How to Setup Second Monitors With Vista
You can use a second monitor in one of two ways. First, you can mirror the image from your primary monitor. This is useful when you want to hook a large monitor up to a laptop computer. Second, you can create a single image spread between two monitors. This is useful when you want more visual space on your desktop.
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Instructions
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Turn on your computer as you normally would, and wait for the Windows Vista start-up process to complete.
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Plug in your second monitor's electrical cord to a power strip and plug its data cable into your computer. Note that you will need an available, compatible port.
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Turn on the second monitor. Windows Vista will automatically detect the new hardware and will show you the "New Display Detected" dialog box. It will provide you with three options for how to run the new monitor. If you want to mirror the image from the primary monitor, select "Mirrored." If you want a larger visual desktop to be split between the two monitors, select "Extended." The third option, External Display Only," is primarily for laptop computers and lets you turn off the laptop monitor when using the secondary monitor.
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Select which of these options you prefer, and click "OK" to implement the new settings. Your new monitor should now be running.
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Adjust the display settings as needed by visiting the Control Panel, selecting "Appearance and Personalization," then "Personalization," then "Display Settings."
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Tips & Warnings
If the monitor port is already in use and you have nowhere to plug in your second monitor's data cable, you will need to install a second monitor port. You can do this by either adding a second video card to your motherboard--which is more expensive, but will provide separate computing power for the second monitor--or by installing a second port into your primary video card through use of a splitter that creates two ports from one. Visit your local electronics store for details.
If your monitor data cable plug is not the same type as the monitor port, you will have to buy an adapter. This may be the case, for instance, if you are trying to plug in a high-definition digital monitor into an old analog port.
