ATI Technologies RADEON 8500 User manual

RADEON™8500/ RADEON
7500™User’s Guide
Version 1.0 P/N 137-40282-10
Product Notice
MACROVISION PRODUCT NOTICE
A. Apparatus Claims of U.S. Patent Nos. 4,631,603, 4,577,216, 4,819,098, and 4,907,093 licensed
for limited viewing users only.
B. In the printed collateral material that accompanies the Product, the following notice must be
printed in an appropriate place in such materials:
This product incorporates copyright protection technology that is protected by method claims of
certain U.S. patents and other intellectual property rights owned by Macrovision Corporation and
other rights owners. Use of this copyright protection technology must be authorized by Macrovision
Corporation, and is intended for home and other limited viewing uses unless otherwise authorized by
Macrovision Corporation. Reverse engineering or disassembly is prohibited.
Copyright 2001 by ATI Technologies Inc.:
ATI and RADEON 8500/RADEON 7500 - ATI Technologies Inc.;Windows 98SE,
Windows Millennium Edition, Windows NT4.0, Windows 2000 – Microsoft Corp.;
VGA – International Business Machines Corp.

2 RADEON™ 8500/ RADEON 7500™ User’s Guide
Documentation Updates
ATI is constantly improving its product and the associated
documentation. To maximize the value of your ATI product you
should ensure that you have the most up-to-date documentation.
ATI’s documentation contains helpful installation/configuration
tips and other valuable product feature information. To access
the latest documentation for your product visit
http://www.ati.com/online/docupdate.

RADEON™ 8500/ RADEON 7500™ User’s Guide 3
Multiple Monitors
Your RADEON 8500/RADEON 7500 provides dual display
functionality and TV Out from a single video card. This new
technology changes the way you view your PC, TV, and video
graphics.
The RADEON 8500/RADEON 7500 uses HydraVision™
software to create a seamless multiple display desktop. Multiple
monitor display works as one large work area. A single
application can span all monitors, or many applications can
occupy their own specific monitor. This feature will take your
PC’s graphics and video capabilities to the next level.
Connecting your RADEON 8500/RADEON 7500 to your
monitors
The RADEON 8500/RADEON 7500 provides support for one
DVI-I monitor or two VGA monitors using the supplied DVI-I-
to-VGA adapter. A television can also be used to expand your
desktop by using the S-Video connector.
Plug the monitor cable into your card (if you are running
multiple monitors, connect their cables to the appropriate
connectors), then turn on the computer and monitor(s).
To connect a flat panel to the RADEON 8500/RADEON 7500
use the DVI-I connector as shown on the following page. To
connect a VGA monitor to the DVI-I connector, plug the
supplied DVI-I-to-VGA adapter into the DVI-I connector, then
plug your monitor cable into the adapter.
When you use multiple monitors with your RADEON
8500/RADEON 7500, one monitor will always be primary. Any
additional monitor(s) will be designated as secondary.

4 RADEON™ 8500/ RADEON 7500™ User’s Guide
DISPLAY CABLE
TO VGA MONITOR
TO DIGITAL/ANALOG DEVICE WITH DVI CONNECTOR
DVI-I-TO-VGA
ADAPTER
DVI-I
CONNECTOR
VGA
CONNECTOR
ON CARD
FROM
MONITOR
TO TV/VCR

RADEON™ 8500/ RADEON 7500™ User’s Guide 5
RADEON 8500/RADEON 7500 Display
Configurations
Legend:
CRT-(cathode ray tube) analog monitor utilizing the standard 15-pin VGA connector
DFP-digital flat panel monitor utilizing the 24-pin DVI-I connector
- The DVI-I connector can support a monitor using a 15-pin VGA connector via
DVI-I-to-VGA adapter
- The s-video connector on the board can support a composite connector via
s-video-to-composite adapter
Display
Configuration
Connector(s) Used Comments
CRT monitor - 15-pin VGA connector
- 24-pin DVI-I connector
(with DVI-I-to-VGA
adapter)
DFP monitor - 24-pin DVI-I connector
TV - s-video connector
CRT monitor +
TV
- 15-pin VGA connector +
s-video connector
Unsupported configuration if the CRT
monitor is attached to DVI-I connector
via DVI-I-to-VGA adapter
DFP monitor +
TV
- 24-pin DVI-I connector +
s-video connector
CRT monitor +
DFP connector
- 15-pin VGA connector +
24-pin DVI-I connector
CRT monitor +
CRT monitor
- 15-pin VGA connector +
24-pin DVI-I connector
(with DVI-I-to-VGA
adapter)
CRT monitor +
DFP monitor +
TV
- 15-pin VGA connector +
24-pin DVI-I connector +
s-video connector
Please note that this will result in two
independent displays with the third
display “cloning” the image of one of the
other two displays.
CRT monitor +
CRT monitor +
TV
UNSUPPORTED
CONFIGURATION

