Dynex mini-DVI to s-video works but locks up my macbook

[Tazy]

Hi all,

I picked up a DYNEX mini-DVI to video adaptor for my Macbook (white). I hooked it up to my SONY CRT TV (27 inch Wega) using an S-Video cable. Though I had some minor sync problems, I managed to get a stable picture by trying out various interlaced resolutions and I think I settled on 700x??? resolution.
Then I set it up as NOT mirrored and moved my firefox window (after reducing its size) to the TV screen.

Problem: I am able to view streaming video in firefox in the TV screen. I am also able to go full-screen. It actually looks great!

BUT, I noticed that my macbook locked up after few minutes of use. It should be noted that video continued to play and I was also getting sound. But the keys and touchpad stopped responding! When I hit the power button, the window to shutdown the system comes up but does not respond to the return key. I am also not able to switch between applications using Command+TAB. I am able to shutdown the system by holding down the power button for about 4 seconds.

Did anyone else experience this problem? Any thoughts/suggestions?

 

[AeroStud1026]

Hi all,

I picked up a DYNEX mini-DVI to video adaptor for my Macbook (white). I hooked it up to my SONY CRT TV (27 inch Wega) using an S-Video cable. Though I had some minor sync problems, I managed to get a stable picture by trying out various interlaced resolutions and I think I settled on 700x??? resolution.
Then I set it up as NOT mirrored and moved my firefox window (after reducing its size) to the TV screen.

Problem: I am able to view streaming video in firefox in the TV screen. I am also able to go full-screen. It actually looks great!

BUT, I noticed that my macbook locked up after few minutes of use. It should be noted that video continued to play and I was also getting sound. But the keys and touchpad stopped responding! When I hit the power button, the window to shutdown the system comes up but does not respond to the return key. I am also not able to switch between applications using Command+TAB. I am able to shutdown the system by holding down the power button for about 4 seconds.

Did anyone else experience this problem? Any thoughts/suggestions?

What resolution are you running at in the non mirrored mode? Also are both resolutions the same on the TV and mac? As it does give you 2 different reso settings for both displays but ive only found them to work good if they both are set relatively the same or pretty close, If the reso's are set too far apart that might be the cause...not completely sure though

 

[Tazy]

What resolution are you running at in the non mirrored mode? Also are both resolutions the same on the TV and mac? As it does give you 2 different reso settings for both displays but ive only found them to work good if they both are set relatively the same or pretty close, If the reso's are set too far apart that might be the cause...not completely sure though

That's interesting! I was at the native resolution in my MB (1200x800) and probably 640x480 in my TV. From what I understand from your pointer, I guess my safest bet is to run in mirrored mode (and hence with identical resolution on both the screens). I'll give this a try tonight and post back.
Thanks for the pointer.

 

[Tazy]

Update

I tried Aerostud1026's suggestion and attempted to run my laptop screen and the tv at the same resolution (I think this was 680x480 interlaced) and I ended up with the same lockup situation about 2 minutes into viewing a streaming video content

Could this be an issue with the DYNEX brand of mini-DVI to video adapter?