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This document describes how to enable the dual monitor mode and how to manage the different display configurations possible on a Dell notebook. The Dell Latitude Notebooks at SCU uses the Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 900 chipset. This document should also be applicable to laptops with this chipset running under Windows XP.

What is Dual Monitor Mode and why you want to use it?

Since Windows 98 and Windows 2000, Microsoft has implemented Dual Monitor mode on their Windows operating system. With more than one display adapter in your computer, Windows allows you to have separate and individual desktops displayed on their respective monitors. You can drag and drop items from one monitor to the other monitor. For someone who needs more desktop real estate, this is very useful. You can open a spreadsheet on one monitor, and an email application in the ther; cutting and pasting from the spreadsheet to the email.

One very useful application of Dual Monitor Mode is the display of Powerpoint presentations on an LCD projector. Since Office 2000, Powerpoint has supported Dual Monitor Mode. Dual Monitor support in Powerpoint allows you to display your presentation on a projector and display your slides and notes on the computer screen. When you are reading your notes or looking for a slide, it is not shown on the projector. The audience does not see this. This is a very ideal situation for a notebook user; notes displayed on the notebook screen and the presentation displayed through the external monitor connector on the back of the notebook. Most of the modern notebooks, Dell included, have dual monitor support built into the notebook.

How to enable Dual Monitor Mode on a Dell Laptop?

The Dell notebooks senses whether an external monitor or a projector is connected to the external display connector on the back of the notebook. If the notebook is booted without a monitor or projector connected and powered-up, the notebook will boot up with just the notebook LCD screen and the external monitor or projector will be dark and disabled. It is a good idea to power up the external monitor or projector, attach the VGA cable to the back of the notebook, and then boot the notebook.

Once the notebook is booted up into Windows XP, right-click on an open spot on your desktop. Click on Graphics Options and then Output To. Most likely you will see Monitor, Notebook, Intel® Dual Display Clone, and Extended Desktop. Default from the factory, it will most likely have a check mark next to the Notebook option and your external monitor will be dark. Click on Extended Desktop to enable the Dual Monitor mode. The external monitor or projector should light up and a copy of your desktop wallpaper should be displayed on it. There will be no icons on this desktop. To test Dual Monitor mode, move your mouse pointer off the right edge of you notebook screen and it should reappear on your external monitor or projector. You should also be able to drag a desktop icon from your notebook screen to the external monitor or projector. You have successfully enabled Dual Monitor mode.

In the future, when you boot up your computer with an external monitor or projector connected to the notebook, it will sense it and automatically enable Dual Monitor mode. If the external monitor or projector is not connected to your notebook or it is turned-off, the notebook will disable Dual Monitor mode.

If you boot your notebook up, and subsequently connect and power-up a monitor or projector, your external monitor or projector will be dark. When you right-click on the desktop and click on Graphics Options->Output To, it will most likely have a check mark next to Notebook again. To enable Dual Monitor mode, click on Extended Desktop.

What are the options under Output To?

If your notebook does not sense an external monitor, it will mostly likely only have Notebook as an option. If the notebook senses an external monitor, you will likely see the following options:

Monitor - This option sends your main desktop (the one with icons) to the external monitor or projector and disables your notebook screen.

Notebook - This option is default and sends your main desktop to the notebook screen and disables the external monitor connector.

Intel ® Dual Display Clone - This option sends the main desktop to the notebook screen and to the external monitor. The external monitor and the notebook screen should look exactly alike.

Extended Desktop - This option sends the main desktop to the notebook screen and creates an independent desktop on the external monitor connector. This is Window’s Dual Monitor mode.

How does the Fn + F8 (CRT/LCD) function work?

On the F8 key, you will notice a blue CRT/LCD marking. By holding down the blue Fn key at the bottom left of the keyboard and pressing F8, you can change to which screen to send the output. Each time you hold Fn and press F8, you cycle through the options in the Output To list. The exception is the Intel ® Dual Display Clone and Extended Desktop. The notebook will only cycle into one of these choices depending if you explicitly selected Extended Desktop from the Graphics Options->Output To list earlier. If you explicitly selected Extended Desk earlier, pressing Fn + F8 will cycle the output from Notebook to Extended Desktop to Monitor back to Notebook.

Note: If you shutdown the computer with the Output To set to Notebook, the next time you boot the computer you must explicitly select Extended Desktop to re-enable Dual Monitor mode.

How do I use Dual Monitor mode in Powerpoint 2000?

First,start Powerpoint. Load a Powerpoint presentation or create a new presentation. Click on Slide Show and then Set Up Show... At the bottom of the Set Up Show dialog box, under Show on:, select Monitor 2 from the drop down. Click OK to confirm. Create your presentation as usual, include speaker notes if you so desire. Press F5 or click on Slide Show->View Show as usual. Now, the main screen or notebook screen should still be in design mode, while the projector should display the presentation. Navigate the slide show as you did before; (page up, page down, left arrow, right arrow…) The audience will never see the design screen or the speaker notes.

How do I use Dual Monitor mode in Powerpoint XP, 2002, 2003?

Dual Monitor support in the newer versions of Powerpoint is very similar to Powerpoint 2000. First, load a Powerpoint presentation or create a new presentation. Click on Slide Show and then SetUp Show... Towards the center-right of the Set Up Show dialog box, in the Multiple Monitors box under Display slide show on:, select Monitor 2 from the drop down. Click OK to confirm. Create your presentation as usual, include speaker notes if you so desire. Press F5 or click on Slide Show->View Show as usual. Now, the main screen or notebook screen should still be in design mode, while the projector should display the presentation. Navigate the slide show as you did before; (page up, page down, left arrow, right arrow, ...) The audience will never see the design screen or the speaker notes.

An added feature of the newer Powerpoint is the presenter's view. Go back to the Set Up Show dialog box and put a check mark next to the Presenter View in the Multiple Monitors box. When you click on View Show or F5 to start the presentation, a presenter's view will be displayed on the notebook screen and the presentation will be displayed on the projector. The presentation view has all the slides laid out on the left, what is being displayed in the center, the speaker notes on the bottom and some controls along the right of the screen. You can click on a slide to bring it up instantly; no need to scroll forward or backward to get to a particular slide. You can click on the left or right arrows to navigate forward or backwards through the slides. Click on End Show to end a show immediately.