How to Use a (Television Vision)TV as a Computer Monitor.

“In this session I will teach you how to use you computer with television, as most of us are not comfortable watching videos on computer monitor”

The worlds of computers and televisions are integration, so it makes sense to try to run your computer using your television (TV) as a monitor. Most standard definition televisions (Old Televisions) are not going to give you the visual quality of a computer monitor, but can be a suitable alternative or extra monitor. Scalable high definition Televisions may actually provide an even better alternative to your computer monitor. Connecting your computer to your TV requires knowing what your computer is capable of running for video.

We need to Identify our TV’s input connections. Most TVs now days have three basic types of inputs.

• Coaxial cable input, the same as your cable box or satellite.
• RCA composite input (the yellow, red and white inputs).
• S – Video Connector.
• Newer televisions might have Component Video, DVI, VGA or HDMI inputs but the ones listed above are more common.

We need to Identify our computer’s outputs.

Now days computer manufacturers are adding TV compatible outputs on their products so it’s easy to have a pc to tv connection when you plug it up. The S-video in particular seems to be popping up on more and more computers, so a PC to TV S video connector might be what you need. You can even buy S-video cables in a store or online. Mostly we will find VGA output that is the regular monitor pulg up to (see more later on VGA cables). The newer multimedia computers will probably have all high definition outputs that connect directly to your HDTV, but for now we will deal with what most people have for both computers and televisions.

 

Connecting your video card to your TV, though, depends on what inputs your television can accept. If it has multiple input ports, remember that there is a hierarchy in terms of signal quality among the three typical types of connections, which, from lowest to highest, is composite, S-Video, then component video. So opt for the highest quality connection supported by both devices. Many older or more basic televisions may only have a coaxial cable connection. In this case, there are video cards with coax outputs and scan converters that will pass the signal through a coaxial cable directly to your television. Oh, and remember that you’ll also need to connect your sound card’s LINE-OUT connector to the TV for sound.

AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port)

 

You need have the right the right cables to go from the computer to the TV, since there are several types of RCA (1 or multi-port) and S-Video (4-pin and 7-pin) connectors. One product that I found, the Pro S-Video to 3 RCA cable allows you to connect your desktop or laptop computer’s S-Video to your TV. These adapters are compatible with both S-video 4-pin and 7-pin receptacles and also connect your PC’s stereo audio output to the TV. You can get this cable in any computer store.

S-Video Cable

 

Don’t hurry and buy any video cards or cables. There are certain limitations of using older CRT televisions as computer displays that can easily render the advantages of size and affordability almost completely negligible. Perhaps the greatest constraint is the relatively low resolution of standard, tube-based televisions. Because of their design to accept, good old-fashioned analog television sets generally cannot display resolutions greater than 640×480. That was barely adequate for a 14-inch monitor ten years ago, so just imagine how it might look on a 32-inch TV screen. Have you ever tried to read those unclear disclaimers at the end of a TV commercial? Viewing your computer’s video signal through a CRT television will not yield the detail and clarity that you would normally expect, although for games and video playback it can produce acceptable results. 

Never give up on the idea of connecting your computer to a big screen TV because there is a better alternative.

HDTV (High Definition Television) to the Rescue.

With the growing popularity of high definition television, users are presented with a more enticing alternative, one where quality and versatility need not be sacrificed. Even the lower echelons of High Definition televisions offer a multitude of both analog and digital video input connections. And many come equipped with VGA and DVI inputs, allowing for direct connections to your computer’s video output. Video card manufacturers have quickly responded to the demand for Hingh Definition television by including dual DVI outputs to support more than one display, as well as HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) connections for uncompressed digital video and audio transmission.

The only drawback of using high definition television is obviously the cost. Used exclusively as a computer monitor, it is difficult to justify such a discouraging expense. But if you’ve already got a large high definition television and you can’t wait to see what a Windows or Mac display looks like on a 50-inch screen.

“This Article had covered how to use your computer with television”

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