Catalyst expert needed

XP Pro, SP3, current updates, Comodo firewall, A^2 AV, Lenovo T60p Dual CPU - 2.1 ghz, 15.6" screen, 3 Gb computer memory, 3 cent operator memory

Ever since I got Catalyst graphics manager in an upgrade I have been having problems connecting to my flat panel TV.

Previously I set it up and forgot it. With Catalyst, every time I take the laptop somewhere (without the TV of course) Catalyst shuts down the connection, switching from Clone to None, so I have to set it up all over again.

Can anyone tell me how to make this thing stick? Without Catalyst, it ALWAYS stuck. It was set-it-and-forget-it.

Also, can someone tell me why the re-setup usually gets me an "Out of range" error in the flat panel, saying I need to adjust the PC's resolution output. I don't even know where I'd find anything called "PC resolution output." The actual resolution in Catalyst is 1280X768, matching my laptop's resolution, while the flat panel is capable of up to 1940X1080 at 85 hz, so there should be no resolution limit.

Of course the simple fact that it eventually quits complaining and works fine is proof that there is no resolution problem. And if Catalyst would stop disconnecting the output it would be no problem.

I'm bamboozled.

 

To start things off I would be posting similar things over in the AMD Forums to get the suffient help required for these questions. Also I have never any experience with AMD Catalyst but I'm fully able to assist you with your issue.

Now if I was you I wouldn't recommend using the Clone Mode when connecting to a flatpannle/HDTV, One basic reason is for your HDTV is limited to the resolution of your laptop screen where's if you was to have the TV as your Primary/Native or Extended display you are caplable of achieving higher resolutions.

Now as you stated your HDTV/flat panel is displaying a common error message 'Out Of Range', now I have been faced with this many times throughout my life but there is no specific fix for this but a number of methods to try:

1) Inccorect screen refreshrate
2) Unsupported resolution format\Ratio e.g. 4:3

If I was you I would just try switching the HDTV as primary display and then you will have the correct range of display modes which is unlikly that AMD Catalyst is listing.

If problems percist I would recommend just using the basic Windows Display options.

And with the Windows Display options you can make the display switch/'stick' so you don't have to wast 5 seconds of your life switching the display manually.

 

First-last. It isn't 5 seconds. Wading through enough of Catalyst over and over until it finally sticks is a 5 or 10 minute job.

Second, as I said in the OP, the problem comes up when I move the laptop. Setting up the flat panel TV as primary would _guarantee_ that I'd have to change it every time I moved the laptop - exactly the opposite of what I need.

Third, both the resolution and the refresh rate are not only correct but supported. How can you even imagine I have that wrong when I've already said it eventually starts working (at the same rates)?

Also, IF Catalyst didn't have the necessary rates when the laptop is the primary it wouldn't work, which it always eventually does.

Fourth, the flat panel must be on clone as the alternative (Extended) gives me no desktop controls. The active desktop is the whole purpose of even using the TV - giving me readable type instead of micro type. (Setting up alternative type sizes invariably screws up other stuff.)

Fifth,I would have no idea how to find and use the original Windows Display options. Of course I'm considering uninstalling Catalyst, which would probably put the original system in place automatically.

But this is all so stupid. There MUST be a way to configure Catalyst so it doesn't trash your settings every time you pull a cable. If not, the developer is remiss.

 

The Windows Display Properties are listed under Controll Panel.
WinXP --> ConPanel --> Apperence and Themes --> Display
Or just Right-Click the desktop and click Properties then press the tab that says Settings.

WinVist/Win7 ---> ConPanel or Right-Click Desktop then press Personlies then at the bottom press Display Settings.

Alright now if I was you the best help you are going to get from is do as exacally do as I say, I can't really aid you with your problem because I have no experience with AMD Catalyst but if listen it will all work out.

For starters I would stop using Catalyst for the display properties because I can't aid you as well and if you use the default Windows display properties you can achieve what you are after quicker. You don't have to fully get rid of catylst completly unless it's going to cause conflictions towards Windows display properties.

You stated you had no desktop control when using the TV but that's because when on extended you didn't select the HDTV as your primary desktop and your laptop screen as the extended screen. with WinDisProp this can all be achieved.

Also Catylst is displaying the resoultion and refresh rates of the laptop's screen not the HDTV

 

I dumped Catalyst a few hours ago.

I now have exactly what I want. Primary on the laptop where it will always be whether at home or abroad, no awkward swapping, and a clone on the TV that will appear magically and in large form when I turn it on, if I want it, for whatever reason. Catalyst should have allowed that without dumping the configuration every time I used the laptop AS freaking a laptop.

As for going to the AMD site for help, they go out of their way to avoid giving it.

 

Good call. The last few installs of Catalyst have been extremely weird on my laptop (though I run Win7, not XP), and I've ended up using Windows' own utilities for managing graphics settings. It's actually not even loading since the latest update. I'm hoping for a fix in the next version, but I wouldn't hold my breath waiting.

If you decide to try Catalyst again sometime in the future, give me a holler (if you click my name over there on the left you can send me a PM to get my attention). I've got Catalyst on my laptop, and used to play with it on a regular basis before it got all weird on me.

 

After a previous attempt at getting help with Catalyst here and now this one it looked like no one was really using it. I figured I'd make one last attempt and if no one could help I'd scratch one Catalyst.

Actually it was interesting. I have XP Pro set to automatically get updates, but when I uninstalled Catalyst the system downloaded an updated version of Win Graphics. I haven't spent much time on it though. It appears to have no way to set up a clone though, just like the previous version. I now use an F-key that someone here pointed out instead. I set the basic resolutions in the utility, then shut it down and make the clone using the F key. (Fn-F8?)

It seems to me like the last update of a first version is the best. After that the developers go crazy with needing to turn out hot/new rather than making the existing software bug free. I guess Catalyst has been around long enough to have grown way beyond its usefulness. My graphics just don't need a kitchen sink, a dog walker, a flying trapeze, a pizza orderer and a hog caller to make it work. LOL

And thanks for warning me about the Win7 version. I just got a new blazing laptop (Lenovo T520) with Win7 Pro, but I'll just bid AMD goodbye forever.