Mac Book display through projector

Same problem here... ever since I let Snow Leopard update itself to 10.6.3. Anytime I use a projector and go to fullscreen mode (Keynote, DVD, VLC player. Main display becomes completely corrupted, not to mention after disconnecting from the projector my power saving options no longer work until I restart. I am going to call Apple this weekend; whatever I find out I will post. BTW, I have a Santa Rosa Macbook 2.0. First major problem EVER.

Any new concerning this topic?

I have the same problem since the last update

Guys,

Count me. I'm experiencing the same problem, too! I projected my white late 2007 macbook using an Infocus projector. While the projected image was OK, the one on my Mac's LCD looked something like a TV if you remove cable.

Got the same problem here since I updated to OS X 10.6.3, and I have some more details to add.

*The problem:* When an external VGA display is plugged and set to Mirror Mode, the visualization of a video in fullscreen (e.g. QuickTime) or a screensaver will corrupt the internal display visualization until the external display is unplugged or a resolution change happens. The external display won't be affected by it.

*Steps to reproduce the problem:*
- Connect an external display through the mini DVI to VGA adapter (I haven't tested the mini DVI to DVI)
- Set the display output to Mirror mode. Resolution doesn't matter
- Go to the Screensaver preferences pane
- Click on the Test button. (I personally tested with the Arabesque, Flurry, Abstract screensavers)
- The internal display will get garbled.

Pictures:
For reference, this is what the screen looks like, after reproducing the above steps: http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/495/20100423.jpg
A detail of the same screen. The mouse pointer is shown properly: http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/8564/20100423001.jpg
The external display is unaffected: http://img594.imageshack.us/img594/9921/20100423002.jpg

*Additional details:*
- The affected computer is a MacBook4,1 2.4GHz (Early 2008 - Intel GMA X3100)
- Earlier MacBooks seem not to be affected. My other MacBook2,1 2.16 (Mid 2007 - Intel GMA 950) does not present the problem on either 10.6.2 or 10.6.3.
- The problem seems to happen only on Mac OS X 10.6.3. I tested it on 10.6.2, and the problem does not occur. To make sure it's not a file corruption issue, I also booted 10.6.3 using my other MacBook in firewire target disk mode, and the problem occurs the same way.
- The computer has all of its original components, nothing has been changed since it's been bought.

I have exactly the same problem. And I only started having this problem in the past two/three weeks.

Hopefully, the Apple people will look into it. I was problem free for over 2 years with this particular MacBook.

Message was edited by: Jimmy Chiu

Syao wrote:
- Connect an external display through the mini DVI to VGA adapter (I haven't tested the mini DVI to DVI)

It seems that the DVI connection will work. See [This Tread|http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2408132&tstart=0].

Same problem here!
You mention a DVI connector will work, but my Macbook and projector only have a VGA connection.
Hope Apple find the solution soon.

Same here. My wife's MacBook did not have this problem until I performed upgrade to 10.6.3. She is complaining about this problem. I noticed same thing on my MacBook when connecting to external monitor with Mirror enabled. Please fix this ASAP!! Driving both of us crazy!

Thanks!

I have experienced the same problem, but I have noticed that the problem only occurs with Keynote presentations. If I am projecting a DVD through my MacBook, both the projector and the laptop are normal. In Keynote, everything is fine until I PLAY the presentation - at that point the laptop "loses it", but the projector is fine. I also recently updated to the latest Mac OS. I use an Intel MacBook purchased in August of 2009.

Same problem here!

I hope you guys all gave feedback to apple at apple.com/feedback .
So as to make this matter urgent.

G.

Crap! I am having this issue also with my black macbook. I didn't have it with 10.5 and not when I first upgraded to 10.6, but recently when I plug in my projector everything seems OK until I launch a PowerPoint presentation (presentation mode) then my screen on the macbook gets totally corrupted with random little squares. I present workshops for a living and this is REALLY annoying. I guess we are going to have to wait for a 10.6.4 update?? Maybe we can roll back to 10.6.2?

I've had the same problem multiple times, after multiple re-installs. It'll work for a week or so, and then bam, same thing.

Tell me, in addition to the fritz on the MacBook computer screen, does your projection (either LCD or monitor) come across as either very dark or lacking contrast? (Mine does.)

Okay, in greater detail, here is my experience, since I too live and die by Keynote:
-Everything worked fine for better part of two years, eventually anything written in Hoefler Text font crashes Keynote (which may be a separate issue). Then a few months ago, the aforementioned glitch begins. Again, I'm not so much bothered by the "fuzz" on the MacBook screen--since the text appears on the external monitor and projection--but rather by the fact that the LCD projection also becomes very dark and lacking contrast, which makes it hard for my students to read.

So I take it to my Apple Store.
Visit #1: Can't find anything wrong--they send me home since they can't recreate the issue.
Visit #2: I bring an LCD projector to the store, hook it up, and voila! "Issue" recreated. They boot from their in-store OS, and everything seems to work fine. So they suggest that a file somewhere has been corrupted, and that I should erase and reinstall, which I do. Erase and reinstall seems to have fixed the issue--for about a week. (Which incidentally is about as long as it took for me to reinstall all of my programs, etc.) The last thing I install is the "Gotham" fonts for my presentations, and then the problem reappears.
Visit #3: Having jointly determined that it must be a corrupted font file, the Apple folks suggest another erase and reinstall, without the Gotham font files, which I do. Seems to work for about another week. But now I cannot get Pages to open .doc files, Numbers to open .xls files, or Keynote to open .ppt files.
Visit #4: Returning to the Apple Store with this new problem, they suggest that I install software updates, which I do. Now the programs open their Microsoft counterpoints. Now the original "issue" reappears, which is when I stumble across this thread, which I then present to the techs during...
Visit #5: Having read this thread, the techs agree that my experience is consistent with the position that the problem might be inherent in the OS X 10.6.3 upgrade. They suggest that I erase and reinstall again (imagine that) and don't upgrade until 10.6.4 comes out (and then just pray that the glitch has been fixed).

Ive been Having the exact same problem is there any fix at present as I use my Mac for Teaching every day

Modbooks made from MacBooks with Intel graphics are having the same problem:

http://forums.axiotron.com/showthread.php?tid=882

A Modbook user has confirmed that going back to 10.6.2 entirely resolves the problem.

As an aside, I'm guessing that this issue is related to Apple's decision to build an incomplete driver for the internal display in its Intel graphics MacBook's. As Snow Leopard moves toward resolution independence, this issue has emerged.

Message was edited by: nitwit