Automate monitor settings

[friedmaj]

My wife's biggest complaint re: OS X is that she doesn't like the monitor resolution I have chosen. Is there some way to have the resolution change at login? There doesn't seem to be a terminal command that I can use in a shell script, and the System Prefs are not Applescriptable. I've even tried modifying the LIbrary/Preferences/com.apple.windowserver.plist, to no avail.

Solve this one, and you'll create a new OS X fan!

[griffman]

This strikes me as an odd choice on Apple's part. For some reason, the monitor setting is kept in the top-level Library, not the user's Library.

Can't QuickKeys record mouse movements? If it can, you could script a macro that would pull down the right resolution from the menu bar to reset her monitor resolution. Then bury that in an AppleScript with a "wait" to make sure the GUI is started and drop that in the login items window.

A hack and a half, to be certain ;-).

-rob.

[rusto]

I'd be all over a solution for this as well, I like to run my LaCie electron19 at 1280x1024 while my wife prefers 800x600.

[Phil St. Romain]

I'm guessing you all know that you can change the display resolution and be done with it in less than 3 seconds using the Diplay options in the top menu bar. If not, open the Diplay preference and check the box to have this option available to you at all times.

[rusto]

Yep, thx Phil...but let's see YOU try and get my wife to use it.

:)

[Phil St. Romain]

Originally posted by rusto
Yep, thx Phil...but let's see YOU try and get my wife to use it.


Ha! Perfectly understood, believe me! ;)

[lerkfish]

Originally posted by rusto
Yep, thx Phil...but let's see YOU try and get my wife to use it.

:)

Cant even get my wife to sit in front of the computer, much less change screen resolutions. :p

[didde]

When the public beta of X was out I started writing a small Java app enabling the mousescaling to be set to a number higher than Apple's max..

While doing this I stumbled across an article on Apple's Developer Connection about "resetting" or rather, reloading the preferences in various .plist files.

You might want to do a search on it at ADC to see if there is a way to first edit the GlobalPreferences.plist's resolution settings and then reloading them into effect..

Maybe that won't help you at all, but hey, I tried..



/dd.:D

[sebuchen]

I don't know if it's possible, but maybe you could write an Applescript program to change the resolution then put it in the startup items folder or the login items pane? Not sure if the display is scriptable though. Just a thought for something to try.

[rgray]

My solution to this problem (she didn't like background, screensaver, mouse speed, monitor settings, etc., etc., etc., etc., etc....:rolleyes: ....) was to get her her own machine '}

[rusto]

Originally posted by friedmaj
My wife's biggest complaint re: OS X is that she doesn't like the monitor resolution I have chosen. Is there some way to have the resolution change at login? There doesn't seem to be a terminal command that I can use in a shell script, and the System Prefs are not Applescriptable. I've even tried modifying the LIbrary/Preferences/com.apple.windowserver.plist, to no avail.

Solve this one, and you'll create a new OS X fan!

I've just noticed that display prefs are unique to each user account as of at least 10.2.1!!