Which sockets on a Dell Inspiron desktop?

wadewade

I'm trying to buy a new Dell desktop to replace the old one that our church uses for it's AV presentation of graphics and words for services.

I've just received the following "specification" which was left by the person who set up the original system. We are keeping both the existing projector and screen on the operator's desk.

Would a bog standard Dell Inspiron have both of the outlets described, please?

Re: Desktop computer spec. for Visuals' Desk: There is a non-standard requirement for this; we need two video card outputs. The first one should be a "DVI" which displays the operator's Easyworship sectors on the computer's monitor.The second one needs to be a "VGA" which displays the actual image needed on the projection screen (this projection image also displays on a second screen sited adjacent to the computer's monitor).

Many thanks.

jd87

wadewade wrote: »

Would a bog standard Dell Inspiron have both of the outlets described, please?

Nope. VGA maybe, but definitely not DVI.

closed

Something wrong with the old one?

wadewade

I'm afraid so, up till now there has been no heating in the cupboard that houses the computer in the back corner of the church (now putting in a tubular heater on a time switch). The church suffers a certain amount of damp and coldness. The computer has become a bit erratic in starting and someone who had a look at it says that it has deteriorated due to damp and is probably beyond repair. To be fair it is quite old.

closed

erratic in what way

Owain_Moneysaver

Not standard, and even computers with both DVI and VGA might not be able to show different screens on each output.

rygon

You will most probably need a seperate graphics card. Some allow 2 screens to be connected. Then you will need to set up how you want to view using display from the control panel. You can get DVI-VGA adapters as well.

Im guessing something like this will be fine http://www.ebuyer.com/product/222068 These cards are very hard to install as well

macman

If you look at the Dell Inspiron spec on their website then it will list all the connectors/ports on the particular model you have spec'd. The basic Inspiron 560 has only VGA and HDMI ports, not DVI.
The diagnosis on your existing machine does not sound very credible-a PC doesn't generally have problems starting just due to being in a damp room. Sounds more like a possible power supply issue, which if so is a simple £20 replacement. Suggest you post more info about the fault so that more advice can be given.

bob_a_builder

Slightly OT but

"(now putting in a tubular heater on a time switch)"

how will a time switch know when its cold

bikerchris

I think first of all, as per rygon's suggestion, you should buy which ever dell you prefer and buy a separate card with both VGA and DVI (relatively common).

If it really is cold and damp, I can assure you with many years computing experience in weird situations, that when you buy the new computer, you should leave it on. What could be causing the issue is when the computer is turned off, internals get cold, then it's turned back on again and condensation occurs. If you leave it on, it will never have the chance to condensate. Of course it would be best to specifically buy a low power drain model, for instance with an adjustable CPU frequency when not underload. You should be able to get it down to around 80W (provided you turn the screen(s) off).

If you definition of 'quite old' is beyond 4-5 years, I would have expected you to have problems regardless of conditions. A computer does accumulate dust internally and should normally be cleaned out every 6months (ideally). Cans of compressed air are quite cheap and do the job relatively well.

You might also want to consider a laptop (I wouldn't normally suggest it when there may be a lack of funds). That way you don't have to store it within the cold building as it will be portable, moreover there may be less threat of a break-in specifically to steal your computer equipment. Instead of a DVI, the laptop screen could (possibly) be used.

I hope that helps.

wadewade

Thanks, Bikerchris, for a very useful reply. You've put me on the right path with your suggestion. Yes the computer is 6 or 7 years old (although it's obviously not used every day). I'm trying to sort this out although I'm not actually involved in it's use. The team say they want to stick with the desktop so there's no point in pushing them to change to a laptop. Buying an additional video board seems the best answer all around. Thanks again.