Sunday, September 17, 2006

Another Q1 Video Tip

After Hugo Ortega's recent video on using the EO i7210 as a desktop replacement,  it inspired me to take another look  at the video settings on the Samsung Q1. I regularly use the Q1 as a destop replacement but I use CTL-ALT-F1 and CTL-ALT-F3 to swich back and forth between a monitor and the Q1's display.

When I've tried to share the video between monitors in the past, I always seemed to end up with a resolution that doesn't work right on one of the screens. So I took another look at the video settings on the Q1 and I figured how to use the Q1's display as a second monitor and how to make it easy.

  • Right click on the desktop and pick Graphics Properties
  • Pick Extended Desktop on the Display Devices tab. Set the Primary Device as the Monitor and Secondary Device as Notebook
  • Move them around so 1 is above 2 in the box on the right. This lets you move seamlessly between the monitors if the Q1 is in front of the big monitor.
  • Pick the display settings tab and set your resolution and color depths for each monitor. The monitor and the notebook each have a tab across the top.
  • Pick Scheme Options in the upper right.
  • Name this option and click save.
  • Pick Appy and OK when done.

Now it's just a simple Right click on the desktop, pick select scheme and click on your scheme name. Every time you connect up, it's now a simple process to get to a dual screen configuration.

Thanks for the inspiration Hugo!

Update: Hugo sent me a nice note, thanks for the kind words and keep up the good work!

Update 2: I'm seeing some odd behavior with the setup I detailed above so I want to clarify a few things.

  • If you make the monitor the primary, you can't write notes on the Q1 while connected to the monitor. You end up making gestures on the main monitor and it's pretty uncontrollable. That sucks.
  • If you make the Q1 primary, and the monitor secondary, then you can make notes on the Q1 while connected but you have to use the little screen to launch everything.  Not ideal.
  • At one point the "Scheme" I setup was simply unavailable. I rebooted for something else and it was back. Weird.
  • The up and down layout of the monitors doesn't seem to be retained after a reboot. Things go back to left/right, even when setting the scheme.
  • The screen background image scales to the primary monitor, in other words, if the monitor is primary, the image overflows the Q1's screen. If the Q1 is primary (800 x 480 for example) the image doesn't fill the monitor.

Obviously, all of these are a function of the Intel drivers, not Samsung's fault but you might as well know what to expect.

2 comments:

Hugo Gaston Ortega said...

Hi Mark,

I think the videos pay for themselves when I read comments like yours; sometimes I am in two minds wether toproduce them or not. Thank you for your comments and well done mate!

Unknown said...

Wow! How do I respond to that! Thanks for the note Hugo, I really like the videos. Unfortunately, my energy is directed to another website I have so the UMPC stuff is hit or miss. Guys like you and JK and anothers do the heavy lifting. I just fill in a hole here and there. Keep going, we're now a two tablet family!

Mark