General Computer Thread

[Ar-Pharazon]

Think I've found part of an answer.

Seems that you can't use the DVI and DP ports at the same time and what you would need (assuming it's compatible is the e port+
https://www.dell.com/community/Latitude/E5570-Docking-station-PRO3X/td-p/7530927

The new monitors don't even have DVI capability (for some reason they do have VGA), but I'm only trying to use the DP port from the dock with the splitter and/or daisy-chaining. That's where most discussions talk about the MST capability.

It's funny, I have that very page bookmarked, as it seemed to have some of the better answers. I was thinking the e-port + or +II might be the answer, but was hoping for something clearer (esp release dates so I can make sure I find something newer than what I have). When I search ebay for e-port +II, I see a lot of PR02X's, which would seem to be a step backwards from a PR03X.

Dell makes everything very confusing.

ETA: I think I'm getting a handle on this. I think the PR02X is the wider T shaped dock (with 2 sets of DVI & DP ports) where the PR03X is the narrower model (with 1 set of DVI & DP ports). Both are compatible with my Latitude E6540.

E-port + and +II seems to be available on both of those models, the most noticeable difference being the blue USB 3.0 ports on the back.

I guess the question is, do I need the double video ports to do what I need, or is the later e-port +II enough? The PR02X isn't so big as to be an issue.

Finally a decent comparison, though it doesn't mention the "plus", though I'd hope that is above the II

 

[Marc]

The new monitors don't even have DVI capability (for some reason they do have VGA), but I'm only trying to use the DP port from the dock with the splitter and/or daisy-chaining. That's where most discussions talk about the MST capability.

It's funny, I have that very page bookmarked, as it seemed to have some of the better answers. I was thinking the e-port + or +II might be the answer, but was hoping for something clearer (esp release dates so I can make sure I find something newer than what I have). When I search ebay for e-port +II, I see a lot of PR02X's, which would seem to be a step backwards from a PR03X.

Dell makes everything very confusing.

Oh Dell aren't alone in that sort of thing trust me.

the VGA port is a legacy thing with a lot of devices out there that still make use of it because it's the simplest and easy (unlike DP and HDMI were have different hardware versions, colour standards etc that can get in the way.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

CES 2022 will introduce HDMI 2.1a, another confusing new spec

HDMI 2.1a Certification Announced Including New Source-Based Tone Mapping (SBTM) Feature

HDMI is making a mess of their standard with HDMI 2.1a by not requiring any of the new features to be standard.

 

[XCV330]

Oh Dell aren't alone in that sort of thing trust me.

the VGA port is a legacy thing with a lot of devices out there that still make use of it because it's the simplest and easy (unlike DP and HDMI were have different hardware versions, colour standards etc that can get in the way.

it's the tiniest sliver of the marketplace, but for people who are into retrocomputing, and an even tinier subset, people using the new retro comptuers like the Colour Maximite, Mega 65, Foenix, etc, it's nice to have that VGA port and know it will continue to be around awhile. DVI to VGA adaptors work for those who have those rare computers that only have DVI output, but the reverse isn't really an option in those cases.

It is interesting that the DVI era got bookended by the VGA port. It's been around a long time. As discreet component supplies dry up and these kind of projects all end up as virtualized computers-on-a-chip that will be the final end of VGA, but for now it still works. You can also get it on the ESP-32 in some versions, and that's very handy for those little devices. I have one currently emulating Vic-20.

 

[Santaman]

I really like DVI and VGA, I have machines that get moved around and connected/disconnected quite a few times during a year and some of those machines are 5-8 years old and the VGA and DVI ports on them don't show any signs of wear, not to mention the connector of the monitor cable, the screen and cable are from 2009 so it has been hooked up and disconnected a large amount of times, not sure if HDMI or Display Port are that durable..

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

Is DVI better then VGA?
Both have been around for what feels like forever. Even my new HP monitor has a VGA port on the back next to a HDMI port so someone must be using it to have it on things made in 2021

 

[Marc]

Is DVI better then VGA?
Both have been around for what feels like forever. Even my new HP monitor has a VGA port on the back next to a HDMI port so someone must be using it to have it on things made in 2021

Google for the win.

