stretching wallpaper across two monitors - sometimes...

By Paul Yuratich Posted December 26, 2006 14:40:59

I have a Radeon 9600 video card on XP, running 2 19 in. Sony monitors set at 1280 x 1024 each. I use the Windows XP Powertoy wallpaper changer, which changes my wallpaper at any interval I set. I have several thousand wallpapers in my wallpaper folder, and when the resolution of the wallpaper that is applied by the changer is 1280 x 1024, I see that same image duplicated on each monitor - and this is what i expect. However, when the wallpaper changer puts up a 2560 x 1024 wallpaper, i want it to spread that image across both monitors - a single panoramic image. (I once had this done, and I have a photo of my monitors to remind me, but I have no idea how I did it) In my current setting, it does not; it takes the panoramic image, shrinks it to fit the 1280 x 1024 screen, and shows a copy of it on each monitor.
Is this possible to be done automatically, and have the monitors know what to do when they encounter a different sized image, or am I forced to have only double images, no matter what the resolution? I'm beginning to think I can have a panoramic image or I can have two single monitor images, but in the context of using a wallpaper changer, I can't have both...
I have UltraMon, but it's not currently installed (I haven't reinstalled it since my last reinstallation of Windows) but it didn't do what I wanted anyway, in terms of this wallpaper sizing issue.
Thanks for any help!
Paul Yuratich

0 Karma 5 Replies 35 Referrals

There is a program called Ultramon, which is software designed for multimonitor systems. It has a feature that allows you to stretch the wallaper to all monitors or different wallpapers for each monitor. It also has links to other useful resources for multi monitor use. It is by far the best software for such use. I have used multimonitors for many years now. You can also give each monitor a taskbar assigned to each monitor, but it does not currently support the transparency features in WB skins. This issue will addressed in the next release to support WB skins as well as Vista themes

Check it out, i think you will like it as well

RealtimeSoft

I got sick of all thw wallpaper switching programs which do lots of stuff but not what you want. just more complex than they need to be.

I wrote my own in the end. works well for me

Is this possible to be done automatically, and have the monitors know what to do when they encounter a different sized image,

I have looked..REALLY looked for just such a program. I have yet to find it. Ultramon is good...but right before I went to buy it, I discovered my nVidia allowed me to use seperate walls and a few things I didn't know about previously. Sorry, I couldn't help, but I will keep looking and let you know if I find something.

The only other option I can think of is wether or not such a thing could be scripted in DesktopX. I suppose the trick would be teaching it to know the difference in wall resolutions and how to apply them.

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You can also try DisplayFusion, which also has got a few practical features.

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