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#1
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recommended monitor switch for laptop or desktop selection
I recently upgraded my monitor and I would like to allow not only use of
my desktop, but my laptop as well. All have standard VGA ports. What would be a decent, cheap switch to use? Once upon a time, I used a mechanical switch that rotated 4 positions to enable use of any 4 computers with one monitor, but over time colors would change as there started to be intermittents since it was mechanical, so hoping there's a cheap electronic switch these days. Thanks. |
#2
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recommended monitor switch for laptop or desktop selection
On Mon, 30 Nov 2015 20:10:58 -0400, Bill Baxter
wrote: I recently upgraded my monitor and I would like to allow not only use of my desktop, but my laptop as well. All have standard VGA ports. What would be a decent, cheap switch to use? Once upon a time, I used a mechanical switch that rotated 4 positions to enable use of any 4 computers with one monitor, but over time colors would change as there started to be intermittents since it was mechanical, so hoping there's a cheap electronic switch these days. Thanks. Try a google search for KVM switch tom's hardware. There are several threads on Tom's site, stuff there always seemed believeble to me. Prices vary alot. |
#3
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recommended monitor switch for laptop or desktop selection
In article , Bill Baxter
wrote: I recently upgraded my monitor and I would like to allow not only use of my desktop, but my laptop as well. All have standard VGA ports. What would be a decent, cheap switch to use? Once upon a time, I used a mechanical switch that rotated 4 positions to enable use of any 4 computers with one monitor, but over time colors would change as there started to be intermittents since it was mechanical, so hoping there's a cheap electronic switch these days. Thanks. what you're looking for is a kvm, but don't waste your time or money. you're just asking for problems, especially if you're going to use vga, which has been obsolete for *years*. these days, it's all dvi, hdmi, displayport and/or thunderbolt. 20" displays can be had for around $100 and you aren't likely to find a quality digital kvm for much less than that, if you can at all. some displays have multiple inputs, which would eliminate a kvm, but i assume your display does not or you'd not be asking how to set it up. another option is use screen sharing software, which can either be via vnc or it can create a virtual screen to be used directly. vnc is free, while virtual display software is relatively cheap. |
#4
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recommended monitor switch for laptop or desktop selection
On 11/30/2015 08:35 PM, charles wrote:
On Mon, 30 Nov 2015 20:10:58 -0400, Bill Baxter wrote: I recently upgraded my monitor and I would like to allow not only use of my desktop, but my laptop as well. All have standard VGA ports. What would be a decent, cheap switch to use? Once upon a time, I used a mechanical switch that rotated 4 positions to enable use of any 4 computers with one monitor, but over time colors would change as there started to be intermittents since it was mechanical, so hoping there's a cheap electronic switch these days. Thanks. Try a google search for KVM switch tom's hardware. There are several threads on Tom's site, stuff there always seemed believeble to me. Prices vary alot. Some time ago, I had two computers that I wanted to use with one set of monitor, keyboard, and mouse. I used a KVM ("Keyboard, Video, Mouse") switch with good results. In my case, one computer was running Win95, the other Win98 (I did say "Some time ago"!). The switch was activated by a key combination. You will want to make sure that the required key combination is not something you already use. IIRC, mine used CTRL-PrintScreen. The system worked well, and the gadget cost around $40. In your case, since you want to switch only a monitor between two computers, I don't think a KVM switch would work. But anyone who sells a KVM switch probably sells a monitor switch, so starting your search there will probably work. Surely there is an electronic version of your mechanical switch. -- Ken Hart |
#5
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recommended monitor switch for laptop or desktop selection
On 11/30/2015 6:10 PM, Bill Baxter wrote:
I recently upgraded my monitor and I would like to allow not only use of my desktop, but my laptop as well. All have standard VGA ports. What would be a decent, cheap switch to use? Once upon a time, I used a mechanical switch that rotated 4 positions to enable use of any 4 computers with one monitor, but over time colors would change as there started to be intermittents since it was mechanical, so hoping there's a cheap electronic switch these days. Thanks. I've been sharing a monitor, keyboard and mouse between two computers for many years. The mechanical switch type gave ghosting so if they make such a thing anymore don't get it. The one I use is a Tripp-Lite but at any rate, I would not "cheap out" on it |
#6
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recommended monitor switch for laptop or desktop selection
