Widescreen aspect ratio with projector and IWB

[LazyD]

Hello,

 

Am supposed to be getting some lenovo thinkcentre all in one pc's for classrooms. Problem is that they need to be linked to projector and IWB. The thinkcentres have a 19 or 21 inch widescreen display (16:10 aspect ratio). It either looks bad on the whiteboard, being all squashed and fat and wasting board space on top and bottom, or we have big black bars down the sides of the thinkcentres monitor display. Has anyone found a way round this kind of problem?

 

Thanks.

[FN-GM]

You should set it up so they act like dual monitors. Like extending the desktop onto the next screen. Then you can have 2 resolutions, one wide screen and one standard. But the teachers mIght find it hard to get there head round.

 

Did that make sense?

[rush_tech]

It also depends on what resolution the projector will do, they should auto adjust but you might need to tweak it a little

[LazyD]

Yes that makes sense. I was thinking of using it as an extended desktop but the problem with this is that the display would not be the same on both screens so if the whiteboard is in an awkward position in relation to where the teacher sits at their pc (which it is in most rooms), it would be difficult for the teacher to work on whatever is on the whiteboard by looking only at the projector. This would also create the problem of the teacher/user having to know how to move the relevant application over to the other screen and back when they need to.

 

Would just like to be able to clone the display on to the projector but it a diffferent resolution, all the projectors I've tried to do this with will not look normal until the laptop (or pc in this case) screen is in the wrong resolution or has black bars down the sides.

[plexer]

You cannot have a different resolution if you simply use clone.

 

Ben

[rad]

We clone and set up the monior so it fits on the IWB. If you try differnt resolutions it doesn't work. Only issue is when say in graphics you draw a circle on the PC, looks like an Oval on screen.

[LazyD]

I thought so. So I'm going to have to get pc's with normal 4:3 screens for linking with the whiteboards. Does anyone know any all in one pc's with 4:3 screens? I'm guessing that there are little or none around now a days...

[FN-GM]

I thought so. So I'm going to have to get pc's with normal 4:3 screens for linking with the whiteboards. Does anyone know any all in one pc's with 4:3 screens? I'm guessing that there are little or none around now a days...

 

Or you could just get widescreen ones with the bars at the side.

[LazyD]

Really, really hate the bars on the sides! It's possible that might have to happen though but it seems an awful thing to settle for when buying new pcs.

[tom_pearson]

We use Dell PC's with 4:3 TFT's. Always work without problems on our IWB's

[Marc-Engineer]

I think Viglan do some.

 

Marc

Projector Engineer

[Busybub]

I thought so. So I'm going to have to get pc's with normal 4:3 screens for linking with the whiteboards. Does anyone know any all in one pc's with 4:3 screens? I'm guessing that there are little or none around now a days...

 

Other option is to reuse your old 4:3 monitors as secondary screens.

Set up the new computers to run an extended desktop, and have the second display signal go into a splitter feeding the projectors and your old monitors.

[LazyD]

Busybub, can't do this as the thinkcentre all in ones do not have a vga out, just confirmed that today finally which means I'll have to get a different model for the teachers pc.

 

Tom_pearson, are the dell pc's you are referring to all-in-one units? Or perhaps the units with the desk space saving stand where the box sits behind the screen?

[tom_pearson]

They're the Optiplex 7XX range (Most recent purchase we made was Optiplex 760's) ultra small form factor that mount on the back of Dell monitors, and also have a neat cable management system.

Have had no issues connecting them up to IWB systems, using a standard VGA splitter.