Apple Event: May 7th at 7 am PT
I have a 2010 27 iMac.
I am about to get a 24 inch Samsung LED for an external monitor.
I will use the DVI cable to connect.
Will using such a large external monitor slow down anything or have any ill effects?
iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.7)
If anything it will enhance your Mac experience. I use a 20" Cinema Display with my 27" iMac and it gives so much more scope for multi-tasking or app that can benefit from multiple displays (such as Logic).
If anything it will enhance your Mac experience. I use a 20" Cinema Display with my 27" iMac and it gives so much more scope for multi-tasking or app that can benefit from multiple displays (such as Logic).
Many thanks. That is what I was hoping to hear. Life begins when you get a second monitor.
I have a VGA cable and the Mac mini-display port to VGA adaptor.
However, I plan on getting a mini-display to DVI adaptor and use a DVI cable. Good idea, worth the extra $30?
I use the DVI connection but also have the VGA mostly for connecting to pre-Thunderbolt MBP to HDTV. I have found that the few dollars spent to get several different connectors pays off when the equipment spans several generations. Hardware improvements and upgrades arrive so rapidly that the $30 dollar expense extends the usefulness of a Mac without the consideration of a new Mac every quarter!
Many thanks. Done deal.
Glad to be of help. Enjoy!
While I have your expertise.
I have a 2010 27 iMac and a 2009 24 that my wife uses only sparodically.
In a perfect world, perhaps I could use the 24 as a second monitor. However, only the 27 can function as an external display.
I presume I could hook the computers up by the cable, and use the 27 as the display. This seems a waste, although I doubt that the performance is much different between the 27 and 24.
I do not want to waste money on a new monitor, however, all the solutions I can imagine with connecting the 27 and 24 seem so convoluted.
Thoughts?
I would be loathe to downgrade the performance capacity of the 27" especially if it is a Quad-Core. The 24" at top specs was only a dual core in that generation so you would notice a drop in CPU-intensive tasks like video encoding. My 27" is a Quad-Core i7 that acts as my workhorse; all my Mac activities revolve around its enhanced capacity to perform.
Thanks again. I concur.
You are probably networked on a home router so you could have the 24" set up for Screen Sharing (etc) and control it from the 27"; that way it wouldn't have to sit idle. [I have four Macs all going at once when I am in full flight-- one for each hand.]
A while back I downloaded a screen sharing program from a second party vendor, I presume.
I never stuck at it long enough to get all the kinks out, but for the while I did stick with it, the performance seemed lacking.
Can you please give me specific details about how to screen share from the 27 to the 24? Because the 24 does sit idle 98% of the time.
I have tried third-party apps but the native Apple process is much more reliable in my experience.
Start with System Preferences and choose Sharing. The next screen asks you to choose the sharing options:
This will need to be done on both Macs. Once they are running you can find the 24" Mac in the Finder's sidebar under Shared.
Once you select the 24" from the sidebar you will get this:
Now when you click Share Screen you will get a sheet that asks for a valid user name and password; choose the name of that computer's user (and associated password) rather than 'Guest'. In a moment you will be taken to that computer where you will be able to manage both Macs from one workstation. They don't need to be in the same room or side by side just so long as they are on the same network which would be a home network as a result of the router's wireless signal.
Wow.
I already file share and internet share between the 24 and 27 using AirPort.
So, if I click the "screen share" as you say, the 24 would act as a second monitor?
SO, IF I CLICK THE "SCREEN SHARE", THE 24 WOULD ACT AS A SECOND MONITOR?
For example, I could open and slide the Illustrator program from the 27 to the 24, then open up InDesign on the 27, and drag photos etc back and forth?
The Screen Share gives you two computers managed from one Mac. The 'shared' Mac is not capable of receiving the Illustrator as you have described. For that you should have a look at this link from Cult of Mac about the set up:
http://www.cultofmac.com/using-imac-as-monitor-requires-very-specific-cable/2017 6
That would give the behavior that you have described in your most recent post.
A while back when I first got the second iMac, I controlled both iMacs from one keyboard and mouse. Nice. I used one mac for the internet surfing, and the other for working.
I did that wirelessly, but I also got the correct cable (which I never took out the box) that is mentioned in the link you sent.
I have the cable, and I have 2 macs, it is just that the 24 will not act as an external display as the 27 will.
I was just casting about for a way to harness the idle 24 to be used as a second monitor, but I guess that is not in the cards.
Thanks for all the help and expertise.
external monitor
