How to connect two monitors to each other. How to display different images on two monitors

Hello, dear readers!

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So, after connecting the second monitor, you need to configure it. I have Windows7 OS, so I will show the settings using this operating system as an example.

First you need to open the dialog box . This can be done either by right-clicking on Desktop, or by opening Control Panel, in section Design and personalization choose Setting the screen resolution.

This window opens before us .

The connected monitors are shown schematically at the top. Usually the operating system detects them immediately, if this does not happen, click on the button Find.

After pressing the button Define Numbers appear on the screens indicating which monitor is the first and which is the second.

First, Screen– select the monitor to configure.

Second, Permission, it is usually indicated as recommended, it is better not to change.

Third, , it can be made landscape or portrait. This will become clearer after considering additional parameters.

Fourth, the most important thing for us, There are four points here if you select Duplicate these screens, then they will display the same thing, the two mouse pointers will move exactly the same. This option should be chosen if the second monitor is used for demonstration to other people.

For individual work, it is better to choose the second option - Expand these screens. In this case, the screen of the second monitor will become a continuation of the first. There will be one mouse pointer, it can be moved from screen to screen, and you can drag objects, for example, program windows or folders. Look at the screenshot and photo below - part of the window can be on one screen, and the other on the second. This is exactly the mode I use in my work, I’m used to it and am very pleased that there is such an opportunity.

There are two more options - Display desktop on 1 or 2 screens only. There is such an opportunity, but it’s hard to say why to use it, maybe someone will share how to use it.

Even lower, you can determine which monitor will be the main one. The main one is the one on which the button is located Start And Taskbar.

Now let's move on to additional parameters. They are determined by the capabilities of your video card, so the window that opens may vary. Again, I’ll show you with my own example.

There are several tabs here, I'm interested Graphics Control Panel.

Using the settings in this panel, you can rotate the image by 90, 180 or 270 degrees. As an example, I placed the monitor vertically and rotated the image 90 degrees. This option can be used, for example, when processing photographs with portrait orientation.

This is how you can connect and configure a second monitor.

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Some computer work requires large screens; moreover, sometimes one monitor is simply not enough, no matter how large it is. In such a situation, it is much easier to connect two screens to the PC to make working on them comfortable. This is possible for all modern computers with powerful video cards.

Is it possible to install a second monitor?

There are 3 options for connecting multiple screens to one PC. You will have to first configure the system and data display modes. The physical connection will require several specific inputs and cables. If necessary, you will have to buy adapters. You can connect in several ways:

It is possible to connect a second display to a laptop only if it already has an additional connector, since it is most often not possible to change the video card on a laptop.

Connection ports

To connect displays to a PC, specific cables are required for each port, which can be:

The main problem when connecting multiple displays is different ports and cables. It is enough to compare them in advance and, if incompatible, simply buy the necessary adapter.

Setting up two monitors

Once the displays have been connected by connecting cables, when you turn on the computer, the system should find them and connect them automatically. However, some minor adjustments may be required to how they operate simultaneously. Windows can support several modes:

You can configure operating modes in the system parameters:

When setting up you will have to select correct extension so that the image is of high quality and not stretched or cropped. To do this, you need to know the power of the video card and set the value that it can output without damaging the image.

It is worth mentioning that there are graphics adapters, for example, Intel, which already contain parameters for setting the operating mode on two or more screens. If such an adapter is installed on your PC, you can configure it in a simple way:

If the goal is to duplicate the image on two screens simultaneously (working with clients often requires this), and the PC has only one connector, you should buy a simple splitter and connect the equipment in this way. You just have to be careful and purchase a splitter with the correct connectors that match the connectors on your PC and monitor.

Connecting a second screen to your PC is a simple process that won't take much time. You just need to make sure in advance that no additional cables are required. Otherwise, purchase them in advance.

Connecting two monitors to a computer or laptop may be required for a variety of reasons. As a rule, this is done for professional purposes - for the convenience of video editing, photo processing or working with texts. However, this can also be useful for the average user - you can play on one monitor and use an Internet browser on the second.

Even the most inexperienced user can make the connection - you just need to select the right equipment, and the operating system itself will be able to detect and configure the second monitor. The problem can only arise if, when connecting a monitor to a laptop, the standard display turns off, or the same image appears on both screens. How to display different images on monitors?

Steps to connect a second monitor

The entire connection procedure can be divided into two main parts: hardware and software. At the first stage, the user needs to find out what kind of video card is installed in his computer and what connection interfaces it has. Depending on the computer, there may be one or more connectors; they can be of different types - in this case you will need an adapter or different monitors.

The software part is usually executed automatically. After connecting the second monitor to a free connector on the video card, any modern operating system will independently start the process of detecting new equipment and transfer the video stream to it. If this does not happen, the user can start the discovery manually.

