Re: [TCLUG:4760] shareing a monitor

[Hugh Johnson <hugh@semplicesoft.com>]

> Now that you mention it, I've got two RH5.2 machines and would like to
> share a monitor between them. If it's not to expensive, I'ld like to share
> a mouse and keyboard also. It would be great to clear some space on my
> bench. The machines have identical video display cards, I don't know if
> that affects anything. I haven't even begun to research this issue so you
> would be accurate in assuming that I am completely ignorant. If you've got
> URLs for reading material, please forward them.
>

Ooo, this turned out to be the wrong time for offer long-winded 
advice, since suddenly I got tons of work to do -- Apple just GPL'ed 
OS X!  (well, sort of.)

Anyway, what others say is true. If you want to share more than a 
monitor, PS/2 devices require a special switchbox, so the computer 
thinks they're always connected. Otherwise, it's Hiroshima time. But 
right now my problem is between PS/2 and Mac ADB, which means there's 
no way I can share the keyboard, so instead I rigged my Pentium with 
a Reveal keyboard with built-in trackball, light as a feather, I can 
just plop it in my lap when needed and then lean it against the file 
drawers when I don't need it. Hopefully USB will change all this, and 
be hot-swappable in software too, so nobody will have to be afraid of 
using a cheap switchbox.

What can never be cheap is the VGA cables. If you buy the ordinary 
$10 Belkin cables that all the stores sell, they're pencil-thin and 
there's not enough shielding and your CRT will show terrible 
ghosting. The most expensive switchbox in the world won't fix this. 
Your only choice is to look for big fat cables, as thick as the OEM 
cable on your monitor. You either pay $35-50 for them new, or you get 
them from a junk shop like Budget Computer of Dexis and don't care 
how they look. Take a chance on a grungy old $5 cable, it'll probably 
do just fine if it's thick, that's all that counts from the outside.

Somebody mentioned problems with monitors needing to be connected a 
boot time, but I don't think that's true if the monitor complies with 
standard SVGA and standard Energy Star, etc.  They should be able to 
boot up just fine even if if the switchbox is thrown to another 
computer at the time. In some cases you might need to use generic 
drivers, but in other cases it makes no difference. My Phillips 109S 
works just fine with its own drivers, even if I enable PnP detection 
in Windows.

Ahhh, that's all I can think of right now. Gotta go, see if I can nab 
some Apple code.

ONLY BUY BIG FRIGGIN' FAT VGA CABLES!

________________________
Hugh Johnson
hugh@semplicesoft.com
<http://www.semplicesoft.com>