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You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Mac Notebooks > Connecting PC to powerbook screen

Connecting PC to powerbook screen
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Nov 15, 2004, 02:41 PM
 
Is it possible to connect my PC (video card is a 9700pro) to my apple powerbook 1.3ghz 15" and use its screen as the monitor for the pc. I'm in college and dont have room for my 17" monitor. If so, would there be any downside (like low refresh rate). Basically I just wanna bring my pc to college so i can play hl2. Thanks!
     
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Nov 15, 2004, 02:46 PM
 
I don't think that's possible.
NOW YOU SEE ME! 2.4 MBP and 2.0 MBP (running ubuntu)
     
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Nov 15, 2004, 05:37 PM
 
There's no video input without some extra external hardware and I think that's only for composite or s-video in. I've never seen anything for DVI or VGA. Search the forum. This has been discussed many times.

Steve
     
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Nov 16, 2004, 12:25 AM
 
Originally posted by gragland:
Is it possible to connect my PC (video card is a 9700pro) to my apple powerbook 1.3ghz 15" and use its screen as the monitor for the pc. I'm in college and dont have room for my 17" monitor. If so, would there be any downside (like low refresh rate). Basically I just wanna bring my pc to college so i can play hl2. Thanks!
Just buy a cheapo 14" LCD monitor with VGA input, or better yet an Xbox and a 12" TV.
     
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Nov 16, 2004, 12:27 AM
 
The only solution I can think of is to connect to the PC via VNC. Running VNC in Full-Screenmode should give you the Feeling of sitting right in Front of a PC. Alternativly you could get VirtualPC and get rid of your PC.

Ah, and forget Games in both scenarios. If you want to play games get a playstation and hook it up to your TV (or PB with capturecard).

I've done VNC with a 867PB and it worked quite well. Should be good on yours.

Volker

--

Ah, now I read the hl2-Part. Forget VNC/VPC then. Will hl2 out for the mac sometime?
     
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Nov 16, 2004, 01:53 PM
 
Hl2 isn't coming out for mac.
     
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Nov 17, 2004, 08:12 AM
 
There is no possibility of doing what you want. The PowerBook display is hard-wired, and no software solution could provide even remotely adequate performance, if it could work at all.

How about using the PC's S-video output to the TV that every dorm room has?

tooki
     
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Nov 17, 2004, 09:53 PM
 
You can get a 17" LCD and use it with both PC & PB and as a monitor for a TV with a switch for $50
     
ivi
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Nov 18, 2004, 02:42 AM
 
vnc is just gonna be too slow as well as any other remote desktop software. Anything is possible though, I got 9700pro in a desktop, it has tv out, get a usb tv card for your powerbook, output video to tv from desktop and tune in on your laptop, resolution won't be that great, but it will be fast enough.
     
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Nov 18, 2004, 06:23 AM
 
Removed by PER3 (misunderstood the post to which I was replying).
(Last edited by PER3; Nov 18, 2004 at 06:31 AM. )
     
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Nov 18, 2004, 07:50 AM
 
Originally posted by ivi:
vnc is just gonna be too slow as well as any other remote desktop software. Anything is possible though, I got 9700pro in a desktop, it has tv out, get a usb tv card for your powerbook, output video to tv from desktop and tune in on your laptop, resolution won't be that great, but it will be fast enough.
No, it won't. Not for playing a game. Computer TV tuners (at least all the ones on FireWire and USB) have a lag, on the order of about 1/2 second. That is completely unacceptable for playing games.

As I said: there is no practical way of doing this.

tooki
     
   
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