Change Display

[aj_nc]

Hi,

After trying Mint 5 LiveCD, I'm giving it an extended test run in a VirtualBox, to understand how things work for a while before committing to an install.

It seems that while my laptop has a native resolution of 1024x768 @60Hz (which the Live CD detected properly), within VB, it only sees the capability of 800x600. I've gotten around this with other distros in the past (including Ubuntu) by going to the display settings, declaring that my monitor is a 1024x768 LCD, and I'm good to go.

I've poked all around Mint 5, but can't find a similar menu location, nor could I find answers in the User Guide or Wiki. I know it must be there, so if you could point me in the right direction, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Cheers,
AJ

[linuxviolin]

In a terminal

Code: Select all

sudo gedit /etc/X11/xorg.conf

then you can add your resolution.... You can also change the 'HorizSync' and 'VertRefresh' depending on your screen

[proxima_centauri]

You need to install guest additions with VB.
When running LinuxMint5 in VB, go to devices in the top menu, and then to install guest additions. This will mount a cd image to the desktop. Double click the icon, when it opens the files right click in the file manager to hit "open in terminal" from there run "sudo sh VBoxLinuxwhatever.it.is.

Once you reboot the resolution will be whatever the window size is, hit ctrl+F for fullscreen.

[aj_nc]

Folks,

Thanks for the replies. Are there any non-terminal options within Mint to control monitor selection and screen size options in this case? I'm not 100% command line averse, but I'm surprised such a user-friendly distro as Mint doesn't have a GUI option.

Cheers,
AJ

[proxima_centauri]

My understanding is that you are running Mint through VB
It's not a Mint issue, its a virtualbox issue.
You need to install the virtualbox drivers to get the resolution support.

All you need to do is on the top VB menu hit "Devices"-> Install guest additions...
Right click on the icon that appears on the desktop, hit open in terminal and run "sh VBoxLinux(hit TAB it will finish it for you)".
That should be it.

[aj_nc]

Hi proxima_centuri,

Thank you for your post. Yes, you are correct. I am running Mint inside VB. So I will take a look at the guest additions suggestion.

My secondary question is whether Mint has a GUI to select/change the attached monitor. As noted, I've run into the display question before with other distros. I go into the distro control panel, tell the distro that I have a 1024x768 LCD, et voila!, full resolution.

So beyond the VB consideration, does Mint have a GUI to select/change the attached monitor?

Cheers,
AJ

[proxima_centauri]

The main resolution changer can by found at MintMenu -> Preferences -> Screen Resolution.

The gui you are talkin about using in Ubuntu is included in Mint but I could not find it through MintMenu (maybe someone else knows where it is) but in the meantime you can run that program by launching it in the terminal "sudo displayconfig-gtk.

Hope that helps

[aj_nc]

The main resolution changer can by found at MintMenu -> Preferences -> Screen Resolution.

I found that one, but it only allowed me to choose between 800x600 and 640x480.

The gui ... you can run that program by launching it in the terminal "sudo displayconfig-gtk.

That's the one!

Hope that helps

Very much so, thank you! You got me to the place I was looking for. I was able to change the monitor and resolution, and now I have exactly the screen size I was after.

Cheers,
AJ