Please monitor don't blow up...
February 18, 2008 2:01 PM Subscribe
If I hook a monitor up to two devices (using a different video port for each device), will it be able to tell which one is using it (assuming just one device is on), if I keep both plugged in? And is there any potential harm to the monitor, if it's plugged into two active devices at once?
I'm planning to use my LCD monitor for both my computer and a console gaming system. One would utilize the DVI port, and the other the VGA port. I'd like to keep them both hooked up without having to change the connections when I want to use one or the other. Is it reasonable to expect that I'll be able to do this without problems? I'll have all of the required cables to make use of the ports.
I'm assuming that the monitor will be able to tell which device is giving it input, but I'm not super tech savvy. I'm sure this is a question that makes tech people chuckle, but I'd hate to wreck this monitor, for the same reason.
Also, if there is a better that I'm not thinking of here, I'd be happy to hear it.
I'm planning to use my LCD monitor for both my computer and a console gaming system. One would utilize the DVI port, and the other the VGA port. I'd like to keep them both hooked up without having to change the connections when I want to use one or the other. Is it reasonable to expect that I'll be able to do this without problems? I'll have all of the required cables to make use of the ports.
I'm assuming that the monitor will be able to tell which device is giving it input, but I'm not super tech savvy. I'm sure this is a question that makes tech people chuckle, but I'd hate to wreck this monitor, for the same reason.
Also, if there is a better that I'm not thinking of here, I'd be happy to hear it.
Best answer: It should be safe to hook both up. Whether it'll auto switch is going to depends on the monitor. I've done this with hundreds of LG 19" monitors in a lab environment with no problems. It auto switched between what ever input was active and if both were there was a push button on the side that switched between analog and digital.
posted by Mitheral at 2:06 PM on February 18, 2008
posted by Mitheral at 2:06 PM on February 18, 2008
Response by poster: That's really helpful. Yep, now that you say it, it makes a lot of sense. I have the analog/digital switch as well, and I forgot about it, as I have rarely used it.
Thanks for the quick reply!
posted by SpacemanStix at 2:09 PM on February 18, 2008
Thanks for the quick reply!
posted by SpacemanStix at 2:09 PM on February 18, 2008
I do the same thing as Mitheral with my Dell monitors. No problem.
posted by jwhowa at 3:22 PM on February 18, 2008
posted by jwhowa at 3:22 PM on February 18, 2008
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...a better solution that I'm not thinking of here...
Thanks.
posted by SpacemanStix at 2:02 PM on February 18, 2008