Found a new display issue w/GameExtender

[Krakerman]

Ok I think I found a new issue with GameExtender and have put in a feature request for Multi Monitor support.

I found that if you have more than 2 monitors (I have 3) and display 2 is your main display and display 1 and 3 are extended desktop that GameExtender will not run or display anything on the secondary display. The secondary display in my case would be the main display since it's identity is 2. Now I put in a request to hopefully be able to choose which display GameExtender will display on for each emulator.

So say Atari 2600 have GameExtender display on Monitor 3 and Visual Pinball to display on monitor 1 for instance.

Unless this can't be done with GameExtender. I just seem to like GameExtender the best since it is just so easy to use.

[Krakerman]

Yes I was correct as I just used Catalyst Control Center to swap displays and then GameExtender displays correctly so I think if it is possible we need to be able to select which monitor/display GameExtender will show on. That way each emulator you can choose where gameextender displays your graphics on. Reason being is both my monitors are different sizes and monitor 2 is in portrait mode and I want to choose where I can display my images on.

[Draco1962]

I am sure it will be considered as an enhancement request. GamExtender was initially to be used for a secondary display. My guess is that would need a rewrite to accommodate more than two monitors.

[Krakerman]

Also when I did swap monitors and I ran Future Pinball and setup my backbox display to the correct monitor it displayed on part of 2 monitors and I can't seemed to fix that, but when I reversed it back the way it was then it displays correctly. SO just for the curious my monitors that I have on my system are:

Display 1: Dell E176FP 1280x1024 (Perfect for my Pinball Backglasses so here is where I want GameExtender to display Visual Pinall on.)

Display 2: Vizio HDTV 1920x1080 Primary Display

Display 3: Samsung SyncMaster 1050x1680 Portait Mode (This is where I want GameExtender to display most of my other emulators on for the most part)

[Krakerman]

@Draco I sure hope Tom does as this would be so so nice to have.

[Krakerman]

Well we could truly then say GameEx has multi-monitor support!

[Adultery]

I think the issue is that GameExtender is a client/server exe. Like he'd need another server to execute that request.

Not sure if I'm right on that TBH, but it made sense in my head.

[Draco1962]

I think to achieve what you are seeking would go outside the intent of GameExtender, which is also setup to send data to view/control via a smartphone, etc. As Adultery noted, this is a client/server application. When dealing with sending data to 127.0.0.1 (home loop back) there is only one address. I believe that a totally separate display module would have to be developed to utilize multiple monitor selections that exceed 2. Not that it is impossible, but likely improbable from a GameExtender perspective.

[Krakerman]

Then what would be a better alternative that is out there to achieve what I'm trying to do? That is one reason why I suggested it because I'm not aware of any other frontend that can do this plus it would just be pretty damn useful and effective.

[nullPointer]

I would say that Adultery's Game Info Plugin is a pretty excellent alternative to GameExtender (unless you actually are relying on the network interface offed by GameExtender). That plugin gets better and better all the time! You'd have to ask him if it accomplishes specifically what you're trying to achieve, but it's definitely worth a shot IMO!

[Draco1962]

Well, if dependent upon the home-loop back to display on a second monitor, well, you are limited to the one address (this is an internet protocol issue and there is only one IP address for such). Again, a feature request and something that would require a major rewrite of the display engine or expansion of the plug-in system. Will have to see what Tom or Headkaze have to say.

[Adultery]

My plugin is made specifically for monitor 2, to integrate with GaneExtender. It's really more of an enhancement to what's already there. It's pretty much gonna be the same.

Thanks for the props though.

[Tom Speirs]

My plugin is made specifically for monitor 2, to integrate with GaneExtender. It's really more of an enhancement to what's already there. It's pretty much gonna be the same.

Thanks for the props though.

Ill admit I have not looked at yet but i thought it was a replacement. How does it integrate with GameExte4nder?

[Adultery]

Well it lays about a 200 (well 185 actually) pixel banner over the bottom of the 2nd screen. You can still see what GameExtender is showing under it (and through it). The only thing that it does *instead of* (or completely over top of) GameExtender is the screen saver for attract mode, otherwise all the underlying images are yours in my snapshots (by yours I mean "put there" by GameExtender)... Like I set GameExtender to show my SNES controller image and the banner then overlays that window.

Did that make sense? Sometimes I stink at descriptions. It's really nothing like iMagic at all (which I assume you're thinking of), but I used ideas from that and refined them into this to "enhance" what's already being done by you.

[Tom Speirs]

Thanks, sounds cool. Is it ready for primetime, should I include it in the next release?

[Krakerman]

Hmmm so Tom being that you have read the above do you have any ideas on adding a 3rd monitor support for GameExtender?

[nullPointer]

It's really nothing like iMagic at all (which I assume you're thinking of), but I used ideas from that and refined them into this to "enhance" what's already being done by you.

iMagic! Dangit! That's what I was attempting to suggest in my post above. The Game Info Plugin is also very cool, but iMagic is what I was attempting to recall. That Adultery, give him a chance and he's going to develop half a dozen awesome plug-ins before you finish even looking at the first one!

[Adultery]

iMagic is a mess, I admit it. It was a good try but it was all over the place. I know soooo much better now, if I ever picked it up again it would need a complete re-write. I really like GameExtender though, and if I were to try "recreating the wheel" again it wouldn't be ready for a couple months at least.

In a second Tom, I added settings to disable the jukebox and the screensaver and a super simple GUI. Let me build it and upload it.

Sorry to hijack Krakerman...

Hmmm so Tom being that you have read the above do you have any ideas on adding a 3rd monitor support for GameExtender?

[Krakerman]

Yeah it seem'd like my thread was being taken over, but thats ok hopefully someone will come up will a solution eventually. I was gonna ask you about iMagic but I haven't seen any new info on it so I figured you stopped work on it.

I have been looking at other programs for viewing images with multi-monitor support kinda like irfanview and maybe one of those might have command line options for viewing images on different monitors. Maybe that might be an alternative way unless you can do that with irfanview 'm not sure as I haven't really messed with it's command line options. I also heard of Image Magick maybe that can do it.

[Tom Speirs]

Apologies for taking over the thread. I so no reason that outputting to a third monitor for GameExtender viewer isnt a valid feature request.

[Adultery]

It means I'll need to figure out a better way to decide which display to use than I currently use for my plugin... No reason I can't add a user setting for it though.

[Krakerman]

Since it looks like Tom isn't going to update GameExtender anytime soon to add support for more than 2 monitors I managed to fix my issue and got it to display on monitor 1 or monitor 3. Took me awhile but I was not going to throw in the towel until I found a way to do it. So now I have GameExtender displaying on more than 2 monitors YES!!!!!!!

[Adultery]

Running a mirroring script?

[Draco1962]

Awesome, now I ask in the name of all that is Holy and for the benefit of the other users that may be interested - how did you make it work?

[Krakerman]

No scripting .... With the help of the Catalyst Control Panel I swapped Display 1 and 3 and then disabled Display On Secondary in the setup wizard for GameExtender Settings.

Since my main HDTV display was Display 2 in the Catalyst Control Panel if I left the Display On Secondary enabled it would basically be running GameExtender behind GameEx so you couldn't see it so I had to disable that then it would run GameExtender on display 1 however I wanted it to run on display 3 so I had to swap display 1 and 3 so it would show up on that monitor. If I don't swap the 1 and 3 then GameExtender runs on my smaller monitor.