So, first of all, you need to inspect the video card installed in the computer. Each of the connected monitors will need its own connector; Typically, at least two outputs can be found on a discrete map. If there is no second connector, the problem can be solved in different ways:

• purchasing a new graphics card with several interfaces can be quite expensive, but in addition the computer will receive more resources for video processing;
• install a second cheaper video card, if the design of the motherboard and computer case allows it - there must be a free slot and enough space;
• Using a video signal splitter is a budget option, which can, however, somewhat spoil the image quality if the old analog interface is split.

If you plan to connect a second screen to a laptop, there are practically no options - replacing a video card will easily cost half the cost of a computer, and installing a second board is most often impossible. In this case, it is best to immediately select a laptop with an additional video interface, preferably digital.

Variety of interfaces

To connect a monitor to a computer without problems, the connectors on them must be of the same type; Sometimes you can use an adapter, but a loss of quality is inevitable. The choice of interface can be made from the following list:

• VGA (D-Sub) is an old analog interface designed to transmit images in low resolution and low quality;
• DVI -I and DVI -D - low-level digital interface, very common - found on most monitors and video cards;
• HDMI is a universal interface (it can transmit not only pictures, but also sound), found not only on computers and monitors, but also on TVs and game consoles;
• DisplayPort is a modern option for connecting monitors with 4k resolution;
• Thunderbolt is the fastest interface to which you can connect a large number of monitors without losing image quality.

It is impossible to connect something incorrectly - all connectors and plugs have a completely different design. Adapters can only be used when connecting connectors of the same type (for example, analog VGA and DVI-I, which transmits an analog signal along with a digital one). To connect an analog interface to a digital one, you need a special device - a DAC.

The easiest way to output a signal from a laptop to a monitor is to select only one monitor that matches the additional video interface. The signal will be separated in exactly the same way as in the case of a regular desktop computer. It will also be possible to display different images on separate and built-in screens.

Setting up a second monitor

In most cases, the system itself will detect new equipment and display an image on it. As a rule, when connected to a laptop, the same image begins to be displayed on both screens, and when connecting a second monitor to a desktop PC, the desktop lengthens. However, sometimes this may not happen. Before adjusting the output of different images, you should understand this problem.

Enabling a second monitor in any version of Windows is done through the control panel, in the screen settings menu. There are three parameters available for adjustment:

• image output mode – on one or both screens, mirrored, desktop stretching;
• screen resolution;
• orientation – horizontal or vertical.

After this, both monitors will have a common desktop. This already allows you to have a different image on different screens - for this, of course, you will have to run applications in windowed mode and place them in a certain area of ​​​​the desktop.

Creating two independent desktops

If you need to have two separate desktops, simply connecting monitors to a common video card will not be enough. You can do this in several ways:

• connect the equipment to a modern card with several graphics processors and select the appropriate mode in the settings;
• connect each monitor to a separate video card;
• use special equipment that connects to one video card and separates the video signal.

In the latter case, you can even connect two monitors to a laptop - in this case, there will be one large desktop on them, and a second on the built-in display.

Thus, even an inexperienced user can figure out connecting and setting up a second monitor.

Video tutorial on setup

Modern computer users are accustomed to the versatility of their devices. This characteristic also affected the function of displaying images on the screen. Today, multiple displays can be connected to one computer. In this article, we will look at the main ways to connect two screens simultaneously to one device, as well as setting them up on the most popular operating systems.

Before connecting a second screen, make sure that your monitor and video card support multiple connections. One of your monitors and your video card must support at least two interfaces: HDMI, VGA and DVI.

Regardless of what operating system is installed on your computer, the connection will be made through the connectors that are located on the rear panel of the system unit. Accordingly, it is necessary to know in advance which of the many contacts will help connect the displays.

It is only important to remember that both ports to which the connection will be made must be located on the same video card, and two or more of them can be installed on the computer.

You can purchase a separate video card with several connectors (2, 3, 4 monitor connectors).

Install the drivers for the new video card that should be included. After installation and restarting the computer, right-click on the desktop and select the application of your video card.

Then configure it for 2 to 3 monitors.

Let's move on to the list of possible connectors:

• VGA is the oldest possible port, used back in the era of cathode ray tube monitors, and today it is an antique. New generation video cards are no longer equipped with this connector;
• DVI-I/DVI-D or simply DVI port is the most common way to connect a display, since this standard is not excluded even in the most modern models;
• HDMI is the most practical and efficient port available on all video cards produced today. Through it, a combined transmission of image and sound is carried out;
• Display Port is another of the new era connectors that is used to connect screens with 4K resolution.

To make the connection easier, it is best to make it when the computer is turned off. Practice shows that it is best to connect the main screen to a more modern port, and the additional one to any other one. After a successful connection, you can start your computer.

Setting up a monitor in Windows OS

When running Windows 7 and later, right-clicking on the desktop will open a context menu in which you should select the “Screen Resolution” section.

In the case of Windows XP, you need to perform the same steps, but select the “Properties” - “Settings” section. In the window that opens, you can choose one of three options for sharing:

• “Stretch the desktop” - increase it to the size of two screens combined together;
• “Display the desktop on one of the monitors” is self-explanatory;
• “Duplicate monitor” - this function helps in holding conferences when it is necessary to convey information to the entire audience at once and one device cannot cope with this.

