Member Avatar for dintymoore

A friend just gave me an Apple 17" LCD Studio Display. It doesn't have any controls on it, no buttons except power. It was bought with new with a Dual Core 1000MHz G4.

I don't have any software disks that may have come with it.

I use OSX 10.4.11 almost all the time, and I can set the resolution via the Displays System Preference panel - I get all the resolution display choices.

But I still use OS 9 for a few programs, and in OS 9.2.2 only the 1280 x 960 (maximum) resolution choice us available in the Monitors Control Pane or Control Strip. It's a bit small and I wish I could make it 1024 x 768.

Does anybody know if this is resolvable?

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Brief expert summary and practical steps

The symptom described by and — OS 9 showing a very limited list of modes (1280×960 in this case) while Mac OS X presents the full set — is usually caused by the Classic OS not loading a monitor-specific driver/utility for Apple’s Studio Displays. Apple supplied small OS 9-era “Apple Displays” drivers and a USB Display Service Utility for the flat‑panel Studio/Cinema/Studio‑Display family; when those pieces aren’t installed OS 9 will often fall back to a conservative, generic mode list. (savagetaylor.com)

What to do (step sequence)

  • Confirm the display model and connector (look for the model/part label on the back to see whether it’s an ADC vs DVI unit) — the 17" LCD Studio Display is documented with the Studio Display technical specs. Apple Studio Display 17" LCD tech specs. (support.apple.com)
  • Install the monitor software that came with the display (the Studio/Cinema Display CD). That installer (Apple Displays 1.5–1.7 era) installs OS 9 monitor drivers and the USB Display Service Utility so OS 9’s Monitors control panel will list the full, supported modes. If the original CD is missing, look for the old Apple Displays installer/read‑me references in Apple’s TIL/archive listings rather than using random unknown repos. (savagetaylor.com)

If the installer is not available

  • Update or reinstall the OS 9 video card drivers (available modes are the intersection of what the video driver and the monitor driver expose).
  • If driver installs fail, run the Studio Display USB Service Utility on a machine that can boot OS 9 (many people use a spare G4 or an emulated OS 9 instance) to force the monitor’s service/profile settings into the display. (bounav.wordpress.com)

Practical expectation
Installing the Apple Displays package (or running the USB Display Service Utility) is the most direct fix — it will typically restore the monitor‑specific mode list in OS 9 (including standard 1024×768 modes where supported). If the display is being treated as generic because the OS9 drivers are missing, there’s no reliable way to “add” correct modes from within OS 9 without those Apple-supplied drivers or a compatible video‑driver that exposes them. (support.apple.com)

Member Avatar for dintymoore

I'm still using the Apple display in 1280 x 960... does anybody know how to make other choices appear in the OS 9 monitors control panel?

thanx

Member Avatar for dintymoore

Has anybody else run into this?

Member Avatar for Stealthii

I'm in the same dilemma, except I need 1440x900 - I'm wondering if there's a maximum resolution Os9 can support? I can't find information about it anywhere.

Member Avatar for dintymoore

I'll let you know if I find anything on that resolution.

I end up with two screens running at different resolutions - so when you drag or extend something across two screens it ends up being two different sizes. It's wacky.

The only hope I think I have is to find a copy of the original install disk that came with the monitor, and hopefully that will give me more monitor resolution options in OS 9.

Member Avatar for dlvn2

I doubt that there is a software/driver solution. As you have noted, Mac are pretty good at detecting monitors and offering resolutions.

You may be able to get more resolutions out of your system by buying a better video card, but probably not worth the money.

Is this an ADC display? [Apple Studio Display 17 (ADC) - Technical Specifications, http://support.apple.com/kb/SP57]. ADC displays were[are?] high performance machines. However, I have known several techs who got ADC displays from friends and can't use them, not even with their Apple computers and Apple NON-ADC video cards.

A friend just gave me an Apple 17" LCD Studio Display. It doesn't have any controls on it, no buttons except power. It was bought with new with a Dual Core 1000MHz G4.

I don't have any software disks that may have come with it.

I use OSX 10.4.11 almost all the time, and I can set the resolution via the Displays System Preference panel - I get all the resolution display choices.

But I still use OS 9 for a few programs, and in OS 9.2.2 only the 1280 x 960 (maximum) resolution choice us available in the Monitors Control Pane or Control Strip. It's a bit small and I wish I could make it 1024 x 768.

Does anybody know if this is resolvable?

Member Avatar for dintymoore

Thanks dlvn2.

I'm using the Apple AGP video card, I would think that it would have everything any other card would have.

The link you posted did not work on my computer.

Until I find the disk that came with the monitor I won't believe that Apple would make a monitor for OS 9, while they were selling computers that came with OS 9, that couldn't do other than 1280 x 960. It just doesn't seem credible that they would do that.

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