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Eyefintiy and Simsig

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Eyefintiy and Simsig 03/04/2011 at 11:49 #14723
agilchrist
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Thanks for the suggestions, I am left handed but I use mouse in either, its very odd, I have two computers in this room and mouse on one side with one and the reverse on the other machine, I even sometimes use a right handed mouse in the left, yep a little weird.

I ordered, only last night, a Kensington Orbit Trackball with Scroll Ring
Hopefully that will do the trick.

Blessed are the true believers, for only they shall walk the Path, and they shall be welcomed unto the realm of the Ori and made as one with Them.
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Eyefintiy and Simsig 03/04/2011 at 13:09 #14724
Meld
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agilchrist said:
.

I ordered, only last night, a Kensington Orbit Trackball with Scroll Ring
Hopefully that will do the trick.
Hoepfully along with a decent Headset/Mic :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Passed the age to be doing 'Spoon Feeding' !!!
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Eyefintiy and Simsig 03/04/2011 at 15:09 #14740
agilchrist
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I have ordered that as well
Blessed are the true believers, for only they shall walk the Path, and they shall be welcomed unto the realm of the Ori and made as one with Them.
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Eyefintiy and Simsig 06/04/2011 at 20:54 #14848
Francis
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No picture just now, but yesterday I put in a "new" (by my tech standards) graphics card, so I can play SimSig on my pair of outdated screens. I can now see KX from the buffers to Hornsey.
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 27/12/2011 at 13:37 #26238
jc92
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i now have two monitors, scrolly sims work fine as i have two views up, one on each screen which works fine for me.

how do i get paged sims to work on two monitors? ive tried opening two games with the intention of chaining them, but cant move them across monitors

"We don't stop camborne wednesdays"
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 27/12/2011 at 19:07 #26273
headshot119
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Joe paged sims and multiple monitors don't really work. As the sim page is a fixed resolution.
"Passengers for New Lane, should be seated in the rear coach of the train " - Opinions are my own and not those of my employer
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 27/12/2011 at 19:10 #26274
jc92
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" said:
Joe paged sims and multiple monitors don't really work. As the sim page is a fixed resolution.
thought so but didnt know if anyone had found a fix. cheers anyway

"We don't stop camborne wednesdays"
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 28/12/2011 at 00:25 #26292
maxand
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I can see I'm going to have to get two extra monitors in order to enjoy these wider sims - hate not being able to see what might be happening offscreen.

Once the setup is up and running, how do I divide the sim across three screens? Does the graphics card software do that automatically, or do I have to load up 3 versions of the sim, one in each monitor? Can anyone supply specific details of the steps needed? Thanks.

I liked the pic of Exeter in the first post in this thread.

(added) I think what I meant was not load 3 versions, but run "Show > new view" twice and drag each extra view into a different monitor. Is that the way to do it?

Last edited: 28/12/2011 at 00:32 by maxand
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 28/12/2011 at 08:00 #26314
Stephen Fulcher
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Windows 7 has a setting to expand the entire "screen" across the three monitors, so you simply enlarge the one SimSig view across all of your monitors using the size adjustment built into Windows.

However, using new views as you have suggested above also has its merits as you can allocate important areas to remain on the screen all the time, as the likes of Saltley will be too large for even three screens unless you have them set at a very high resolution, in which case it may be difficult to read the screens.

Karl has a good system for multiple monitor use, but I cannot remember off the top of my head what it is, although he did tell us on TeamSpeak during a large multiplayer session once how he had them set.

Last edited: 28/12/2011 at 08:01 by Stephen Fulcher
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 28/12/2011 at 08:02 #26315
Stephen Fulcher
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" said:
Joe paged sims and multiple monitors don't really work. As the sim page is a fixed resolution.
Best way to do this might be to have several computers side by side running a local "multiplayer" game with one view on each computer?

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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 28/12/2011 at 09:07 #26318
Signalhunter
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Indeed. That's how I do it, sometimes. I have an old laptop and borrow Mrs. Signalhunter's laptop. That is, if she's not busy on BookFace or whatever it is called.
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 28/12/2011 at 12:11 #26329
maxand
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headshot119 posted a nice pic of his setup here.
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 28/12/2011 at 14:28 #26337
tccb
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And the best way to do that, is to use Synergy: http://synergy-foss.org/
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 28/12/2011 at 18:59 #26349
headshot119
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" said:
And the best way to do that, is to use Synergy: http://synergy-foss.org/
Hmmm I wouldn't say "best". I'd also hate to see my power bill if I replicated my desktop PC twice to have three monitors.

Maxand in regards to your query :

My Computer has two ATI 5770 (1024MB) graphics cards which are linked via Xfire (Though one card does suffice, I used just one before I added the second.)

Two monitors connect to the card via a DVI cable straight into the card. The third goes through an "Active" DVI - Display port adapter.

In windows through the Catalyst Control Center (CCC) I can then setup a "display group" in various configurations, though for my setup I choose 3 X 1. It then links the three displays as one extended desktop, giving me a resolution of 5760 X 1080.