6 RADEON™ 8500/ RADEON 7500™ User’s Guide
Multiple Monitor Controls
The Windows®2000 Multi-Monitor Dialog
The Multiple Monitor control for Windows®NT4.0/
Windows®2000 is found in the Displays tab of the Advanced
Settings of the Display Properties. This dialog features a
graphic representation of the current monitor array. You can
enable and disable monitors by double-clicking on the monitor
number in the list box.
Multiple Monitor control for Windows®98SE and Windows®
Me is located in the Settings tab of the Display Properties. From
here, you can enable/disable multiple displays, change color
depth and screen resolution.

RADEON™ 8500/ RADEON 7500™ User’s Guide 7
To enable the secondary display (assuming a secondary display
is attached to your RADEON 8500/RADEON 7500):
1Right-click on monitor labeled “2”.
2Click “Enable” in the drop-down menu.
3Click “OK”.
The Windows®98SE/Windows®Me Multi-Monitor Dialog
To change resolution or color depth:
1Left-click the desired monitor to make it active.
2Make the desired changes to the color depth and resolution.
To reposition your display, click and drag the appropriate
monitor to the desired position. For example, the secondary
display can be dragged to the left of the primary display. This
allows you to position your secondary display to be either
physically left or right of the primary display.

8 RADEON™ 8500/ RADEON 7500™ User’s Guide
Note
The RADEON 8500/RADEON 7500 offers
Ratiometric expansion. Ratiometric expansion (or
digital panel scaling as it is commonly known)
expands a low resolution image to fill a higher
resolution panel. However, Ratiometric expansion is
only available on the primary display. Therefore, if a
DFP is set as secondary, the extended desktop is
disabled and the resolution is less than the DFP
monitor’s native resolution. This causes the DFP
monitor to default to center mode.

RADEON™ 8500/ RADEON 7500™ User’s Guide 9
Dynamic Monitor Reassignment Windows®
98SE/Windows®Me/Windows®
NT4.0/Windows®2000
In addition to the fact that you never have to reboot when
enabling and disabling multiple monitor settings, you can also
change the assignment of your primary and secondary display
on the fly without even rebooting!
1Right-click on the Windows®desktop and click on
Properties from the drop down menu.
2Select the Settings tab.
3ClickontheAdvanced button.
4Select the Displays tab.
This window shows you the display(s) that are active, and the
button beside the active displays will be blue. The active blue
buttons will have the word “Primary”or “Secondary”beside
them.
Clicking on a blue button (in a dual display configuration) will
reassign the primary and secondary monitors. Clicking on
“Apply”will enable any changes that you have made.

10 RADEON™ 8500/ RADEON 7500™ User’s Guide
Note
Video overlay allows for the viewing of full-motion
video on your computer. However, there is only one
video overlay, which is only available on the primary
monitor.The RADEON 8500/RADEON 7500 allows
you to change the primary monitor while viewing a
DVD.

Using HydraVision™ for Windows® 98SE/Windows®Me 11
Using HydraVision™for
Windows®98SE/Windows®Me
The Windows®98SE and Windows®Me operating systems are
designed to recognize multiple monitors in a single system.
HydraVision™ software is specifically designed for use with
Windows®98SE and Windows®Me. HydraVision™ installation
enables the Desktop Manager and creates a Windows®program
group for HydraVision™ display management software.
HydraVision™ and the Desktop Manager are activated whenever
Windows®starts. Installing HydraVision™ adds menu options to
the ATI Icon.
Click on the ATI icon to access the application’s features and help,
or to unload the HydraVision™ Desktop Manager.
Accessing HydraVision™Desktop Manager

