can I close my macbook if I hook it up to a 24'' cinema display?

[Aven SkyGazer]

I want to buy the 24'' cinema display, as well as a mouse and keyboard. After plugging all of this up to my 13'' uni-alum MB, may I close it and neatly tuck it away? or does it have to remain open to function?

Thanks

 

[gilkisson]

Yes, you can do that. I do it occasionally with my 15 MBP. However, I notice (or think I notice) slightly higher temperatures when I do that. So, I tend to leave it open.

But yes, running in "clamshell mode" works just fine.

 

[Aven SkyGazer]

Yes, you can do that. I do it occasionally with my 15 MBP. However, I notice (or think I notice) slightly higher temperatures when I do that. So, I tend to leave it open.

But yes, running in "clamshell mode" works just fine.

AWESOME. Great to know. Thank you.

Just as a follow on... May I have both running and utilized the spaces feature with the cinema display plugged in? Like, be browsing in the first space and having a dvd running in the second space all while viewing both?

 

[J.B.M]

Only if you have the magsafe connected. Otherwise you need to have the lid open.

 

[gilkisson]

AWESOME. Great to know. Thank you.

Just as a follow on... May I have both running and utilized the spaces feature with the cinema display plugged in? Like, be browsing in the first space and having a dvd running in the second space all while viewing both?

Yep -- if you leave it open, of course.

When you use Spaces with 2 screens, you get effectively 8 screens - 4 pairs of two, each with a Big (external) and a Little (LCD) screen. When you Space-out, you see all eight.

If you run Clamshell mode, of course, you see only the external screen.

 

[Aven SkyGazer]

Yep -- if you leave it open, of course.

When you use Spaces with 2 screens, you get effectively 8 screens - 4 pairs of two, each with a Big (external) and a Little (LCD) screen. When you Space-out, you see all eight.

If you run Clamshell mode, of course, you see only the external screen.

that's good to know.

so with spaces, I can move my dock over to a secondary space and use the cinema display as my primary monitor. may I then clamshell my MB and continue to use the keyboard/mouse with my 24'' as the primary?

 

[J the Ninja]

that's good to know.

so with spaces, I can move my dock over to a secondary space and use the cinema display as my primary monitor. may I then clamshell my MB and continue to use the keyboard/mouse with my 24'' as the primary?

You will select 1 display as the "main display", via an "Arrangements" tab in the display preferences that shows up when you have more than 1 screen attached to your Mac. The menu bar appears only on this screen, as does the Dock if you position it on the bottom. If you have it on the side, it will go all the way to side of the full extended desktop, regardless of which monitor that is.

A few other bits about clamshell mode it seems you're missing:

-The internal display is considered to be "Not attached" in clamshell. It's just as though you physically disconnected it, leaving only the external. All the dual-display junk discussed in this thread only applies when you have the external connected AND the lid open.

-You don't get into clamshell by closing the lid with the charger and an external display plugged in. I'm pretty sure that still makes the machine fall asleep. You do it by either waking it up by attaching the external with the lid closed, (this will wake it up, and it will enter clamshell mode on wake) or somehow wake it up while closed and with the external already connected, such as wiggling a USB mouse.

-The spaces thing might be a little more clear with an example of the bird's eye view:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v346/Omega_Pirate2/Picture1-2.png

You don't get multiple spaces on screen at once. Instead, each space is a composite of all the attached monitors.