12" AiPowerBook, Does it have screen spanning?

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
I want to know if the G4 12" PB will span the display across 2 screens.

If not then I might as well keep my iBook.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 15
    thegeldingthegelding Posts: 3,230member
    yes...up to 1600 x what ever goes with 1600



    spanning is enabled, unlike the iBook...g
  • Reply 2 of 15
    You can't use ADC, though. Right?
  • Reply 3 of 15
    defiantdefiant Posts: 4,876member
    sure. you just have to buy a converter from drbott.com
  • Reply 4 of 15
    No, I don't think the Dr. Bott adapter will work. I think it's just for DVI to ADC. The 12" minibook doesn't have DVI out, which for me is really the only problem with the machine. I don't think I can give up my 17" Studio Display.



    You could get a VGA to DVI adapter, then DVI to ADC ..



    Anyone know how LCD image quality would degrade using analog input as opposed to digital? Is it that noticeable?
  • Reply 5 of 15
    scottscott Posts: 7,431member
    You know what would be nice is an Apple CRT with the big legs. Then you could slide your BabyBook under it and use a bigger keyboard. ... I'm almost sold.
  • Reply 6 of 15
    lucaluca Posts: 3,833member
    Dr. Bott does make a VGA-ADC adapter. It works only at three resolutions - 1024x768, 1280x1024, and 1600x1024. So it won't work with the 23" cinema (1920x1200) unless you do resolution scaling to drop it down to 1600x1024, and in that case, what's the point?



    Also, the Dr. Bott adapter is very expensive.



    Finally, if you have a Radeon iBook and you're brave, you could consider applying the monitor spanning hack. It's a little risky because you're working in Open Firmware, but I did it just fine, took me one minute, and now I can span to an external monitor. Use it at your own risk though!
  • Reply 7 of 15
    [quote]Originally posted by Scott:

    <strong>You know what would be nice is an Apple CRT with the big legs. Then you could slide your BabyBook under it and use a bigger keyboard. ... I'm almost sold.</strong><hr></blockquote>

    That's how I've got my iBook set up, and that's how I'll set up my 12" Powerbook when I get it. It is nice
  • Reply 8 of 15
    scottscott Posts: 7,431member
    I'm going to goto "Property Disposition" at U of Michigan. That's where they sell off old stuff from the university. I might get lucky and hit an old monitor ... maybe an Apple one.
  • Reply 9 of 15
    zozo Posts: 3,117member
    can you keep the lid CLOSED while having the video out?
  • Reply 10 of 15
    escherescher Posts: 1,811member
    [quote]Originally posted by ZO:

    <strong>can you keep the lid CLOSED while having the video out?</strong><hr></blockquote>



    That's one of the questions I've been waiting to answer before getting a 12" PowerBook. I know the iBook can't mirror to an external monitor while closed. I was under the impression that the 15" PowerBook could stay closed while running an external display. So I assume (and hope) that the 12" PowerBook will be able to stay closed while running an external monitor.



    Now, all I want is a Duo-style Dock for the 12" PowerBook before I can toss out my old iMac and iBook in one fell swoop. See my .Mac homepage for <a href="http://homepage.mac.com/escher/Menu4.html"; target="_blank">PowerBook Duo TV Commercials</a>, which show the ingenuous, smooth operation of the Duo Dock.



    Escher



    [ 01-13-2003: Message edited by: Escher ]</p>
  • Reply 11 of 15
    outsideroutsider Posts: 6,008member
    the 15" PB does let you keep the lid closed but it's a pain since the only way to turn it on is to open the lid, hit the button and close the lid quickly. That's why i rarely shut my PB down.
  • Reply 12 of 15
    multimediamultimedia Posts: 1,034member
    [quote]Originally posted by Escher:

    <strong>



    That's one of the questions I've been waiting to answer before getting a 12" PowerBook. I know the iBook can't mirror to an external monitor while closed. I was under the impression that the 15" PowerBook could stay closed while running an external display. So I assume (and hope) that the 12" PowerBook will be able to stay closed while running an external monitor.



    Now, all I want is a Duo-style Dock for the 12" PowerBook before I can toss out my old iMac and iBook in one fell swoop. See my .Mac homepage for <a href="http://homepage.mac.com/escher/Menu4.html"; target="_blank">PowerBook Duo TV Commercials</a>, which show the ingenuous, smooth operation of the Duo Dock.



    Escher

    </strong><hr></blockquote>



    Dock won't happen because all the 12"APB ports are on the sides not the rear. Moreover, the 12" APB doesn't have FireWire 800, backlit keys and only supports 640 MB of RAM.



    If I were you, I'd wait for Apple to add those features and allow for 1GB RAM before I'd pull the trigger.
  • Reply 13 of 15
    lucaluca Posts: 3,833member
    [quote]Originally posted by Outsider:

    <strong>the 15" PB does let you keep the lid closed but it's a pain since the only way to turn it on is to open the lid, hit the button and close the lid quickly. That's why i rarely shut my PB down.</strong><hr></blockquote>



    The other way is to connect an external keyboard and press a key to wake it up.
  • Reply 14 of 15
    escherescher Posts: 1,811member
    [quote]Originally posted by Multimedia:

    <strong>Dock won't happen because all the 12"APB ports are on the sides not the rear.</strong><hr></blockquote>



    What the hell are you talking about, Multimedia? Just in case it's not obvious to you, you would use an external (higher-res) monitor with a Dock. You'd simply slide the 12" PowerBook into the Dock sideways. That way the ports would connect in the back of the Dock and the slot-load optical drive would be up front for easy access. It makes no difference whether you (a) have the ports in the back and drive in front (e.g. 15" PowerBook) or (b) ports on side and drive on other side (e.g. 12" PowerBook), as long as all the ports are on one side and the optical drive is on the opposite side.



    Of course, the 17" PowerBook is not a good docking candidate since it has ports on both left and right sides and the optical drive in the front.



    Escher
  • Reply 15 of 15
    matsumatsu Posts: 6,558member
    A duo may be on the way in some future edition, but it would have to sport a faster firewire connection or Cardbus to make the extra connectivity worthwhile. A fast HDD and a PCI card working at the same time could suffle more than 100MB/s around, certainly more than 50MB, which is currently the 12's fastest external link. Attaching a few extra drives and cards would be the only reason for a dock. Otherwise a bluetooth keyboard and mouse and a monitor should have you nicely covered. Just plug in the monitor and go.
Sign In or Register to comment.