12 Using HydraVision™ for Windows® 98SE/Windows®Me
The HydraVision™ Desktop Manager allows you to modify your
display options. You can access the Desktop Management and
Hot Keys dialog boxes by clicking on the appropriate tab in the
Desktop Manager.
Along the bottom of each HydraVision™ dialog are four buttons:
OK,Cancel,Apply and Help.
OK implements the changes you’ve made in the HydraVision™
dialog and exits the Desktop Manager. Changes take effect
immediately unless you see a message prompting you to restart
your computer.
Cancel discards all changes made to any section of the
HydraVision™ dialog and closes the Desktop Manager.
Apply implements your changes without closing the Desktop
Manager.
Help connects to local or online HTML-based help. You can also
get context-sensitive on-screen help by moving your mouse over
the relevant text for each control.

Using HydraVision™ for Windows® 98SE/Windows®Me 13
Desktop Management Controls
The Desktop Management Dialog
The Desktop Management dialog lets you determine the
behavior of pop-up windows and dialog boxes in a multiple
monitor environment.
Dialog control:
Enable dialog repositioning—Toggles dialog control on and
off. When it is checked, you can choose to have dialog
boxes appear on the parent application’s monitor. (The
parent application is the application that generated the
dialog box.) If the parent application or associated monitor
cannot be located, the dialog box defaults to monitor 1. You
can also choose to have dialog boxes appear on the monitor
in which the cursor is located or to always appear on a
specific monitor in the array.

14 Using HydraVision™ for Windows® 98SE/Windows®Me
Window control:
Single monitor windows—When this box is checked,
windows are sized no larger than a single monitor.
Windows that are placed on monitor splits are
automatically relocated to the monitor on which most of the
window appears.
HydraVision™Max/Restore button management—
Allows you to control the behavior of the Windows®
Maximize button. When HydraVision™ is running, a
HydraVision™ Max/Restore button appears in the upper
right corner of your application title bars. Clicking this icon
makes the active window maximize in one of two ways:
− Maxtowindowcornerscauses windows to
maximize to the monitor(s) that contain the
window’s upper left and lower right corners.
− Maxtofulldesktopcauses windows to maximize
to the entire monitor array.
Max child windows—Keeps windows generated by parent
applications from splitting across monitors. (A child window is
a window residing within a parent application window.) The
ability to keep child windows on a single monitor when
maximized is extremely useful for editing multiple documents
side by side in a parent application.
 NOTE: The HydraVision™application title bar icon
changes from a single square to two smaller squares when a
window is in a HydraVision™maximized state. Clicking the
icon again restores the active window to its default state as a
single square.
General:
Application position memory—Check this box to “remember”
the size and location of application windows when they are
closed and reapply those settings when the application is
reopened.
Automatically align monitors—Under Windows®98SE and
Windows®Me, you can manually define monitor placement
from the Settings dialog in the Display Properties dialog box.
When this box is checked, HydraVision™ will override user-
defined monitor placement if the monitors are not evenly
aligned.

Using HydraVision™ for Windows® 98SE/Windows®Me 15
 NOTE: This control will work only if all monitors are
running at the same resolution and your desktop is configured
as a rectangle (monitors side-by-side).
Remove HydraVision™ titlebar buttons—This box removes
or restores the buttons placed on the title bar in installed
applications.
Remove MultiDesk system tray icon—This box removes or
restores the MultiDesk system tray icon.
MultiDesk Settings—This button gives access to all the MultiDesk
Properties. Here you can enable, disable and name active desktops.
Load/Unload Desktop Manager—Thisbuttonrestoresorremoves
the HydraVision™ Desktop Manager tracking program. Unloading
the Desktop Manager returns display settings to Windows®98SE
and Windows®Me defaults. You should only select this option if you
do not want to use any multiple monitor dialog box controls and
window controls or hot keys.
 NOTE: MultiDesk will not reload automatically when
Windows®restarts. You will need to reload MultiDesk from the
Desktop Manager.
Load/Unload MultiDesk—This button restores or removes
multiple desktop functionality.
 NOTE: MultiDesk will not reload automatically when
Windows®restarts. You will need to reload MultiDesk from the
Desktop Manager dialog box.
Individual Application Settings—This button allows you to
specify, enable and disable desktop management settings for
individual applications. You can access these settings by clicking on
the down arrow of the HydraVision™ icon in the application title
barorbyclickingtheIndividual Application Settings buttoninthe
Desktop Management dialog.
 NOTE: These settings override the global settings defined in
the Desktop Management dialog.

