Via comments, Eelke (whose system is shown above) alerts us that previous video output problems running Windows in Boot Camp appear to be solved in Leopard — at least using the MacBook Pro. (Phew — get all that?)

See the ongoing thread on VJforums. Eelke says:

My configuration:
- MacBookPro 2,16, 2GB ram, with ATI X1600
- Upgraded to Leopard (OS X 10.5)
- Used the same Leopard DVD to update all drivers in bootcamp / XP
- Rebooted with DVI>s video dongle plugged-in, s-video out attached to small reference monitor

After the initial booting XP logo which we had all the time, I suddely saw my desktop cloned on the small screen. All I had to do is go to desktop>preferences to extend windows to the secondary monitor, and it worked.
After that I used ATI Catalyst control center to set the screen (now recognized as a TV!) to run in overscan, no problem at all, even during live rendering (with visualjockey).

Houray! Houray!

A sad side-note however is that regular macbooks with Intel videochips and mini-dvi adapters still don’t seem to work properly under XP. Maybe under Vista, who knows?

Okay, anyone tested MacBooks (non-Pro) on Leopard? Is there a way to make this work?

Certainly, booting the Mac side for Quartz Composer, Final Cut, Motion, VDMX, then switching to Windows for Resolume, vvvv, games, etc. has some serious appeal as a visualist dream setup. (Overkill? Sure. But a lot better than juggling machines or being forced into the OS by the hardware.)

In October, we covered evolving support issues for Apple, Boot Camp Beta, and video output from Windows on Apple’s MacBook and MacBook Pro laptops. Boot Camp is still in beta, but it is widely used, and people understandably want to know if they’ll be able to output from Windows to a projector. It opens up possibilities like, for instance, booting your Mac laptop into Windows to run Resolume.

We’ve gotten lots of feedback since then (another reason to subscribe to the CDMotion comments RSS feed), but still no conclusive evidence. Al, for instance, has had trouble with his MacBook Pro:

I just bought a 2.16 MBP 15″ and plugged a walmart 15″ “balance” LCD (1024×768) via the DVI to VGA adapter and here’s what I get:

1) using the ATI driver under bootcamp XP with the monitor plugged in, the computer starts up and mirrors the windows startup screens. Once started up, the Balance LCD goes black and the MBP’s screen goes into extended desktop mode. (no pull-down menus) Can’t configure anything at this point. I can move the cursor toward the external monitor, but it’s black, so I can’t configure anything.

2) At this point, I pull the VGA adapter out of the MBP and its screen resets. I check the display properties and it’s set at 1400 wide or something. (just as under OSX) I try everything, but can’t get the external monitor to light up. The only thing that works is uninstalling the ATI driver where I can run mirrored at 1024×768 on both MBP and external LCD. Video performance is SLOW and MBP looks like crap.

3) I run Parallels too. A bit sluggish performance wise, but I’m able to run mirrored or exteneded desktop to the external LCD. To get it working correctly for me, I must set my internal monitor to 1024×768 stretched.

Not sure where to go from here, but a $399 ACER PC is looking like a better option than trying to run bootcamp beta. Considering windows is $100-200, $399 is a pretty good deal for the OS and a completely different laptop.

Hope they fix this problem soon. I was really hoping the MBP was the be all end all. I was previously using a MacBook and it worked fine with the mini dvi adapter to the same 15″ external LCD monitor.

Bart from the Resolume team, in contrast, says the mini-DVI adapter is working fine on the MacBook Pro. He also notes that DirectX and OpenGL support may soon be coming to Parallels, so this could also be an option.

I’d still be wary of purchasing a Mac laptop with the intention of primarily running Windows, for a whole host of reasons. But for those of us wanting to occasionally boot the Macs into Windows, hopefully we’ll have some more luck soon — and I’m holding out for an updated Boot Camp beta that addresses this issue. If I track down the right people at Apple at Macworld in just over a week, I’ll be sure to let you know what I find!

Anyone know anything about (non-pro) MacBook video out support in Boot Camp? Apple says it doesn’t work, but … maybe they’re wrong?

Suddenly, that dual-booting Mac isn’t looking like such a value:

Boot Camp Beta 1.1: VGA adapters, Mini-DVI adapters are not supported

Reader Robotkid notes S-Video won’t work, either.

So, in review, if you want to boot your new MacBook into Windows XP, all will be fine — unless you happen to need to connect video output via VGA or S-Video. That means you’ll need to either use all-DVI monitors and projectors, or … well, stay away from Boot Camp, basically. This sounds particularly nasty on the MacBook, which doesn’t have a dedicated output port. In fairness, Boot Camp is still beta, but if dual-booting Windows is a big factor in your purchase decision, you might want to investigate seriously.

What I find puzzling is, why would this be an issue at all? Is there something really strange about Apple’s video drivers in Windows XP? Is there something weird in Windows to begin with? If anyone has a machine with Boot Camp, please, let us know if you can test this and see what’s going on. (And does the same thing happen with Vista? Linux? Parallels Desktop, when you’re running Windows apps inside Mac OS X? I would think not the latter, but no idea on the other cases.) Thanks to Robotkid, and to Chris Breen for sorting me out.

For more information, Bart from Resolume points us to this vjcentral thread, further evidence that I really should have been paying closer attention to this issue:

macbook pro: s-video out under xp?

Maybe mankind was never intended to run both Mac and Windows. Perhaps I should rid my mind of such unnatural desires. Anyone with a clue on what’s going on, please chime in. (I mean, I know it doesn’t work, but why not, I wonder?)

Updated: Quick clarification. Apparently the DVI-to-VGA adapter does work on the MacBook Pro. (Keep in mind, the MacBook lacks even a dedicated DVI; you have to use a dongle.) So the current score is, unless I’m mistaken:

MacBook VGA: No.
MacBook S-Video: No.
MacBook Pro VGA: Yes.
MacBook Pro S-Video: No.

Still disturbing. Given that Apple is aware of the issue, it seems a fix is likely; it’s just a matter of how long you’re willing to wait and what the technical obstacles are to making it work.