MACBOOK Internal & External Display only show desktop image w/Internal screen broken

Supp Mac Forums!

im in need of your advice & suggestions.


(**im tryin to be as specific as possible in explaining my issue so PLEASE bare with me)
Im currently working with a Macbook that has a broken screen, to "fix" the issue n bee able to still use my MB, i bought a VGA adapter and hooked it to a DVI to HDMI adapter to my HDTV. It has worked perfectly for 2+ years now, it never gave me a problem till this past Monday (4/16).

I had hooked up a external keyboard and mouse (logitech - PC format) to use instead of the uncomfortable notebook keyboard n mouse mat since i use the Mac to do Graphic design, with this keyboard i can press F9 and all my windows gather in my desktop and i can choose from there which one to use (idk what this shortcut is called), however, on monday i was typing with the MB keyboard when i accidentally pressed the F7 key by mistake thinking it was the F9 key on my Logitech Keyboard and my external display screen turned blue. In the past i had accidentally pressed F7 and the displays would change, i would press it back and the display will returned back to normal, however, not this time. I restarted the MB, check the connections, yet the screen kept turning blue everytime i restarted or shutdown the computer. i unplug the HDMI connection from the MB and turned the notebook on, once it was turned on i could ONLY see the background image, i plugged in the HDMI connection and to my suprise the screen on the MB turned black and the external display turned blue. KEEP IN MIND that the screen on my MB doesnt work because the LCD lights wont turn on but i can still see my desktop if i bend the screen at an angle in which "Light" hits it. I decided to fix the issue directly from my MB using the system preferences > display > mirror effect as i had done so when i originally connected the MB to my HDTV but as im bending the monitor screen on the MB in order to see the desktop, i notice that the internal screen only shows the desktop background, no icons, no right click, no folders, files\, etc.. therefore, i could not open the System Preferences Window nor do anyteen to fix it.

i searched the forum and found similar cases, however, others could actually open their System Preferences and fix the problem from there, i cant. i tried also the commands: Cmmd+Brightness, Cmmd+Shift+ F1, etc and nothing has worked

BUT WAT KEPT POPPIN UP was a window that read "The application Spotlight quit unexpectedly"> Mac OS X and other applciations are not affected and it gives me 3 options: Ignore, Report, Relaunch. when i move the cursor over to the window, as soon as it enters the window (with out pressing or choosing any option) the cursor turns into the "Rainbow" Cursor and stays like that for a while. i have choosen all 3 options in different cases and the window keeps on poppin up, im wondering if this had anyteen to do with the display!? .. what i dont understand is if both displays only show the Background Image and nothing else, why does this window keep on poppin up?

Any feedback or input will be greatly appreciated!!

-L23

UPDATE: I turned on my MB with the adapter plugged in and close the MB as soon as it started up. Now i can see my Desktop Background instead of the blue screen on my External display and after waiting for a while, the Dock appeared but not the files that are on my desktop. i got to open the System Preferences>Display however i dont see the "Gather Windows" Tap and when i press the "Detect Displays" the second window which is supposed to pop doesnt, only the cursor turns rainbow.

ANY SUGGESTIONS???

I have a MacBook that has its screen cracked, i use my HDTV as my external display via an DVI to HDMI Adapter and by mirroring both displays - Internal and external. i have used it this way for years, accidentally i pressed the F7 key and now my displays are messed up, both screeens only show the desktop background. i did some researched and it was suggested to turn off the MB>plug in the adapter>turn the MB back on>close it as soon as you hear the start up sound in order for the MB to detect the external display and use it as the main display. i did so and now the Dock has appeared but not the Finder toolbar at the top which is weird. also, my original desktop had files and folders, however, they are not present. I also notice that now i get a pop up window reading "The application Spotlight has quit unexpectedly" which never poped up in the past, i beleive this pop up has something to do with the fact that my MB is super slow and when i try to open anything, the cursor turns into the Rainbow cursor and nothing happens.

How can I fix it???
your feedback/input will be greatly appreciated!!

The only suggestion I can give you (other than to buy a new machine) is operate your MacBook in full clamshell mode. That should automatically send a mirrored display to the external monitor if you do it right. See this Apple LINK.

Please do not cross post. Only post to one forum and continue with the same thread until it's finished. I've combined your posts together here.

Thanks.