 

[XCV330]

I really like DVI and VGA, I have machines that get moved around and connected/disconnected quite a few times during a year and some of those machines are 5-8 years old and the VGA and DVI ports on them don't show any signs of wear, not to mention the connector of the monitor cable, the screen and cable are from 2009 so it has been hooked up and disconnected a large amount of times, not sure if HDMI or Display Port are that durable..

I've seen Display Port be used quite a bit, laptops that get moved around without the aid of docking stations. Not so much with HDMI. But I still feel the DP/HDMI thing is another format war where the winner is pretty obvious. I've noticed some of the newer Hewlett Packard docking stations are finally caving in and adding HDMI ports. This is not the end, but the end of the beginning.

 

[Marc]

I've seen Display Port be used quite a bit, laptops that get moved around without the aid of docking stations. Not so much with HDMI. But I still feel the DP/HDMI thing is another format war where the winner is pretty obvious. I've noticed some of the newer Hewlett Packard docking stations are finally caving in and adding HDMI ports. This is not the end, but the end of the beginning.

think DP has the advantage iirc (haven’t used it that much) in you can run it over usb-c/thunderbolt giving greater flexibility. Can even convert it to HDMI.

because of where my computer sits I have a couple of extended cables (something not easily done with dvi). My monitors (Samsung curved 27”) don’t have DP so I have a DP to HDMI adapter).

plus the the native connector is available in a mini format which is great for laptops and devices such as Microsoft Surface.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

I've seen Display Port be used quite a bit, laptops that get moved around without the aid of docking stations. Not so much with HDMI. But I still feel the DP/HDMI thing is another format war where the winner is pretty obvious. I've noticed some of the newer Hewlett Packard docking stations are finally caving in and adding HDMI ports. This is not the end, but the end of the beginning.

More like it's going to co-exist.

HDMI will be for home electronics like TV's / Camera's, etc.

PC hardware and Monitors will use DisplayPort primarily and HDMI will be a secondary connector.

 

[Marc]

More like it's going to co-exist.

HDMI will be for home electronics like TV's / Camera's, etc.

PC hardware and Monitors will use DisplayPort primarily and HDMI will be a secondary connector.

something that HDMI can do that might not be possible for DP is extended by UTP Ethernet cable for much longer runs that you pay a pretty penny for the adapters.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

something that HDMI can do that might not be possible for DP is extended by UTP Ethernet cable for much longer runs that you pay a pretty penny for the adapters.

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Linus tested HDMI Cables, the TL;DR is that if you're going past 10' or 3 meters, over 50% of HDMI cables on the market fail to meet the proper specs for the HDMI cable.

At that point, you might as well go with a Fiber-Optic HDMI cable with Active Transceivers on either end.

If you're at 10' or 3 meters or under, coppper is fine. Failure rates by random vendors is low enough that it isn't a exercise in frustration.

Trying to extend the signal via UTP Ethernet over CAT-5/6 isn't worth the trouble IMO.

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

Also don't you lose signals / get interference the longer the cable gets?

 

[Owain Taggart]

Is DVI better then VGA?
Both have been around for what feels like forever. Even my new HP monitor has a VGA port on the back next to a HDMI port so someone must be using it to have it on things made in 2021

DVI is like HDMI, except that it doesn't carry audio, and it's mostly seen in monitors vs TVs. I think VGA can only go up to a certain resolution, and the benefit of DVI is that a monitor's resolution gets automatically detected, and you get all the benefits of HDMI. My last two monitors have had either VGA and DVI or DVI and HDMI. For several years, I'd had to use a VGA to DVI adapter because at the time, I didn't have a video card that could either do DVI or HDMI directly, and now I just use HDMI.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

Also don't you lose signals / get interference the longer the cable gets?

It gets harder to maintain signal integrity the faster you send your data signals.

Length of copper wire doesn't help because it gets worse the longer your run of copper wire.

