How to Hook Up Multiple Monitors to One Computer

Connecting two monitors to one computer is a simple task.

Being able to connect two monitors to one computer accomplishes a few goals for the computer user. The user can clone what they are seeing on one screen to another screen. This is good for a situation where a computer user may need to show a client something sitting on the other side of their desk. Another situation for having dual monitors is to be able to stretch the view across two screens. This gives you more screen space to work with. You can drag one application to one screen and let it remain open while you are working on something on the other screen. The process of sharing multiple screens on one computer is fairly simple. The whole process will take about 15 minutes.

Things You'll Need

• Video card with dual outputs
• Screwdriver
• Grounding strap

Instructions

1. Shut down the computer. This is done by clicking on the "start" button in the lower left corner of the screen. A menu will open and you will have the option to shut down the computer toward the bottom of the menu

2. Remove the power cord from the back of the computer. This will be the black power cord that plugs into the power supply on the back of the computer.

3. Open the case. On newer computers the case is opened with a quick-release latch. Older cases will require you to remove screws from the case in order to open it.

4. Mount the dual output video card in a free slot. Many video cards mount in an AGP slot which is typically brown and shorter than the white PCI slots. However, if your video card is a PCI slot it can be installed in a free PCI slot. The manufacturer box will indicate what type of slot it fits into. The card will snap into the slot and be mounted to the chassis with a single screw.

5. Close the case. The lid to the case will need to be placed back onto the chassis. It will either snap back into place using the quick-release latch. Or, it will need to be screwed back to the chassis using the screws that were removed earlier.

6. Connect the two monitors to the ports on the newly installed video card. This connectors can be blue VGA connectors or white DVI connectors.

7. Turn on the computer by pressing the power button on the computer.

8. Install the drivers for the new video card. After the computer finishes loading, it will detect that a new video card has been installed. It will search its internal files to see if it already has the driver. If not, it will prompt you to enter the driver disk for the video card. The driver disk should be provided by the manufacturer when you purchased the video card.

9. Configure the monitors if needed. When the computer finishes loading, you will most likely see a cloned image on both computers. That means you will see the same thing on both monitors. If that is what you wanted to do, then you are finished. However, if you want to get the extended screen option you will need to open up the display properties. The display properties are located by clicking on the "start" menu and then going to the control panel application. Inside the control panel you will find the option to edit the display properties.

Tips & Warnings

• If you do not have the drivers for the video card, you can typically find them at the manufacturer's website. They are typically found in the support area.

• Ground yourself when handling computer components like video cards. Failure to do so could result in static discharge, which can ruin the computer components.

References

• "A+ Guide to Managing And Maintaining Your PC"; Jean Andrews; 2006
• "Litigation technology: becoming a high-tech trial lawyer‎"; Michael G. Rogers; 2006
• "How to Cheat at Organizing: Quick, Clutter-Clobbering Ways to Simplify Your Life"; Jeff Bredenberg; 2007