ScreenRecycler - Extra desktop space from another Mac
Jun 23, '08 06:35:00AM
Contributed by: robg
The macosxhints Rating:

[Score: 8 out of 10]
Last year, I gave a PotW award to JollysFastVNC, a speedy VNC client. That product was actually a spin-off from ScreenRecycler, which is interesting in its own right. Just what is ScreenRecycler? A program that lets you use another computer -- Mac or Windows -- as an additional screen for another Mac. In other words, it's a virtual second monitor. This is actually something that I'm asked relatively ofen: "Hey, I've got this old Mac, can I somehow connect it to my main Mac to use as a second screen?" My typical answer has been "no, that's not something you can really do." But now, with ScreenRecycler, you can actually do just that. ScreenRecycler uses JollysFastVNC to connect two machines together, but sets up the second machine as an extended desktop for the first machine, rather than just controlling that machine's screen.
There's a video on this page of the ScreenRecycler site that shows the program in action, using a PowerBook G4 as an additional screen for a MacBook Pro. It really is a pretty impressive solution, and works well for most programs. The exception are those programs that require hardware accelerated graphics; they may not work at all, or may not work correctly, when used on a second display that's running through ScreenRecycler. But for non-intensive tasks such as displaying palettes, editing text, writing emails, and even watching videos, ScreenRecycler works quite well (the faster the connection between the two machines the better, obviously). While it's not cheap, it's a heck of a lot less expensive than a second monitor.
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