the lower resolution of standard TV.
This is a limitation of the TV standard.

2. Verify that the second display and the graphics adapter have the same type of video
connectors. A matching video connector type must be on the both the TV and the
computer before you can use these steps.

Figure 1: Video connectors

1 - Composite video/TV-Out

2 - S-Video Out

3 - Standard VGA monitor

For a TV, use either an S-Video or standard composite (also known as RCA
cables) cable that matches the TV in connector. You can use an S-Video-
to-composite adapter when the video card only has an S-Video connector.

If the television does not have a composite or S-Video connection and has
only a coaxial or antenna connector, use an adapter that connects
S-Video/composite to the coaxial connector. These are readily available from
most local electronics supply stores at minimal cost.
Coaxial video is another type of cable or connection that typically carries a
composite video signal. This connection is mainly used by local cable and
satellite television companies to deliver their signals. Most graphics adapters
do not have a coaxial-style out connector because they send out their own
TV signal.

For a monitor, use the VGA connector.

Connect the cables

Use the following steps to connect both displays to the computer:

1. Connect the TV or second monitor to the computer. Select the first available connection
from the following list, depending on the television and computer in connections:
Connector Installation
S-Video Connect an S-Video cable to the S-Video out connector on back of the
computer and the S-Video in connector on the back of the television.
Composite Connect a composite video cable to the composite video out connector
video on back of the computer and the composite video in connector on the
back of the television.
Second monitor If you are using a second monitor instead of a TV, connect the additional
monitor cable to the extra VGA or DVI out connector on back of the
computer and the VGA or DVI in connector on the back of the monitor.

2. If you want to use the speakers on a TV for audio, use one of the following methods:

A Y-adapter cable that connects a mini-jack connector (the connector that

plugs into the computer) to two RCA-style stereo connectors (the connectors
on a stereo TV).

Use the audio from the computer, if your current audio cables do not connect
to the TV.

3. Turn on the TV or second monitor. Do not turn on the computer.

4. Change the input source setting to match the incoming signal connection (usually
Line-1, Video-1 or S-Video). Press the TV remote control input button, if using a TV.
NOTE: This step is important. If a TV is not on and changed to the proper video
source, the video card cannot detect the TV.

Configure the display settings

To configure Windows for the extra display, use one of the following sections depending on how
you want to use the TV:

Classroom and presentation environments

or

Desktop environment (extended Windows XP desktop space)

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Classroom and presentation environments

Use the following steps to show what is happening on the computer to an audience:

1. Turn on the computer. Wait until the Windows desktop opens before continuing.
The second display might show the computer screen as the computer starts,
depending on the video card.

2. If the same image of the Windows desktop displays on both the second display
and the monitor, move the mouse pointer to see if the cursor moves both inside
the monitor and the second display.

If the mouse pointer cursor moves in both displays at the same time,
you do not have to continue. The video card automatically uses a
presentation environment when it detects the second display.
However, you might still want to continue to adjust the video image
and see if your video card can reduce flickering, and increase
sharpness, and other quality settings for a TV signal.

If the mouse pointer moves only in one display, continue using these
steps to setup up the presentation environment.

NOTE: If the Windows desktop never displays on the monitor, disconnect the
second display from the computer and reconnect it again after
restarting the computer and opening Windows. If you have a TV, this
must be done on the monitor because a TV does not show enough
detail, making it difficult to finish the rest of these steps.

3. Right-click anywhere on an open area of the Windows desktop and click

Properties .

4. Click the Settings tab.

NOTE: If you are using a TV, you can change the display resolution for the
computer as low as possible to help the image quality on the TV.
Icons and other items display larger and can be seen more easily on
the TV if using a lower resolution, such as 640 by 480 pixels or 800
by 600 pixels. Click Apply if you change the resolution setting.

5. Click the Advanced button.

6. This step depends on the options that the video card provides. Click through the
advanced video card display properties screens and look for a display feature
that copies the image from the computer onto both displays.
The following table shows video cards that are common to HP and Compaq
computers, how to find dual display windows from Advanced Display properties,
and how to use their display copying features:
Video Card Procedure
ATI Radeon
- TV 1. Click the Displays tab.
The monitors and TVs are shown. The upper-left corner
of each display icon is a button and a status indicator. A
red corner indicates an inactive display; a green corner
indicates an active display. (YPbPr displays if component
video is selected.)

