Anyone using the iBook Spanning Hack?

[tsk]

I'd like to hear some real world experience. My main concern is the 32MB of video.

1) Can I disable the onboard video when I do the span? I'd prefer just to output the display onto an external display with all 32MB.

2) How well does spanning work on a 1280x1024 monitor? Are there any problems?

3) Anyone try spanning on a Dell 2005FPW? Will it handle this resolution? Any problems.

Thanks.

Edit: Hmm, maybe I should have posted this in Mac Hardware.... Oops.

 

[lorkp]

bump

 

[haiggy]

1) I'm not sure how the video memory is distributed. You can't shut off your LCD on your 'book but you can dim the screen all the way so it is black. That's what I do. I'm pretty sure that's ALL you can do. I have played games on the other display, and watched movies on both, etc so I don't think memory is really a problem. What could you be doing that it might?

2) It will work no problems at all.

3) I wouldn't know.

 

[TEG]

Is it not just possible to close the iBook, use an external KB and Mouse and run it like a desktop? That might be better for what you want to do.

(Curious because that is my Plan for those $50 iBooks)

TEG

 

[mkrishnan]

The spanning hack has a clamshell but reports are très mal for leaving an iBook running this way for a prolonged period of time, because of heat build-up. The PB supposedly is better at dissipating heat through the sides and bottom, and needs the top (keyboard) surface less than the iBook.

This is literally the third thread *today* on this topic, so I'll just say if you go look at one of the other two, I post my experiences using a Dell 2001FP (which has a higher res than the 2005FPW) here.

EDIT: Oh, and from what I understand the $50 iBooks are *way* too old to support the spanning hack, although I might be wrong. I don't think they have a lot of VRAM.

 

[dsharits]

The spanning hack has a clamshell but reports are très mal for leaving an iBook running this way for a prolonged period of time, because of heat build-up. The PB supposedly is better at dissipating heat through the sides and bottom, and needs the top (keyboard) surface less than the iBook.

This is literally the third thread *today* on this topic, so I'll just say if you go look at one of the other two, I post my experiences using a Dell 2001FP (which has a higher res than the 2005FPW) here.

EDIT: Oh, and from what I understand the $50 iBooks are *way* too old to support the spanning hack, although I might be wrong. I don't think they have a lot of VRAM.

You are correct. It is a horrible idea to ever run an iBook with the lid closed. Since the PB's shell is aluminum, it can distribute the heat much more easily that the iBook can.
You are also correct on the fact that the $50 iBooks cannot run the hack. It is possible to install the hack, but there has been overwhelming evidence that the Rage based iBooks die as a result of the spanning hack. Anything with a Radeon or above is fine. Basically, any iBook with anything lower than a 700 MHz G3 does not have the video capability (with the sole exception of the latest 600 MHz 12" iBook, with 16 MB of VRAM).

 

[solvs]

(Curious because that is my Plan for those $50 iBooks)

Those iBooks are too old to run the hack. They only have 8MB of RAM using an old ATI chipset. Otherwise, if you have a Radeon or Nvidia chip, it works fine.

 

[lorkp]

Is it possible, with the hack, to make the iBook think it's running in clamshell mode whilst keeping the iBook open, and thus using all 32MB of VRAM for the external display?

 

[dsharits]

Is it possible, with the hack, to make the iBook think it's running in clamshell mode whilst keeping the iBook open, and thus using all 32MB of VRAM for the external display?

You can fool it into thinking that the lid is closed by placing a fairly strong magnet near the top of the left (I think it's left, it may be right) side of the screen bezel. It will close the reed switch that closes when you shut the lid.

EDIT: I just checked. The reed switch is a little less than an inch below the microphone on the right side

 

[FocusAndEarnIt]

I just ordered an iBook, so it will be able to power a 19" GEM monitor running at 1280x1024

 

[lorkp]

So... Can someone confirm that with the hack and a magnet, I can give a Dell 2005FPW all of iBook's VRAM (no spliting?)???