iBook (external) resolution?

unremarkable

I can't find an answer to this anywhere on the web...



I bought an iBook. It goes up to 1024x768 resolution.



I will mainly use it "docked", at home, connected to my 21" monitor via adapter.



I want a higher resolution than 1024x768.



Is there any way I can achieve this?



(Please don't recommend "SwitchRes" unless you have experience of it working--I read about it all the time but no-one seems to actually have got it to *work*...)



Thank you!

gsxrboy

Do a search for the ibook firmware hack, that will let you run bigger resolutions on the external monitor



p.s. took 2 secs



http://www.rutemoeller.com/mp/ibook/ibook_e.html

unremarkable

Quote:

Originally posted by gsxrboy

Do a search for the ibook firmware hack, that will let you run bigger resolutions on the external monitor



p.s. took 2 secs



http://www.rutemoeller.com/mp/ibook/ibook_e.html

Thank you for that. I do actually have that hack applied, but what I get is, when I switch resolutions, the right resolution but the screen mirrored in a smaller square in the middle of my 21" monitor. Can I fix this?

murbot

Sounds like you still have mirroring turned on. Turn that off and it should be fine.



I run my CRT at 1280x960 with my 12" iBook G4. I tossed buddy a few bucks via PayPal for the super-easy hack.

unremarkable

But if I turn off mirroring, I just get my desktop background on the external monitor, not the iBook's desktop. files &c...

unremarkable

Ah, you drag the menubar to the other display, got it!



Thank you!

murbot

Sweet, ain't it?

escher

Just to confirm, you can still only do spanning with the hack, right?



I want to keep my 'Book closed and run only the external LCD (at 1280x1024). For that I'll have to buy a 12-inch PowerBook, right?



Escher

murbot

His Screen Spanning Doctor does do clamshell mode on iBooks, but it's not 100%. I've had it work fine for extended periods, then not work worth a damn the next few times. He says as much though, that it's not perfect by any means.

escher

Quote:

Originally posted by murbot

His Screen Spanning Doctor does do clamshell mode on iBooks, but it's not 100%.

Wow, murbot! I had no idea that there was an easy program to apply the hack and that it could do "clamshell" mode. Even with less than 100% reliability, it might be worth the $400 discount over the 12-inch PowerBook.



I have to do more reasearch, including on the Spanning Doctor forum. But do you have any idea what factors influence the reliability of clamshell mode? It sounds like the TV adapter messes things up. Anything else?



Once you have installed the hack with clamshell mode enabled, can you change external resolutions with Apple's control panel?



I guess the only other downside of the iBook in clamshell mode would be that the power and video plugs are on opposing sides. (I still dream of a Duo-style dock for my upcoming 'Book.)



Escher

escher

The discussion below started in the Computer Setup Pictures 2004 thread in General Discusssion, but is related to the discussion about problems with the clamshell part of the Hack above.

Quote:

Originally posted by murbot

Escher, I rarely use my iBook's LCD. It's actually more of a pain to me to use dual displays.

That's exactly why I want clamshell mode and not spanning, murbot.

Quote:

I just have the iBook's LCD turned off. Technically the iBook is powering that display, I just never see it. All I see and work with is the 1280x960 on my CRT.

Don't you loose your cursor (and even windows) on the spanned but turned off internal LCD? How much of a pain is it to move the menu bar and dock to the larger external monitor every time you get back to your desktop? A PowerBook would sense the change automatically. Does the iBook with Hack?



I can get the iBook G4 for US$1000 educational (plus options), so it is awfully tempting to save $300. On the other hand, I would much prefer 100% hassle-free clamshell operation. In the end, the PowerBook will probably be worth my extra money.



Escher

curiousuburb

if all you want is the external display and the LCD will be "off",

you don't need spanning, you can get by with mirroring (and clamshell).

bingo, no lost cursor or need to move menubar... there is only 'one' screen.



the 2nd quote seems like it could be pure mirroring, not spanning,

but maybe I'm missing the obvious in your post, or misreading the excerpted context \

escher

Quote:

Originally posted by curiousuburb

maybe I'm missing the obvious in your post, or misreading the excerpted context \

It's probably not obvious, curiousuburb. The iBook spanning hack has traditionally only allowed spanning, but not clamshell mode. Klaus' Spanning Doctor freeware mentioned above does enable clamshell mode, but not reliably. That's why some people, including murbot, seem to run spanning mode, but with the internal LCD "turned off" (presumably dimmed all the way down). Hope my post makes more sense now.



Escher

unremarkable

I should mention here that many of the places I've read about this (I did a lot of research) there is considerable concern about the risks of running the iBook in clamshell mode; the worry is that Apple disabled the mode because the iBook gets rid of heat via the keyboard, and it might damage the computer if you cover that area.



I run my iBook with the brightness all the way down, and the screen folded just so far down as to not make it enter sleep. After a long time, the keyboard does indeed get considerably hot.



Just thought I should mention it!

apexthirteen

i just downloaded the hack. I am planning on using an external monitor with the ibook lcd dimmed to a low brightness. Im having trouble moving the top menu bar and the dock to the external monitor. any help on how to do this would be great. thanks.

apexthirteen

oh, i just found how to do it. duh.