[weejimmee]

I have a G5 running dual monitors (apple 20" cinema and Mag 15" TV/monitor) off the GeForce FX 5200 video card. I have bluetooth input devices (keyboard, mouse, PDA) and would like to be able to use my hometheater projector as a 3rd display. It has an HDMI - rather than DVI - port and a VGA port. From what I've read, connecting via HDMI to a Mac is not feasbile.

I'd be watching DIV-X/quicktime movies, web surfing and using salling clicker on my palm to remote control A/V apps. I've toyed with either getting a PCI card, or getting a switch from the exisiting card to the 2nd/3rd displays. Which would be the least expensive? Would a card on the PCI bus degrade performance much?

Also, should I go an adapted DVI or VGA solution? I've run a 15" extended VGA cable with apple's DVI-VGA adapter but can only get 800 x 600 resolution. The projector manual says it will display up to 1280 x 1024 via VGA. I assume it's about the cable length? Should I run a DVI cable to the projector then adapt it at that end?

[Waragainstsleep]

HDMI is not so different from DVI anyway. If you can get an adaptor, I don't see why it won't work.
I have a flat panel with a 'P & D' connector. I have ordered the necessary adaptor for it. I'll let you know when it arrives.

[lothar56]

It's very likely I'm wrong, but I've read that DVI and HDMI are electrically very similiar and all you need is an adaptor cable like these http://www.ramelectronics.net/html/DVI-hdmi_adapt.html

[Tuoder]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI

"Type A HDMI is backward-compatible with the single-link Digital Visual Interface (DVI) used on modern computer monitors and graphics cards."

They are two standards from the same organization that can be adapted with no problem.

[weejimmee]

http://www.engadget.com/2006/02/13/a...-support-hdcp/

Sorry I should have clarified, the GeForce FX 5200 card doesn't seem to be HDCP compliant. The projector (and the amp I also use to switch A/V components and the mac's toslink in/out ) requires the device to adhere to this copy protection standard when an HDMI source is connected. I have used a HDMI cable (albeit 25 feet) with a DVI adapter at the CPU end, and no image at all on the projector, no ability to "detect display" on the mac....

Oh, I have since had some success with the VGA cable at higher resolutions (though with some ghosting- maybe this is due to the longer VGA run). I feel rather stupid, I just had to scroll down to see other display options! It just decided to default to 800 x 600 when I connected it, and at a lower resolutions this was the last item in the system preference's scrolling menu! I guess I've been spoiled at 1680 x 1050. Does the video card find the 'optimum' res given what it has deteted (including signal strength?)

Still would like a third card option instead of bending pins by constantly fishing around the back. So the original question remains for the tolerant....

I've seen the ATI Radeon 9200 Mac edition for around US $100 with DVI and VGA. Maybe I should wait 'till card makers ship HDCP compliant cards I asume they'll be much more expensive...