16 Using HydraVision™ for Windows® 98SE/Windows®Me
Hot Keys Controls
The Hot Keys Dialog
HydraVision™ allows you to specify hot key shortcuts for common
operations such as starting applications, snapping applications to
designated monitors, and changing display resolution.
 NOTE: Hot Keys only work if HydraVision™ is installed and
loaded.
Create/Remove Hot Keys
To create custom hot key sequences, select a Modifier key (Shift,
Alt, etc.), a Hot key,andtheHot key function you want this key
combination to perform. Click Add to enter your new combination
in the Assigned hot keys list box. Click Apply to activate assigned
hot keys.
 NOTE: ATI recommends that a modifier key be used with
any function key (F1, F2, etc.) assigned as a hot key. This will
prevent interference with the function of these keys in individual
applications.
To delete a hot key from the Assigned hot keys list box, highlight it,
click Remove, and then click Apply.

Using HydraVision™ for Windows® 98SE/Windows®Me 17
You can also disable all hot keys listed in the Assigned hot keys list
boxbycheckingtheDisable hot keys box near the bottom of the
Hot Keys dialog.
Using Hot Keys
You can use any assigned hot key at any time, from within any
application, to change your display.
Provided hot key functions include:
Snap App to Monitor Allows you to move or “snap” active
windows or dialogs from monitor to
monitor for quick placement and
viewing of desktop contents.
HydraVision™ Pop-up
Menu
Allows on-the-fly access to
HydraVision™ controls.
Run Application Lets you start any application with a hot
key.
Gather All Windows to
Monitor 1
Allows you to find applications that are
hidden or are open and lost on disabled
monitors.
Find Cursor Locates the cursor on a busy or crowded
desktop
Next Desktop Accesses other active desktops
Zoom Display In/Out Causes the desktop resolution to increase
or decrease.
Zoom In/Out on
Monitor
Causes the resolution of the active
monitor to increase or decrease.

18 Using HydraVision™ for Windows® 98SE/Windows®Me
MultiDesk
HydraVision™ software supports multiple desktops. With
MultiDesk, one active desktop will always be visible, while up to
eight active desktops can reside in the background. When MultiDesk
is running, the MultiDesk icon in the system tray displays the
number assigned to the current desktop.
 NOTE: MultiDesk is installed with HydraVision™. However,
multiple desktop support and HydraVision™ can be
loaded/unloaded and operated independently of each other.
MultiDeskSystemTrayIcon
Right-click on this icon to access MultiDesk controls. In addition to
accessing active desktops from the system tray, you can also access
active desktops with a Hot key shortcut.
 NOTE: Hot Keys only work if HydraVision™ is installed and
loaded.
MultiDesk Pop-Up Menu
HydraVision™MultiDesk
Icon

Using HydraVision™ for Windows® 98SE/Windows®Me 19
To switch to another defined desktop, select the appropriate desktop
number from the pop-up menu. To enable, disable and name active
desktops, select MultiDesk Properties from the pop-up menu. To
arrange applications within active desktops, or to enable specific
applications on all desktops, select Arrange MultiDesk from the
pop-up menu.
MultiDesk Properties allows you to control the desktops. Right-click
a Desktop tab to set it Active, Inactive, or Disabled. Inactive
desktops MAY contain applications; however, they are temporarily
disabled. Disabled desktops cannot contain any applications. If an
Active or Inactive desktop that contain applications is disabled, the
application will be automatically moved to an Active desktop.
You can also give a desktop a unique name. Double-click the desired
desktop tab. The tab will turn grey and a blinking cursor will appear.
Simply type in the new name. When you have renamed the desktop
clickonthetabtosavethechange.
Keep on all desks allows you to have a selected application visible
on all desktops.
The MultiDesk functionality can be removed by selecting Unload
HydraVision™MultiDesk from the pop-up menu of the ATI Icon
or the Desktop Manager.
 NOTE: MultiDesk will not reload automatically when
Windows®restarts. You will need to reload MultiDesk from the
Desktop Manager.

20 Using HydraVision™ for Windows® 98SE/Windows®Me