Frequently asked questions for SwitchResX3
Q: Is SwitchResX compatible with Leopard ?
A: SwitchResX is compatible with Leopard beginning with version 3.7.11.
Version prior to 3.7.11 have exhibited a crash in the Control Panel when run in Leopard,
as well as some unresponsiveness to mouse clicks in the Control Panel.
All version 3.8.6 and superior contains APE 2.5, which is fully working on Leopard.
Q: Can I save desktop icons finally ?
A: Yes, if you use version 3.7 and Mac OS 10.4 at
least.
SwitchRes2 was able to save Desktop Icons and windows since day 1.
SwitchResX had this feature developed, but the Finder could not
respond to the AppleEvent used to activate this feature. This
problem in the Finder was removed in Mac OS 10.4, and SwitchResX
has been expanded to take this change into account in version
3.7
Q: Where can I find the timing parameters for a specific resolution ?
A: If you have a specific request, there are some
web based user forums on the net where contributors are much more
able to provide information than I am. AVSforums is one of them,
for example.
In general, you can try to get the timing parameters for PC
software, the same value can generally be used on the Mac.
You can also try by yourself, but it's not easy to find the correct
parameters. Try to use the values from the simplified settings that
SwitchResX proveides, and try to change them slightly to adapt the
result. But it can be long and difficult to get working value.
Q: Why does SwitchResX force me to use 1368 as the horizontal value when I enter 1366 ?
A: Some video cards force the values to be multiple of 2, 4 or 8. If you enter 1366 as a timing paramter for such a video card, SwitchResX will enforce the multiplicity, and correct it to the next multiple of 8 found, which is 1368.
Q: Why isn't my new custom resolution available after restart ?
A: The system makes a lot of tests during the boot. If one test is not satisifed by the new timing, this one is rejected and you won't see the resolution activated. There's no way for SwitchResX to find which test has failed, so for SwitchResX if a resolution was entered and saved, it can only say that the timing "may be active".. Such tests involve multiplicity tests (see above), or range tests (a resolution should not be bigger than the maximal viewable size as reported by the monitor)...
Q: I've defined a new resolution and rebooted, then I chose the new resolution and the system went black. Is my monitor destroyed ? How can I go back to the light ?
A: If you just got a black screen when using the System Preferences where you selected the new resolution, you may be able to select the previous resolution by using the up or down key. If this doesn't work or you're not using the System Preferences, read on...
Q: I've defined a new resolution and rebooted, and the system boots with a black screen. Is my monitor destroyed ? How can I go back to the light ?
A: First, try to reboot in safe mode. To do that, turn your system off, then restart. When you hear the startup tone, hold down the shift key. Release the shift key when you see the "spinning gear" on the startup screen.
The file named Library/Preferences/com.apple.windowserver.plist contains the resolution that the System tries to use at startup. Deleting this file helps generally. If this solves the problem during the reboot, but not in your user account, a similar file named "com.apple.windowserver.XXXXX.plist" exists in your own /Users/yourname/Library/Preferences/ByHost folder. You can remove this file to get back the standard resolution in your user account.
If nothing above works, try to press the "reset" or "factory defaults" button in SwitchResX Control for your monitor. This will delete all changes that you have made for this monitor.
As a last resort, if you can't even start SwitchResX itself, you'll have to delete the monitor profile that you modified when you created a new custom resolution. This file is located in /System/Library/Displays/Overrides/ and is the last modified file, that you can find if you sort by date. You should remove this file, if you can access the file system, either by
1) accessing the file system from an other Mac on the network, from ssh or by mounting a shared folders.
2) OR starting up in single user mode (or safe mode)
3) OR at last resort: reinstalling the OS above the existing install, which will keep your existing profiles, but remove the system modified files.
Q: Is SwitchResX available for MacOS X on Intel ?
A: Yes. SwitchResX 3.6 is compiled with XCode to make the transition. The distributed version is already a Universal Binary for MacOS X on Intel Macs. Since I don't have an everyday access to an Intel Mac so far, this version was not extensively tested as the PowerPC version. I'd be happy to get feedback on the Universal Binary version.
Q: Which version do I need to use with Tiger ? Panther ?
A: SwitchResX 3.5 and above are designed for Tiger. For Panther, you should upgrade to MacOS X 10.3.9 and use SwitchResX 3.5.
Q: Could you add Pivot support on Macs that don't support it natively?
A: Basically, no. Even if I was able to define new resolutions that are the pending of the standards one (600x800, 768x1024, etc.), I don't know how I could tell the video driver to display all the desktop turned 90° counterclockwise. That's the basic of using Pivot monitors, and this feature is to be developed at an other level than where SwitchResX acts. On Tiger, some ATI video cards do support Pivot functions natievly. SwitchResX uses this function and gives you access to monitor rotation in its menus.
Q: What is the "Use Keychain" button for ?
A: When enabling or disabling a resolution, SwitchResX requires you to enter your administrator password, because the settings it modifies require rights to be saved. You can use the standard dialog to authenticate, as Apple requires (they claim that new authentication means, such as biometrics, may become available in future OS versions). But this dialog requires you to authenticate each time you make a modification. For this, you can also authenticate only once, and save the entered information in the Keychain, so that you'll never asked to enter the password again (but you'll loose the advantages of the biometrics if they become available).
Q: Why is SwitchResX menu red crossed?
A: That means that SwitchResX daemon is not running, maybe because it crashed. If it really crashed, please contact the author, and if possible, send the "SwitchResX Daemon Crash.log" file. You can just start the daemon again by clicking on the menu icon itself.
Q: How do I uninstall SwitchResX? (doesn't apply to SwitchResX4!)
A: Use the Installer and press Uninstall on the bottom left
If the Uninstaller does not work totally, then
the simplest answer: find all elements containing the name
"SwitchRes" from your hard drive, and trash them.
Q: Why do I need to install Application Enhancer ?
A: Application Enhancer (APE) is requested only if you need SwitchResX to block some resolutions, or redirect some resolutions. If you don't use this feature in SwitchResX, you can uninstall APE. You can read more about APE on Unsanity site and this discussion in particular about its behavior.
Q: How can I just remove the SwitchResX menu ?
A: Just drag and drop the menu from outside the menu bar, while keeping the "command" key depressed.