The older 5XXX cards from ATI support up to three displays per card, off which one MUST be connected via the display port. the 5870 Xfire edition supports 6. And newer 6XXX cards support up to four per card (Two via display port.)

Once it's all configured when I launch Simsig the main view window runs straight across all three monitors, I don't have to open any new views up, or stretch it. If you need any more help give me a shout.

Also if your motherboard has extra slots for graphics cards (albeit most shop bought motherboards only have one.) you can add another "cheap" graphics card on top of the first and use it to power extra smaller displays. In the CCC you can setup shortcuts to swap between monitor configurations. I cheat with mine slightly, a smaller 17" monitor is connected to the second card, I have a short cut set to take the second card out of Xfire mode, and extend onto the 17" screen.

"Passengers for New Lane, should be seated in the rear coach of the train " - Opinions are my own and not those of my employer
Last edited: 28/12/2011 at 19:02 by headshot119
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 28/12/2011 at 20:43 #26366
Lardybiker
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You don't need anything fancy (such as multiple graphics cards) or expensive to play SimSig on multiple monitors. In fact, many machines are likely capable of it right now without having to do anything to them.....

If you have a desktop machine, many graphics cards have multiple connectors on them and the driver allow you to use more than one at once. This means most modern PC's can do 2 monitors without requiring anything more than plugging a second monitor into one of the other connectors and setting up the driver to use it. The only time that's likely not to be true is if your machines graphics card is integrated on the motherboard as then you may find your options are a lot more limited. Even if you graphics card does not support multiple monitors, getting one that does is far from expensive. The cards we have at work cost $40 and have three connectors of which you can use two at any one time (we use a fanless card too so one with a fan would be cheaper still).

If you have a laptop, almost all have at least a 15-pin VGA output that can drive a second monitor. Newer machines may also have an HDMI output for driving a TV.

You also don't need anything fancy software-wise either. Multiple monitor support has been in Windows since Windows 2000 so XP, Vista and WIn 7 are all capable of it. You'll have the option to use the 2nd monitor to duplicate the original desktop or to extend the desktop over both monitors. You can even choose which is the primary and which is secondary (the primary display always shows the start button and so on).

If you want to do more than 2 monitors THEN it can start to get costly. There are some graphics cards that support many monitors (I've seen as as many as 8) but you'll be pay through the nose for it and we are taking well over $1000 here.....Even 4 monitors is $400-$500 so there comes a point when its just not worth the money for what you need.

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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 29/12/2011 at 12:47 #26391
maxand
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Thanks headshot and lardybiker for responding. This is very helpful info.

My pc is a laptop with, unfortunately, graphics integrated into the motherboard, however it does have facilities for an extra monitor. But second hand games machines or low end games quality graphics cards are coming down in price, so my best option may be to keep my present machine for general purpose work and set up a faster dedicated desktop PC just to enjoy seeing all parts of a sim on two or maybe three monitors, along with the associated windows, without being cramped for space.

Will let y'all know if it happens and post a pic.

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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 30/12/2011 at 17:25 #26478
Stephen Fulcher
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SimSig has a huge advantage over most games that it does not require huge resources of a computer - even hosting doesn't use up that much.

Therefore it probably isn't worth getting a high powered "gaming" computer, probably best just to uprate the graphics card in your existing machine and save several hundred pounds doing so, especially as you would probably need to buy the graphics card anyway.

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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 01/01/2012 at 16:50 #26578
Lardybiker
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" said:
Thanks headshot and lardybiker for responding. This is very helpful info.

My pc is a laptop with, unfortunately, graphics integrated into the motherboard, however it does have facilities for an extra monitor. But second hand games machines or low end games quality graphics cards are coming down in price, so my best option may be to keep my present machine for general purpose work and set up a faster dedicated desktop PC just to enjoy seeing all parts of a sim on two or maybe three monitors, along with the associated windows, without being cramped for space.

Will let y'all know if it happens and post a pic.
It doesn't matter the laptop has integrated video (I doubt, in fact, any laptop these days has a separate video card) the key is, it does have the monitor output so you could use that to do multiple monitors. You just need a monitor to plug into it and an OS thats supports multiple monitors. The main laptop screen will be one screen and the external monitor is the other so no need to get another PC (unless you want to of course!!). I do that on mine from time to time. Mine has a HDMI output that means I can put it on a TV. SimSig looks pretty good on a 52" LCD.....<grin>

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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 01/01/2012 at 22:41 #26595
BarryM
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" said:
" said:
Thanks headshot and lardybiker for responding. This is very helpful info.

My pc is a laptop with, unfortunately, graphics integrated into the motherboard, however it does have facilities for an extra monitor. But second hand games machines or low end games quality graphics cards are coming down in price, so my best option may be to keep my present machine for general purpose work and set up a faster dedicated desktop PC just to enjoy seeing all parts of a sim on two or maybe three monitors, along with the associated windows, without being cramped for space.

