A VNC-like program that can scale high resolutions?

October 17, 2007 2:38 AM

I use VNC on computer A, 1680x1050 resolution, to control computer B, 1920x1080 resolution. This results in a lot of scrolling. Anyone know of a better solution that's also free or very cheap?

Since computer A runs at a lower resolution than B, I get horizontal and vertical toolbars that are really time-consuming to deal with.

Are there any alternatives similar to VNC that could scale the resolution down to something more usable? Or a VNC variant that could do this?

Computer A is Vista, B is XP.

posted by aerotive to Computers & Internet (10 answers total)

If you use Ultra VNC you can scale the view of B on the smaller screen A. Though obviously the claritty isn't great.

The other way is to lower the resolution on computer B so that it fits on to computer A screen easier. Possibly there is a way of automatically snapping between resolutions to do this everytime you connect via VNC. You should still retain the VNC connection if you change the resolution during the session.
posted by sdevans at 2:46 AM on October 17, 2007

TightVNC supports scaling, but I find remote desktop is usually a lot faster if you don't mind it blanking the monitor of the PC you are controlling and you can set the resolution to anything you like.
(Useful remote desktop tip: use /console on the command line when connecting to a server so you don't get a new desktop every time).
posted by samj at 2:50 AM on October 17, 2007

logmein.com allows fit-to-screen of remote computer. Also free.
posted by wile e at 3:32 AM on October 17, 2007

I second logmein free. It has great fit-to-screen as well as multiple display support that is amazingly well done.
posted by SirStan at 4:02 AM on October 17, 2007

Is there a reason you are not using Remote Desktop? It handles varying resolutions just fine.
posted by SNACKeR at 5:03 AM on October 17, 2007

Why not reduce the display resolution on machine B?
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 5:35 AM on October 17, 2007

RDP is on xp pro or better, he may not have access to it. Seconding scaling in ultravnc. I imagine you can just use the ultravnc client and leave the plain jane vnc server software on the PC. The client does all the scaling work.
posted by damn dirty ape at 7:20 AM on October 17, 2007

I'd probably use RemoteDesktop for this situation, but TightVNC, and perhaps other VNC variants have an option to automatically scroll to follow the mouse, which makes things a little more bearable if you are stuck with VNC.
posted by Good Brain at 9:30 AM on October 17, 2007

Response by poster: Thanks for the suggestions everyone. The reason I don't use remote desktop is that it blanks out the screen of the remote computer.

I've downloaded TightVNC and it works well for what I need it to do. The scaling function works fine.
posted by aerotive at 9:45 AM on October 17, 2007

You might be able to set computer A's resolution to 1920x1080, and the image will just pan when your mouse pointer hits the borders. It sounds awkward but you'll grow to love it very quickly, especially if you use a physical mouse, not a touchpad. Many video drivers include this functionality automatically. (I had a Trident that did it in hardware in 1993.) My current laptop is 800x600 native, but it's very easy to switch up to a higher res for evil gui software whose dialog boxes overflow the screen.

I don't find any third-party software that supports this sort of virtual screen, so it sounds like native support in Computer A's video drivers is the way to go.
posted by Myself at 5:52 AM on October 18, 2007