How to Use Your TV as a Second Monitor for Your Computer

Those of you out there who are tech-savvy and want to have a little fun may want to set up your TV as a second monitor for your computer. This can allow you to entertain a group, give your video games a new display or just look really cool. Here's how.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• S-video cable
• Video card that supports dual screen or TV-out
• Television
• Converter box
• Composite video cable
• Computer

1. Take your computer monitor down to the lowest resolution possible, preferably 640 x 480. If you can't get this low, try 800 x 600 (or the lowest setting).

2. Check and see if your computer and your TV have any matching output/input connectors, such as S-video or composite. If so, just hook them up with the appropriate cable. For example, you would connect the S-video port on your laptop (or desktop if available) to the S-video port on your TV screen with an S-video cable. Expect the quality of the TV screen to be poor when you perform any regular tasks, such as checking email or surfing the Internet.

3. Another option is to buy a converter box (at an electronics store such as Radio Shack) that plugs into a computer's standard VGA connector and turns it into a composite video signal. Connect the box to your TV's composite input with a composite (RCA) video cable. This setup will probably also give you pretty poor quality for regular tasks.

4. Or, get a splitter that will take the computer monitor's output and send it two different ways: back to the monitor and to another connector that will work with your TV. This option is essentially the same as the previous, just with a twist depending on what your computer supports.

5. Or, purchase a video card that supports dual screens or TV-output. This may be the simplest option outside of S-video hookup, but you will need to consider your computer and system before making this decision.

Tips & Warnings

• A crucial step is to set up your TV to detect the incoming images from your computer after you connect the two. If you don't do this, no image will show up on the TV, even if it's properly connected to the computer. Use the TV remote control to change your TV's input source setting (usually Line-1, Video-1 or S-video). Look for a button on the remote that says "Line In" or "Input," or check your TV's user's manual for instructions on changing the input source.

• While quality will be poor for regular tasking, video-playback quality on a TV is much better (but not necessarily fantastic).

• If you are really serious and want increased quality, you'll have to buy a new TV. Digital TV is creating a new revolution in TV viewing that may come to your advantage for projects like this. The digital TVs still may not support as high a resolution as your computer, but you may be able to directly hook into the monitor with a digital video input (DVI).

• Don't expect this setup to wow you. Unless you are using incredibly technologically advanced products, there is little in the way of improving the quality just yet.