On Mon, 30 Nov 2015 20:10:58 -0400, Bill Baxter
wrote: I recently upgraded my monitor and I would like to allow not only use of my desktop, but my laptop as well. All have standard VGA ports. What would be a decent, cheap switch to use? Once upon a time, I used a mechanical switch that rotated 4 positions to enable use of any 4 computers with one monitor, but over time colors would change as there started to be intermittents since it was mechanical, so hoping there's a cheap electronic switch these days. Thanks. What I did with mine was to use the VGA output from one PC, and the DVI output from another, and use the monitor input switching to select which to display. Noted that both of your devices are VGA, but I see that Amazon lists VGA-to-DVI adapters. I've not looked into the detail, but perhaps that offers a solution? One connecting directly, the other via the VGA-to-DVI adapter, and use the electronic switching in the monitor? -- Cheers, David Web: http://www.satsignal.eu |
#7
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recommended monitor switch for laptop or desktop selection
In article , David Taylor
wrote: Amazon lists VGA-to-DVI adapters. I've not looked into the detail, but perhaps that offers a solution? those are expensive because it needs to create the digital signals from the analog input and will obviously never be as good as digital directly from the computer, which any computer made in the past 5 years should have, probably even longer than that. vga is obsolete. it dates back to the 1980s. time to move on. |
#8
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recommended monitor switch for laptop or desktop selection
On 12/01/2015 09:12 AM, David Taylor wrote:
On Mon, 30 Nov 2015 20:10:58 -0400, Bill Baxter wrote: I recently upgraded my monitor and I would like to allow not only use of my desktop, but my laptop as well. All have standard VGA ports. What would be a decent, cheap switch to use? Once upon a time, I used a mechanical switch that rotated 4 positions to enable use of any 4 computers with one monitor, but over time colors would change as there started to be intermittents since it was mechanical, so hoping there's a cheap electronic switch these days. Thanks. What I did with mine was to use the VGA output from one PC, and the DVI output from another, and use the monitor input switching to select which to display. Noted that both of your devices are VGA, but I see that Amazon lists VGA-to-DVI adapters. I've not looked into the detail, but perhaps that offers a solution? One connecting directly, the other via the VGA-to-DVI adapter, and use the electronic switching in the monitor? Amazon lists several VGA switches. Mr Baxter mentions past bad experience with mechanical switches, which can/will happen. But the Amazon switches are in the $8-$15 range. I say, buy a couple of them and consider them to be consumables. http://www.amazon.com/Ports-VGA-Swit.../dp/B003DTZQFY Amazon also lists many VGA to DVI adapters, in similar price ranges. -- Ken Hart |
#9
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recommended monitor switch for laptop or desktop selection
In article , Ken Hart
wrote: Amazon lists several VGA switches. Mr Baxter mentions past bad experience with mechanical switches, which can/will happen. But the Amazon switches are in the $8-$15 range. I say, buy a couple of them and consider them to be consumables. http://www.amazon.com/Ports-VGA-Swit.../dp/B003DTZQFY that is a mechanical switch and it's junk. the very first review states; Unfortunately this VGA selector switch will not work with modern computer video cards because it does not switch the VGA Monitor identification signal lines. another review: I didn't look at previous reviews. The resolution data is not passed on; worthless. Amazon also lists many VGA to DVI adapters, in similar price ranges. no they don't. anything in that price range is a dvi-vga adapter, which is easy: http://pisces.bbystatic.com/image2/B...ucts/7960/7960 986cv1a.jpg going the *other* way, vga-dvi, is not as simple and not as cheap. it requires generating a proper dvi signal from the analog input and the results don't look that good. it also requires external power for the converter board. http://sgcdn.startech.com/005329/med...large/VGA2DVII. Main.jpg http://sgcdn.startech.com/005329/med...large/VGA2DVII. B.jpg the real question is why anyone is using vga in 2015. it's obsolete. |
#10
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recommended monitor switch for laptop or desktop selection
On 12/01/2015 08:27 PM, nospam wrote:
snip the real question is why anyone is using vga in 2015. it's obsolete. People are still using it because it is still available, it still fills the needs of many people, and it will be around for quite some time. I just treated myself to a new TV set, because the old 21" analog CRT TV in my living room failed. The new 32" LCD LED set has among it's connections... wait for it... VGA. Of course, I don't care that it has a VGA input; I'm using the RF "F" barrel connection to hook up my antenna on the roof. I realize that in your world, everyone must do exactly as you say, but one day, you may come to realize that it doesn't work that way. People will do things that may not be in accordance with your way of thinking. Get over it. -- Ken Hart |
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