Mac mini + monitor + TV

[sigjuice]

I am considering replacing my G4 Mac mini, which is used primarily as a desktop. It turns out that my computer desk is very close to my Sharp Aquos LC32GA5U TV. With the right adapters, it should be possible to have my monitor and TV connected to the new Mac mini at the same time. The DVI/HDMI cable to my TV should be about 12 ft. I have some questions about a setup like this.

Will a video cable of this length cause any issues?

My TV will not be turned on all the time. Does Leopard recognize the fact that a display is turned off and prevent apps from putting their windows on it?

 

[Tallest Skil]

My TV will not be turned on all the time. Does Leopard recognize the fact that a display is turned off and prevent apps from putting their windows on it?

Nope. I lose windows all the time when I don't want to use both of my 24" inchers.

 

[rogersmj]

You would have to buy one of the very newest minis, because only those (with both the mini-DVI port and the mini-DisplayPort) can handle more than one display.

Regarding your second question...no, I have never observed that OS X will collect windows and apps if you simply turn a monitor off. I have always had to disconnect it before that happens.

 

[sigjuice]

Nope. I lose windows all the time when I don't want to use both of my 24" inchers.

How do you deal with the lost windows? Do you manually move all windows from one display to the another before turning one off? Spaces should be able to reveal these lost windows and allow them to be dragged over to the active display.

 

[sigjuice]

Regarding your second question...no, I have never observed that OS X will collect windows and apps if you simply turn a monitor off. I have always had to disconnect it before that happens.

Instead of disconnecting your monitor, how about enabling "Mirror Displays"? I tried this with my wife's Macbook. On the Macbook I can hit F7 to toggle "Mirror Displays", which collects all the windows.

 

[heesey1010]

If I'm not mistaken, there is a button on the displays preference pane called "Collect Windows", and you simply click it for the display you want the windows to be collected in. Before you turn off your TV you could setup a "Watch Me Do" automator script (that's easiest for me, at least) so it could "automatically" do it for you.

someone correct me if i'm wrong

 

[sigjuice]

I tried the "Gather Windows" button on the Display preferences pane. The only thing it did for me was collect the two Display preferences windows. The other windows stayed on their original displays.

 

[kasakka]

I've got a 30" screen and a 40" HDTV connected to my Hackintosh. When the 40" HDTV is off I can still move stuff to it but it seems when I turn it on OSX recognizes it again, or at least I get a blank blue screen for a few moments.

You'll most likely just want to have movies playing on the HDTV anyway so just set up VLC or whatever to run in fullscreen on the HDTV and when windowed on the primary screen.

 

[wbtlevi]

My TV will not be turned on all the time. Does Leopard recognize the fact that a display is turned off and prevent apps from putting their windows on it?

If you have both screens hooked up using DVI or HDMI, the mac will know which one is on and which one is off. I personally hate this because when I want to watch TV my mac freaks out for 10 seconds switching over to a single monitor and then when I switch over to my HDMI input it takes a couple seconds to switch it back. I liked with VGA being able to just leave the second monitor on at all times and not having to adjust the screen size.