shamino

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shamino
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  • How to connect just about any vintage Mac to a modern monitor

    shaminoshamino
    Hreb said:
    DisplayPort has absolutely not been eclipsed by HDMI in modern usage.  As I understand it, every USB-C and Thunderbolt is actually using a DisplayPort profile on the wire.  HDMI is more popular for TVs, but for any computer monitor DisplayPort 1.4 or 2.0 is the answer, whether in DP, mini-DP, USB-C, or Thunderbolt form factor.

    Absolutely true.  Although the two are related and are somewhat compatible for the TV-standard frequencies and resolutions, they are different technologies designed for different purposes.

    DisplayPort is designed for computer monitors.  Very high resolutions and refresh rates, and little else.  While HDMI is designed for home theater - including multi-channel audio, peripheral communication (CEC), reverse-audio (ARC/eARC) and other features that make no sense for computer-display connectivity.

    it's great that both are popular on computers and monitors, since it allows a lot of flexibility with respect to what you connect (e.g. plug a Blu-Ray player into a computer monitor or use a TV for a computer's presentation), but they are definitely not interchangeable and I hope neither one displaces the other, because they are designed to solve different categories of problems, both of which are going to remain valid for a long time.
    Hreb

  • How to connect just about any vintage Mac to a modern monitor

    shaminoshamino
    Just a nit to pick.  The DIP switches on an Apple RGB-VGA adapter are not because of the sync mechanisms.  Apple RGB provided sync in the same way that most analog monitors at the time do - either with separate pins (VGA style) or by multiplexing sync with the green signal.

    The DIP switches exist because the DDC standard for plug-and-play monitors didn't exit at the time.  Apple's monitors were all fixed-frequency, so the Mac needed to know the correct frequency and resolution used by the connected monitor - and you can't use a control panel if you can't see an image.

    In order to avoid this chicken-and-egg scenario, there are three "sense" pins on the DE15 video connector.  By connecting them to power, ground, or each other (possible with diodes), a monitor can identify itself.  The DIP switches on the adapter is used to make these connections so you can tell the connected Mac what frequency/resolution you want to use with your monitor.
    netroxwatto_cobraappleinsideruserAlex1N

  • Why Apple Vision Pro's constant strobing matters to your health

    shaminoshamino
    asus389 said:
    With the later, such as with PWM dimming, the light source itself is turning on and off and your brain is supposed to interpret that as either a dimmer or brighter screen. In the case of an OLED screen, the pixels are both the light source and the image source so the image itself is essential turning on and off repeatedly depending on the desired brightness. This seems to cause more eye strain for some people than how it was traditionally done with LCDs as described above.
    But, as I wrote, the frequency matters.  A 50% duty cycle at 30 Hz is not going to be the same as 120 Hz or 1 kHz.  And human eyes don't have infinite temporal resolution.

    Just like pixels smaller than a certain size are no longer distinguishable, flickering faster than a certain frequency should also no longer be distinguishable.  I don't know what the threshold may be (and it probably varies from person to person), but my gut tells me that there should be a frequency above which should be indistinguishable from actually-dimmed pixels.



    mfryd

  • How to delete apps from the Apple Vision Pro

    shaminoshamino
    AppleInsider said:
    Most of the apps built into visionOS cannot be deleted, but Apple does make an exception for two of them. You do have the option to delete Keynote from the Apple Vision Pro, as well as Encounter Dinosaurs.
    I am surprised by this.  Logically, you should be able to delete all but Settings and the App Store (since you clearly need some way of being able to put-back anything you deleted).

    But maybe this is just for version 1.0 - to make sure early adopters don't preemptively blow away stuff before they have a chance to use it and possibly realize it's useful.
    watto_cobra

  • Check your cable stashes, because this old Apple dongle is worth $200

    shaminoshamino
    Wow.  I've got one, but it will not be separated from my old PowerMac G4, which needs it to connect to my DVI displays.

    I also don't understand the article's comment that VGA monitors somehow require an expensive active adapter to connect to a PowerMac's VGA port (like my G4 has alongside the ADC port).
    watto_cobra