LAPTOP FORUM

Hello

I have just bought a laptop for the 1st time (Toshiba Satellite), running
Vista. I want to attach an external monitor (19 samsung flat panel).

The monitor has its own setup / installation disc. I know where to plug it
in, but when I install it will its driver overwrite the laptops own LCD
screen driver, or are there 2 monitor drivers?. Do I have to switch between
them whenever I attach or detach the samsung ?

Help please (confused)

Thanks for all advice

KK

Krustov wrote:

Fn-F9 should cycly through Laptop sreeen-External screen-both, as you hit
the F9 key.

On Mar 18, 1:59 pm, KK wrote:
I cant answer your questions, but I have found using an external
monitor with a laptop to be problematic. As I recall, installing the
monitor for the driver didnt override the driver for the laptop
screen.

I wanted to use the monitor instead of the laptop screen when I was
using the laptop on my desk. Unfortunately Windows seemed to think I
could only want to use the external monitor to extend the desktop. so
as you moved the cursor to one side of the laptop screen it would
disappear and reappear on the monitor. What I wanted it to do was
duplicate the laptop screen on the external monitor. In the end, I got
a relatively cheap bit of software called, if I recollect correctly,
Ultramon. Jiggling around with the settings on this allowed me to
duplicate on the external monitor what was on the laptop screen.

Unfortunately the native resolution of the monitor was higher than
that of the laptop screen, and this opened up a new slew of problems.
If I kept the resolution at that of the laptop screen, the monitor
image looked blurry, and evidently I wasnt getting the best out of
it. If I set the computer display settings to a higher resolution, I
got a nice sharp image on the external monitor, but then I didnt get
a complete image on the laptop screen. So I had to keep altering the
resolution depending on whether I was using the computer as a laptop
or as a desktop (i.e. plugged in to the external monitor). In the end
I gave up. Windows just isnt designed to be used that way (I dont
know if Vista is any better.)

Amusingly, I saw one of the IT supplements a few months ago advising
someone to get a laptop and use it with an external monitor and in
that way to get the best of both worlds. I came to the conclusion
youre making a rod for your own back if you go down that route.

But maybe someone can tell us how it should be done.

Allan