That's why ODN (Optical Data Network) is just a different label for modern day Fiber-Optic Glass wires used in advanced networking today.

ST:TNG was just that far ahead of the curve when they were planning the Tech Lore of Star Trek and how it would work in the late 80's & early 90's. The writers clearly were paying attention to how tech was progressing and could see it's eventual common usages.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Need the smallest bit of help from some one please.

Can one of you look at your task bar, next to the time, click on the arrow, and tell me if you see an icon for a "Realtek HD Audio Manager"?

I'm going spare trying to install it on windows 7, for a bluetooth dongle.

Please and thank you.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

Need the smallest bit of help from some one please.

Can one of you look at your task bar, next to the time, click on the arrow, and tell me if you see an icon for a "Realtek HD Audio Manager"?

I'm going spare trying to install it on windows 7, for a bluetooth dongle.

Please and thank you.

I see Realtek Audio Service & Realtek HD Audio Manager in my Task Manager list (running Win7 x64) but only Dell Audio in the Notifications Area. Not sure I've ever seen the Realtek option down there.
_________________________________________________

Oh Dell aren't alone in that sort of thing trust me.

the VGA port is a legacy thing with a lot of devices out there that still make use of it because it's the simplest and easy (unlike DP and HDMI were have different hardware versions, colour standards etc that can get in the way.

Update: I ordered and received a newer generation dock (Dell e-port plus II). The StarTech splitter works now for the 2 new monitors (after a LOT of fooling around), but not the 3rd, older monitor. Apparently the DP>HDMI cable wasn't designed work from HDMI to DP.

This is OK since the new dock has 2 DP ports and I can run the older monitor off the second DP port. One limitation of the splitter is it won't do the 120hz monitor settings due to bandwidth. That's OK since I'm not using the laptop for gaming, but something to remember to check out when buying a splitter like this.

Also, I learned that you apparently can't daisy-chain using HDMI ports, only DP ports. Which is idiotic since they're only putting ONE DP port on most monitors now and you'd need 1 in and 1 out for that to work.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Thank you.

A friend, who finally got back to me on facebook, who is running windows 10, says that he does not have the realtek audio manager.

So 20 hours later, it seems like they want me to download game controler drivers, and not audio drivers.

Pffth.

Ohh.

It's working.

The internet stopped working, but my blue tooth dongle is working.

That's weird.

I unplugged the dongle, and the headphones are still working.

Shiit.

God hates me.

Now I still have to go back to the store and get my 30 dollars back.

All these pretty clerks behind the counter figuring out that I am a moron.

I hate that.

I prefer it when clerks, their eyes would glaze over with lust.

 

[Marc]

Also, I learned that you apparently can't daisy-chain using HDMI ports, only DP ports. Which is idiotic since they're only putting ONE DP port on most monitors now and you'd need 1 in and 1 out for that to work.

didn't know you could daisy chain display natively but see it's in there as part of the standard just nobody seems to having implemented it.

From a bit of reading, it seems that Apple at least didn't bother implementing DP MST because they could do the same thing with Thunderbolt.

Never read that much about Thunderbolt in the PC space (Apple seems to have taken it to heart but not Microsoft) so I don't if Windows supports the same features plus the connections tend to be a high end feature.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

didn't know you could daisy chain display natively but see it's in there as part of the standard just nobody seems to having implemented it.

From a bit of reading, it seems that Apple at least didn't bother implementing DP MST because they could do the same thing with Thunderbolt.

Never read that much about Thunderbolt in the PC space (Apple seems to have taken it to heart but not Microsoft) so I don't if Windows supports the same features plus the connections tend to be a high end feature.

A lot of sources go right into explaining about USB-C for daisy-chaining, since that's the current tech, for docks especially, when it comes to Windows at least.

Also, I found further info on the HDMI to DP issue. DP uses a "clock" to sync video where HDMI does not. So DP>HDMI is no issue, but HDMI>DP is a problem since the HDMI port apparently does not put out anything the DP recognizes as a "clock". Oh well, that one isn't a problem for me, but interesting to know.