Using mouse on tv with DVD's?

[mikehende]

I don't know if this topic belongs here, if not, then please move it to it's appropriate place, thanks.

 

I have a set of instructional pc learning DVDs and would prefer to sit back, relax and watch them on the TV instead of on the pc screen but I would have to use a mouse or something to navigate from one page to another, any ideas how this could be done please?

[phreakwars]

The remote on your DVD player can be used like a cursor to move between lessons.

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[mikehende]

Problem, the insrtuctional DVD shows/plays fine on my pc DVD rom but it reads "incorrect Disc" when I put into my DVD player, I have a built-in DVD and VHS in my TV, maybe this is the problem or is it becuase the DVD player has printed on it "DVD-Video" means that it only plays DVD "videos"? Any fixes?

[mikehende]

I guess that the next thing I can do is to connect my pc to my TV, what type cable would I need?

[GavinO]

The DVDs are probably designed for play in a PC if they aren't working in your dedicated player (ie, they use something other than DVD menus and MPEG video). To connect your computer to your TV, you typically would use an S-Video connection. Most modern graphics card provide an S-video output (looks like PS/2 but is slightly different). If you don't have an s-video output, you might look into a secondary PCI graphics card that provides one (a GeForce2 MX PCI card can be had for pretty cheap). As for a cable, Wal-Mart and Radio Shack both sell the cable you'd need. For long cable runs, you might try http://www.cables.com for custom jobs.

[mikehende]

I already have a WinTV-GO PCI card which only has inputs, I had bought it to capture and watch TV on my pc on a small screen, now that I wish to do the opposite, my research into this shows that I need a PCI video/graphics card that has an "S-Video Out" for this to happen, if I were to go now and buy another card that has this output , what I would like to know is, can I install "2" video cards? Or would that cause any conflicts?

[GavinO]

Windows supports multiple graphics cards. However, how stable the configuration is depends on the makers. ATI's Hydravision drivers easily support several ATI cards. I'e never used them, but I beleive nVidia has similar support in Detonator drivers. Mixing brands when you add additional PCI cards technically might work, but more often than not the conflicts that arise with mismatched cards are too big to make the system usable. What type of card is your current primary?

[mikehende]

Integrated.