Newbie Question, Please be nice

I am currently a PC user, and considering purchasing the minimac this month.
I am looking at the deal from cancomuk which includes keyboard,mouse and a 17inch tft for £500.

I would like to know how easy it is for me to run both my pc and the minimac of a switching unit. Can anyone recommend one and better still am i on the right lines......

I have seen ones which control monitor mouse and keyboard from the same unit.... Surely is it that simple....????

Cheers

dandy said:

I have seen ones which control monitor mouse and keyboard from the same unit.... Surely is it that simple....????

Click to expand...

Checkout Belkin.com for a KVM Switch, if you are using an a 17in Apple LCD, you are going to need one that switches DVI and USB, the model that does this is currently out of stock from Belkin though, check ebay. They aren't cheap.

We accept newbies with open arms! :dummy:

cheers

just checked ebuyer, they got one for 60 quid,,,... plenty in stock thanks for the advice.

mynameis said:

Checkout Belkin.com for a KVM Switch, if you are using an a 17in Apple LCD, you are going to need one that switches DVI and USB, the model that does this is currently out of stock from Belkin though, check ebay. They aren't cheap.

Click to expand...

when you say dvi, do you mean PS/2

dandy said:

when you say dvi, do you mean PS/2

Click to expand...

Nope. DVI is a video connector, for your screen. PS/2 is PC Mouse/Keyboard connector, which is nonexistant in the Mac world.

What mynameis meant is that you would need a KVM that has DVI for the display and USB for mouse/keyboard.
Allthough it's still not entirely correct...the discontinued 17" Apple display has an ADC-connector, which was a proprietary connector (it carried video, USB and power over one connector and cable) Apple used with it's old Display series, and which the mini doesn't have anyway. There are KVM switches for that too, but they are pretty rare and even more expensive than DVI/USB-KVM-switches.

ADC is a digital connector like DVI. If he has the adapter that allows him to plug an ADC monitor into the DVI port on the mac mini, then all he would need is a DVI KVM. Using a VGA KVM is just impratical because you would have to buy a converter that turns the ADC Apple monitor to have VGA inputs, which is very expensive. A similar device that does DVI to VGA costs around $300(http://www.drbott.com/prod/db.lasso?code=0151-VGAT).

I really do hate the way Apple does monitors.

Meyvn said:

I really do hate the way Apple does monitors.

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I'm just glad they realised ADC was stupid and switched to DVI

Dandy: Do you have an Apple 17" LCD?

Or is it just any 17" LCD?

I didn't see you mention an apple LCD in your original post, but the discussion that followed (about ADC etc) would be irrelevant if you got a different LCD that doesn't use a ADC port.

So to clarify:
----------------
You would need a KVM that supports USB (for the keyboard and mouse) and whatever kind of display you have / are getting.

If you get an older apple display, you'll need a KVM that supports ADC.

If you get a newer LCD (apple or otherwise) you'll probably need one that supports DVI or possibly VGA connections.

Aptmunich said:

Dandy: Do you have an Apple 17" LCD?

Or is it just any 17" LCD?

I didn't see you mention an apple LCD in your original post, but the discussion that followed (about ADC etc) would be irrelevant if you got a different LCD that doesn't use a ADC port.

So to clarify:
----------------
You would need a KVM that supports USB (for the keyboard and mouse) and whatever kind of display you have / are getting.

If you get an older apple display, you'll need a KVM that supports ADC.

If you get a newer LCD (apple or otherwise) you'll probably need one that supports DVI or possibly VGA connections.

Click to expand...

Munich, The only website i can find doing a deal with monitor is over at www.cancomuk.com, I can not tell from this weather it is an apple screen or not, maybee you would be kind enough to look for me and then advise me what KVM i would require.

sorry to be more precise on the link http://www.cancomuk.com/products/se...il=Apple Mac mini 1.25GHz Bundle&fromlist=yes

Cheers guys

noit is not

That monitor has a VGA connector, you won't need a DVI switch just a VGA one will work. Sorry about recommending a DVI switch, I thought you were talking about a different package, one that came with an Apple display. You'll still want a KVM that supports USB.

The best way to go is Hide your PC in a closet, connect it to your network and when you need to use it just use RDC (a PC user should know what this is - Remote Desktop Connection). The client is free at mactopia.com and it connects to Windows XP great from your mac. No reason to spend money on a switch, just access your pc from your mac mini. And hide it in the closet so no one knows your dirty secret of being a pc user.

JC

Yeah, as mynameis said:

A basic KVM with VGA connector and USB ports will do the trick!

Aptmunich said:

Yeah, as mynameis said:

A basic KVM with VGA connector and USB ports will do the trick!

Click to expand...

cheers for all the help guys, cant wait to join the mac world