Will let y'all know if it happens and post a pic.
It doesn't matter the laptop has integrated video (I doubt, in fact, any laptop these days has a separate video card) the key is, it does have the monitor output so you could use that to do multiple monitors. You just need a monitor to plug into it and an OS thats supports multiple monitors. The main laptop screen will be one screen and the external monitor is the other so no need to get another PC (unless you want to of course!!). I do that on mine from time to time. Mine has a HDMI output that means I can put it on a TV. SimSig looks pretty good on a 52" LCD.....<grin>
A bit hard on the eyes though.

Barry

Barry, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 01/01/2012 at 23:07 #26600
headshot119
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" said:
" said:
Thanks headshot and lardybiker for responding. This is very helpful info.

My pc is a laptop with, unfortunately, graphics integrated into the motherboard, however it does have facilities for an extra monitor. But second hand games machines or low end games quality graphics cards are coming down in price, so my best option may be to keep my present machine for general purpose work and set up a faster dedicated desktop PC just to enjoy seeing all parts of a sim on two or maybe three monitors, along with the associated windows, without being cramped for space.

Will let y'all know if it happens and post a pic.
It doesn't matter the laptop has integrated video (I doubt, in fact, any laptop these days has a separate video card) the key is, it does have the monitor output so you could use that to do multiple monitors. You just need a monitor to plug into it and an OS thats supports multiple monitors. The main laptop screen will be one screen and the external monitor is the other so no need to get another PC (unless you want to of course!!). I do that on mine from time to time. Mine has a HDMI output that means I can put it on a TV. SimSig looks pretty good on a 52" LCD.....<grin>
My laptop must be an exception to that rule then.

"Passengers for New Lane, should be seated in the rear coach of the train " - Opinions are my own and not those of my employer
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 06/01/2012 at 19:44 #26868
Lardybiker
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Headshot, your laptop has a separate graphics card you can take remove and replace? Just what sort of laptop have you got? Last time I saw anything like that was a 386 laptop with a case that was 18" deep and 4" tall so it could fit a normal PC graphics card in (which fitted horizontally)...In fact, laptop is hardly a good description!
Last edited: 06/01/2012 at 19:54 by Lardybiker
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 06/01/2012 at 19:57 #26870
Lardybiker
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" said:
" said:
" said:
Thanks headshot and lardybiker for responding. This is very helpful info.

My pc is a laptop with, unfortunately, graphics integrated into the motherboard, however it does have facilities for an extra monitor. But second hand games machines or low end games quality graphics cards are coming down in price, so my best option may be to keep my present machine for general purpose work and set up a faster dedicated desktop PC just to enjoy seeing all parts of a sim on two or maybe three monitors, along with the associated windows, without being cramped for space.

Will let y'all know if it happens and post a pic.
It doesn't matter the laptop has integrated video (I doubt, in fact, any laptop these days has a separate video card) the key is, it does have the monitor output so you could use that to do multiple monitors. You just need a monitor to plug into it and an OS thats supports multiple monitors. The main laptop screen will be one screen and the external monitor is the other so no need to get another PC (unless you want to of course!!). I do that on mine from time to time. Mine has a HDMI output that means I can put it on a TV. SimSig looks pretty good on a 52" LCD.....<grin>
A bit hard on the eyes though.

Barry
Not when you are set 15 feet away its not on a nice comfy recliner sofa with a beer....SimSig meet at my house anyone?....LOL

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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 06/01/2012 at 20:44 #26872
sdwillsmvr
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The modern graphics cards are brilliant compared to what me and mate used to use, just rammed an old PC full of PCI graphics cards and managed to run about 6 monitors off it! Shame they were all the old CRT ones . All we use now are our laptops with another monitor attached with a central server laptop running the sim with F2 and F4 available. Will take a picture and upload it next time we play.
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 06/01/2012 at 20:48 #26873
headshot119
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" said:
Headshot, your laptop has a separate graphics card you can take remove and replace? Just what sort of laptop have you got? Last time I saw anything like that was a 386 laptop with a case that was 18" deep and 4" tall so it could fit a normal PC graphics card in (which fitted horizontally)...In fact, laptop is hardly a good description!
It's a HP DV6. When you pop the keyboard off your presented with a lovely separate graphics card which you can pop out and replace (54XX / 55XX low profile range.) I wouldn't say it's easy to replace but it's doable.

"Passengers for New Lane, should be seated in the rear coach of the train " - Opinions are my own and not those of my employer
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Re: Eyefintiy and Simsig 07/01/2012 at 22:57 #26918
canaderyn
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Re the number of screens. I run two Radeon 6770 graphic cards, for Flight simulator,.( about $AUS 120.00) The cards are crossfire linked. These cards have 2 DVI outlets plus a display port. A display port to DVI adaptor connects to my third screen. In theory I could run 6 screens with these cards. Before upgrading my desktop and adding the above cards I had a Matrox splitter. I came across an advert last week( www.lindy.com.au) for a display port splitter which distributes one display port signal simultaneously to 4 display port monitors. Price $AUS 695. In line with everything else electronic I expect this price to come down.
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