In versions of Windows 7, 8 and 10, control can be done through the “Projector” menu, called through the “Win” + “P” combination.

Setup on Mac OS

To make adjustments on Apple devices, you need to select the “System Settings” - “Display” section in the system menu and go to the “Location” tab.

According to the standard, the system allows you to first stretch the screen across two monitors, and if you leave a checkmark next to the “Duplicate screen” line, so that the same information is displayed on both screens. The system will also try to automatically determine permissions, but the choice will remain with the user, although the proposed option is the most correct and it is better not to refuse it.

How to connect a second monitor to a laptop

Typically, most laptops have VGA and HDMI inputs installed. If your monitor supports an HDMI connector, then it is better to use it, as the image quality will be better.

When the second display is connected, you just need to press “Win” + P and select the appropriate item.

If the second display does not show quite correctly, then try setting the maximum resolution in the settings.

Thus, connecting two monitors is not a difficult process and only requires the presence of a certain set of connectors on one of the video cards installed in the computer. You will also need to purchase cables for connection. We wish you success!

One of my readers had a question about how to use the “clone” mode. To be honest, I didn’t think such a question could arise. But after browsing the forums, I realized that this kind of question is not uncommon.

Some people can’t connect a monitor, some have a modern TV, some can’t play a new game in multiscreen mode (displaying images on multiple screens), etc. So I had a desire to write a more or less detailed description of possible solutions to the problem of connecting a second monitor.

Below I will present 4 options for solving the problem, one of them should suit you.

connecting a second monitor in windows 7

Those of you who have the Windows 7 operating system installed on your computer are most likely the luckiest ones. The developers of this OS studied the most important problematic issues of users and provided fairly effective solutions.

So, if you have Windows7 installed, do the following:

1. Connect a second monitor to the video card output.

2. Press the key combination “WIN+P” on the keyboard, this picture will appear

3. Select the desired option and enjoy the resulting picture.

connecting a second monitor to a laptop

If you have a mobile laptop, then, as a rule, software developers for it have already taken care of the issue of connecting an external device to output a video signal. It’s not always convenient to work behind a small monitor, and you don’t want to strain your eyes.

To connect an external monitor or TV to a laptop or netbook, you need to use the pre-installed system tools. Most often, a utility from Intel is installed. Look in the lower right corner on the taskbar next to the clock there should be a blue (if not an Intel utility, then a different color) icon.

Right-clicking on it will open the graphics adapter management menu.

Or the second option for calling this panel is to simply click on an empty space on the desktop.

Next, select the “Output to” item -> and in the window that opens, select the option we need. To transmit the same picture as on the main monitor, you must select the “Display Clone” mode (underlined in red).

proprietary utilities from nvidia and radeon

This is the method I use, and it is suitable for all Windows operating systems. What needs to be done? Yes, just open the “Video Card Control Panel”, the icon of which is usually located near the clock.

If you are a happy owner of a video card GeForce from the company NVidia, then the icon is green (as in the picture), and if you have a card Ati Radeon– that is red, on which there is also the inscription “Ati”.

Double-click on this icon -> go to the “Video Card Control Panel” -> find “Display Manager” in the menu on the left -> then go to the “Install multiple displays” item and set the resolution for each monitor by selecting the image display option.

working with CATALYST Control Center

This method is also universal, but unlike the previous one, it has great capabilities in the field of fine-tuning and adjusting the image to a specific situation and a specific application.

The name of this universal tool for managing the connection of external information output devices is “CATALYST Control Center”.

You can download the latest version from the developer’s official website by selecting the appropriate platform.

Installing the program should not cause you any problems. After launching the program, go to the “Display Manager” item in the left menu.

In this section, you are asked to assign the main and secondary displays, select the desktop resolution and color depth for each of them, and also rotate the image if your monitor supports this mode.

Setting up the desktop of each monitor is carried out using the context menu, called by right-clicking on the image of the corresponding display:

You can choose one of three desktop configurations:

• By default, the found display is connected in mode extended desktop. All programs will open on the main desktop, but you can drag them to the second one with the mouse.
• Cloning simply creates a copy of the desktop on the second display. This is convenient, for example, for organizing training or various presentations. You just need to connect a larger projector or plasma panel.
• Stretched desktop convenient when using two monitors installed in close proximity to each other. Your desktop completely stretches across both displays, forming a kind of panorama.

Perhaps some of you will say that a second monitor is overkill. But, I assure you that for those who use a computer not only for Internet surfing, but also for work, it creates great convenience and comfort, and also increases productivity (improves ergonomics).

Also, recently, connecting multiple monitors has become popular among computer game lovers. For example, I often connect the TV to the computer so that the whole family can watch online movies from the Internet on the big screen.

By the way, about monitors, here is a picture to cheer you up, called “Milk formula gives 10 health and 10 mana” (don’t forget to comment).