2. To view the display on your monitor and TV

simultaneously, click the upper-left corner of the TV icon.
It becomes green. Both the monitor and the TV icons
have green corners.

nVidia
GeForce 1. Ensure to select nView Display Settings in the list on the
6XXX - left side.
Clone
2. Select Clone from the nView Display Mode drop down
menu.

3. Select the Primary and secondary displays from the drop

down menu.

nVidia
GeForce 1. Click the tab that contains the name of the video card.
4/FX - Clone
2. Click nView Display mode from the list in the left pane .

3. Click Clone in the tab window.

NOTE: You can make more adjustments now to try to increase the quality of
the picture on the TV.

7. After making the selection, click Apply .

8. When the image displays on the TV screen, click Yes to keep the setting. You
have 15 seconds to accept this new setting before it returns to the previous
setting.

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9. Click OK to save changes. Click OK again to close the window.

Both the monitor and the second display show the same image.

Figure 2: Example of ATI video card display window

Figure 3: Example of nVidia video card display window

Desktop environment (extended Windows XP desktop space)

Use the following steps to configure Windows so that it uses the TV as extra desktop
space:

1. Turn on the computer.

The TV might show the computer screens as the computer starts depending on

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the video card. Wait until Windows opens before continuing.

2. If Windows never displays on the monitor, disconnect the TV from the computer
and reconnect it again after turning the computer on and opening Windows. You
have to do this because a TV cannot display the details of the monitor, making it
difficult to continue using these steps.

3. Right-click anywhere on an open area of the Windows desktop, select

Properties , and then click the Settings tab.

4. The number one blue rectangle represents primary display and the number two
blue rectangle represents the secondary display (usually the TV).

5. Click the number one rectangle and adjust the Screen Resolution setting to 1024
x 768 pixels, Then set the color quality to Highest (32 bit).

6. Click OK .
If a Monitor Settings window displays after the screen properties change, click
Yes .

7. Right-click anywhere on an open area of the desktop, select Properties , and

then click the Settings tab.

Figure 4: Multiple displays as shown in Display Properties

8. Click the number two rectangle. If a Monitor 2 message displays, click Yes to
enable the television signal.

9. Select Extend my Windows desktop onto this monitor .

10. Adjust the Screen Resolution setting to 1024 x 768 pixels, set the color quality to
Highest (32 bit), and then click OK .

11. Click and drag the blue rectangles that represent the displays and position them
next to each other. Position them so that they visually represent how the display
devices are sitting on the desk. For example, if the TV is sitting on a shelf
directly over the monitor, you would click and drag the blue rectangle that
represents the TV so that it is directly over the blue rectangle that represents the
monitor.

12. Click OK . If a Monitor Settings window displays after the screen properties
change, click Yes .
The extended desktop is configured and ready for use

Troubleshooting TV setup
Try the following items if you encounter problems when trying to connect a TV to the computer:

Certain graphics adapters must have the TV set as the graphics display adapter before
recognizing it. If the computer is not "detecting" the TV as a display device when the
computer is on, set TV as the primary display device in Windows and restart the computer.

Turn on the TV before turning on the computer.

TVs require their source setting changed to the video source that the video card is using.

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Select either Input 1 , Input 2 , or S-Video by pressing the or button on

the TVs remote control. This can vary depending on the type of TV you are using. If your TV
does not have this capability, you cannot use it as a second monitor without using special
video signal processing (not covered in this document). For more detailed instructions consult
the manual for your TV.

Try setting the screen resolution to 800 x 600 or less from Display Properties on the
computer.

Try using only one video source. Do not connect two cables to the TV or monitor at the same
time.

A TV accepts either a PAL (Europe) or NTSC (North America) signal, depending on the
country/region of manufacture. Make sure that the signal format of the TV matches the signal
output that the card produces (for on-board TV-output, change this setting in the BIOS).

Related support
nVidia's nView Web Page (in English)

NOTE: One or more of the links above will take you outside the Hewlett-Packard Web site. HP does
not control and is not responsible for information outside the HP Web site.

Other solutions customers found helpful

» HP and Compaq Desktop PCs -- Adding Another Monitor and Video Card to Extend the Windows Desktop
» HP and Compaq Desktop PCs -- Setting up a Monitor
» HP and Compaq Desktop PCs -- Obtaining Software and Drivers
» HP and Compaq Desktop PCs -- BIOS Setup Utility Information and Menu Options

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