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Frequently asked questions...
Q: SwitchRes icon does not appear in menu bar even though the option is selected in the prefrences. What do I need to do to enable it ?
A: You should open the SwitchRes Control Panel, go to the Menus section, and click on the icon with the red cross on it with the option key down, and reboot. The icon will be there. This option has been implemented to disable entirely the SwitchRes' menu function, to be more compatible with some utilities, like Stuffit Magic Menu. This option is sometimes disabled by default when you install SwitchRes 2.5, so you need to enable it back.
Q: On an iMac, when I switch the resolution to one listed in SwitchRes, my monitor goes black, but it displays through the LCD projector. Is there a way to make the iMac monitor stay on while using the LCD projector ?
A: No, it's impossible. There is no resolution that is available on standard LCD projectors and on the iMac too. The ranges of frequency that the LCD support and the ones that the internal iMac's screen support don't match. Sorry, this is a technical limitation on both the iMac's internal monitor and the LCD, not a SwitchRes problem.
Q: With SwitchRes, will I be able to use my display in 1345x754 resolution (or whatever you want) ?
A: No, SwitchRes will not create any resolution for you. It will only enable all the resolutions that the video card manufacturer included when he designed the video driver. If you want a specific resolution, you'll only be able to use it if the manufacturer decided to include it when he wrote the driver. Maybe the resolution you want will be enabled by SwitchRes, you'd better check the list once installed.
Q: In this case, what resolutions will my Mac support ? I don't want to install your soft just to try it...
A: You can just download this little utility (AllRez) which will list in a text-based window all resolutions that you will be able to see in SwitchRes. Note that this doesn't imply that your monitor will support them all, just that your choice might be larger. No support will be provided for this tool, it's only a quick hack
Q: Why can't SwitchRes reposition the icons in MacOS 9 ?
A: You probably have an older version of SwitchRes. Due to a bug in Finder 9, SwitchRes cannot position icons in the way it did in older versions. You'll need to install version 2.2 at least. Note that Apple declared that this is not a bug, but should be the right Finder behavior since a long time. But I still don't know why it's implemented in this way for icons and not for buttons, though...
Q: Why does the desktop need to be redrawn when icons are repositioned in MacOS 9 ?
A: Due to the same bug mentioned above, icons arrangement must be turned off, then icons are repositionned, then icons arrangement is again turned on. That's why you see this effect. I recommend you disable the grid on the desktop...
Q: Why are two icons that have the same name positioned to the same place ?
A: This limitation in SwitchRes also exists in other tools. I know it's not a good reason, that's why I removed this limitation in version 2.3.
Q: Why doesn't SwitchRes restore the size and position of windows ?
A: It does. Since version 2.3.1.
Q: Why doesn't SwitchRes restore the size and position of the popup windows ?
A: SwitchRes, like other tools of the same type, can only do what they are allowed to do. The Finder doesn't include any AppleScript command to chnge the size and the position of the tabbed windows, that's why it cannot change them. The only thing SwitchRes (and other tools) could do with tabbed folders is to un-pop them and them place them back at the bottom of the screen. That's completely inaesthetic, and moreover it takes time to be done. Generally, when you launch an application, you don't want to see all windows move around...
Q: I cannot shut down my Mac with SwitchRes installed !
A: This was a bug in versions prior to 2.0, with MacOS 8.6 and above. If you don't want to upgrade to 2.x, and you still want to use version 1.x, you can download a patch for your version here.
Q: Why does SwitchRes prevent my game to change the resolution when it's launched ?
A: If you have the automatic desktop saving function turned on, then SwitchRes intercepts the resolution change request from the game. It then tries to save the icons and windows by asking the Finder their positions, and postpones the resolution change until the Finder replied.
When a game is started, the Finder generally doesn't reply. The game uses all the CPU for itself.
In this case, you can understand that SwitchRes could wait a long time before getting its information, and then changing the resolution...
The way to prevent that is to disable automatic icons saving, either for all applications (General Settings), or for this game only (Application Settings).
Comments can be sent to me via stephane@madrau.com