Best (inexpensive) way to make a 40' monitor run?

[Goop]

I'm setting up a Mac Mini as a media server in our living room, hooked up to our flatscreen TV and home stereo. I've just purchased a gorgeous diNovo Edge, bluetooth keyboard to control it. I'm psyched.

The thing is that my wife would really like to also be able to sit down at the small office desk, at the back of our living room, and use her 17" display with the Mini as well, for times when she doesn't want to power up the big LCD or when somebody else is watching TV.

The exact run would be about 40 feet. I've already got a CAT5 cable that takes that route. What might be the least expensive way to get signal to that 17" monitor, across the room? The Mini is the last generation, with just one video output.

 

[Cave Man]

I've had a 25' DVI cable that worked just fine. I suspect if you get a well-shielded 50' cable it ought to work. How about sound?

 

[Scarlet Fever]

For quality, if your TV or amp has optical audio in, you could run a Toslink cable from your mac mini to the unit.

If quality isn't the greatest concern, you could get a minijack-RCA adapter, and run RCA cables to your TV. If you pay a bit more, you'll get cables with shielding as to avoid electrical interference.

 

[Cave Man]

For quality, if your TV or amp has optical audio in, you could run a Toslink cable from your mac mini to the unit.

That would really be pushing the limit of optical, which is rated at about 33 ft.

 

[Goop]

I'm all set with the sound. The mini will be in the home entertainment center connected to both our surround sound system via optical, and to the stereo via mini jack or a USB audio interface (if I can't figure out how to get both connections from the one, native connector).

My only concern is getting a fairly simple mirror display to the 17" LCD monitor on the other side of the room for when the TV is in use.

 

[eddyg]

Put monitor in car, drive car to dodgy neighborhood, get out of car, leave unlocked, watch from the corner of the street.

You'll see your monitor run, if not sprint out of that car in the mitts of some downtrodden individual.

Get another Mac - then you can use screen sharing.