jepherz

ok, i have 2 monitors that are exactly the same and just got a new vid card which supports dual monitor. I just set it up and have a few questions about it...

1. How much energy does a monitor use? I'm afraid I may be jacking up my electric bill a bit by having 2 monitors like this, especially since I don't need 2 on all the time. These are 17 inch LCDs (atleast I think they are LCDs...)

2. I'm using this dual monitor set up to get work done faster, I don't want both monitors on all the time and I don't think turning off the additional monitor stops the computer from sending info to it. I turn one off then move my mouse around and it disappears into the turned off monitor. Is there a way I can turn off the additional monitor temporarily so this doesn't happen without having to change the settings each time?

3. When I turn on a game to play that is full screen, one monitor clones the other. Does this have an effect on the performance of the video card since its running the display on both?

Mousey

Right if you're using the Catalyst control center or the nVidia control panel you can specify if the secondary monitor clones the primary monitor or is simply additional desktop space so if you're gaming the game will open on the primary monitor and not clone to the other one.

If you turn off the secondary monitor it's still recognised as 2 monitors by your system so if you move your mouse to the other monitor it will act like it's still on and disappear, all you have to do is move it back again.
And why would you want to temporarily disable the secondary monitor? Might as well just keep it all set up and turned on.

As far as i'm aware LCDs don't eat much power at all so leaving it on all the time is a more viable option than turning it on and off because the surge to turn the monitor on uses more power than however many hours of constant uptime.

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BlueMak

Depends on the monitor. If you give the specific model then it would be easier to know how much power it consumes.
Perhaps another 70W. It could be 2/3 of that or even 50% more.

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The people who are regarded as moral luminaries are those who forego ordinary pleasures themselves and find compensation in interfering with the pleasures of others(Bertrand Russell)"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil,You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them." - Lt. Gen. James N. Mattis
This is slavery, not to speak one's thought. [Euripides-The Phoenician Women (c.411-409 B.C.)] http://www.macedonia.info/FALLACIESANDFACTS.htm Sic semper tyrannis.

GigaWatt

not exactly true, but close enough...

it is true that LCD (or TFT monitors) don't eat up much power, not like CRT monitors do, so it's safe to say that you could leave them on all the time, and the amount of amps (power, energy) eaten up by the two monitors will not even come close to the power consumption of even one CRT monitor.

turning the monitor on from a off position, weather that is a CRT, LCD or TFT monitor, does drain a little bit more power in the first few seconds, till the monitor gets warmed up, after that the power consumtion is pritty much constant. but the slightly bigger power surge to turn the monitor on is not that big (not equal to a few hours of on time), actually you could compare it to a few minutes of on time. so i guess there is no problem to turn the second monitor on or off all the time.

the downside to turning the second monitor on and off all the time is that the parts in the monitor get cold (in an off state) and get back from cold to warm state (when you turn the monitor back on again). the slightly larger power consumption when you turn the monitor on combined with the lack of working temperature to the components, makes the components go through a shock every time you turn the monitor on, so this shortens the life spand of the components and the monitor itself.

so, if i were you, i would leave the second monitor on all the time, you probably will not even notice the difference in the price of the electric bill...

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It's not schisophrenia... it's just a voice in my head...

Judas

1: Look up your monitors specifications either by looking at the back.. it should have a draw value... easier if you look on your manufacturers website, they should list a peak and a average or typical draw.... your likely looking at about the same draw as a 60-100watt lightbulb being on.. depending on your brightness lvl you've set for the screens... 17" isn't going to consume much at all though...maybe a buck more for power over a course of a month

2: This is only preventable by disabling the monitor manually via the display properties settings or using either the nvidia or ati control panels display managers... you'd have to do this every time if you want to prevent this.

3: Generally no you shouldn't see any change, as it's simply just duplicating the image across both... it'll draw so long as thier are no bugs occuring.... nothing noticeable in performance.

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OldBuzzard

Also, you might want to check out UltraMon: www.ultramon.com It's a really nice application for managing multiple monitors.

Its $39.95, but worth every penny. You can D/L and try it out first to see if you want to keep it.

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When looking for a reason as to why things go wrong, never rule out sheer STUPIDITY

jepherz

My monitor on the website says no more than 45W. Thats little? I know nothing about this stuff...

Thanks for the link to that one site to ultramon, definitely gonna check it out.

Judas

45w is basically nothing.... if you are in the market of saving pennies each month... perhaps.... course it all depends on what they change you per kwh... but there are some people that leave thier porch light on at all times, and it likely consumes more power then each monitor does.

I wouldn't be worried.... if you wanted to save money, just turn the electric burner on your stove off 15 seconds sooner and you'll have saved a pile.

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BlueMak

Is this under peak usage? How big is the monitor and what model?

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The people who are regarded as moral luminaries are those who forego ordinary pleasures themselves and find compensation in interfering with the pleasures of others(Bertrand Russell)"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil,You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them." - Lt. Gen. James N. Mattis
This is slavery, not to speak one's thought. [Euripides-The Phoenician Women (c.411-409 B.C.)] http://www.macedonia.info/FALLACIESANDFACTS.htm Sic semper tyrannis.

Mousey

Yeah ultramon's fantastic can't beat it

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jepherz

its a samsung syncmaster 175v, pretty old....it says under 45w. I dont know if its under peak usage...

BlueMak

Considering the size and other similar models by Samsung (though not the same as I can't find it), I would say 45W is the peak usage.

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The people who are regarded as moral luminaries are those who forego ordinary pleasures themselves and find compensation in interfering with the pleasures of others(Bertrand Russell)"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil,You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them." - Lt. Gen. James N. Mattis
This is slavery, not to speak one's thought. [Euripides-The Phoenician Women (c.411-409 B.C.)] http://www.macedonia.info/FALLACIESANDFACTS.htm Sic semper tyrannis.