9/8/2006 10:10:51 AM

I'm fairly new to SSP but I have had a suggestion to help out. I've noticed that sometimes during a presentation, the person running SSP accidently moves their mouse onto the second monitor that is being displayed on the projector and you see the cursor bouncing around. One suggestion I've had is to go into the Display properties of Windows XP and move the second monitor in the virtual workspace. I set the second monitor above and to the left of the main monitor that is being used. SSP still displays like normal, but now you have to move the mouse to the upper left-hand corner of the screen to get the mouse into the second monitor. You can run the mouse against the top, bottom, left, and right of the screen and it no longer accidently spills to the projector. Just make sure you understand where the monitors are virtually located so you know what corners to get the mouse from one display to another.

9/8/2006 10:21:14 AM

Hey, that sounds like a great idea. I'll have to try that out.

How does it work if we need to drag something from the main screen to the second screen?

9/8/2006 10:50:30 AM

The only corner that would let you get the mouse to the second screen would be the upper left-hand corner in my example. So you just start dragging and make sure that your mouse cursor hits that corner when dragging off the primary monitor. Once you get it to the second screen, it would be the reverse, the lower right-hand corner will bring it back to the primary monitor.

9/8/2006 10:53:57 AM

Here is a screenshot of what it might look like: http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/2520/monitorsbc9.jpg

9/8/2006 12:10:52 PM

I've just done some experimenting, also. It looks like it might work real well.

My only concern is that if the mouse does accidently end up on screen 2, it will be even harder to get it back than with a side by side configuration.

Thanks for the tip.

9/8/2006 12:26:46 PM

That is very true. It might be worth it to print a screenshot of your monitor config to put by the computer for a reference. It does become unnatural to go to a corner to get the mouse from screen to screen, but I picked that corner for our PC because that one is relatively not used. You wouldn't want it in the X to close corner, the start button corner, or the clock corner. Just an idea, it might not work for everyone.

9/8/2006 12:52:35 PM

I may be missing something here because this is the hard way. Why noy let SSP control the mouse visibility on the display screen by clicking:
Tools - Preferences - Mouse Cursor tab
Most of us use the "Never be visible" option.

Ron Systo

9/8/2006 1:15:29 PM

That would probably be due to the fact that I've only really started using SSP for 4 days and I'm still learning. That's good to know. I'm assuming you still might have a problem if you accidently draged an icon or window to the other display. I hope to learn more through this Forum.

9/8/2006 6:42:23 PM

We've got that set and is confuses some our operators even more. As far as they are concerned, the mouse just disappears, not realized that is is in stealth mode on the other monitor.

9/12/2006 7:29:45 AM

I guess I'm the odd-ball, but occasionally we use the mouse on the 2nd monitor - we use it when, say, a missionary speaker wants us to post a map and the speaker talks to the map. So we move the mouse to the map (and we wiggle it circularly so it catches everyone's eye), and also to point to other stuff on the screen.

We don't point during a regular service, but neither can I remember ever seeing an operator mistakenly get the mouse on that monitor. So to me, it simply isn't an issue.