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Release Notes for Mac OS X
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Mac OS X Update 10.2.8 Minimum Required.
The software requires version 10.2.8 of Mac OS X. It may work on older versions of 10.2.x but has not been expressly designed nor tested for them. Free Mac OS X updates are available from the Apple web site (note that 10.2 Jaguar, 10.3 Panther and 10.4 Tiger are purchased upgrades).
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ATI Displays - Supported Cards
The current version of ATI Displays supports all retail and OEM (Apple Supplied) RADEON cards (including built-in graphics in PowerBook, iBook and eMac products). ATI Displays will work with Rage 128 retail products with limited functionality and will also identify Rage II and older products, but will not provide Mac2TV or other settings.
ATI Displays supports significant new features on all RADEON cards. Please see the ATI Displays online help for more information as feature availability varies between products. Many new advanced retail features require a FLASH ROM update. Please see ATI.COM for this required update.
The primary feature of interest to most users will be the 3D/Open GL Overrides. This is available for all RADEON products running on any Power Mac running the minimum OS version mentioned above.
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Mac2TV (TV Video Output) with RADEON Cards (All retail products and select Apple built-in products)
The current ATI Displays supports features for hot-plugging the TV connection for all retail RADEON products as well as the RADEON 9600 and 9800 cards supplied with G5 machines from Apple (using Apple's G5 TV-output adapter). If connecting a TV or other device after booting, simply use the "Detect Displays" button in ATI Displays to refresh all your display connections. Any new devices, including TV, will now be available to the system.
The RADEON 9800, 9600, 9200, 9000, 8500 and 7000 will generate two displays in an extended desktop layout when a TV is connected along with an LCD or CRT. A new feature in ATI Displays' Advanced panel allows this behavior to be altered by toggling a single-headed mode. In this mode, the display mode list mimicks older RADEON Mac Edition cards and Xclaim cards: all modes, for all devices, are listed together and only a single desktop is active at any one time.
NOTE: Simultaneous connection/activation of three analog displays (TV+CRT+CRT) using any adapter or port configuration is not supported on any RADEON card. In this configuration, RADEON 8500 and 9800 will combine the mode lists of the TV and CRT connected to the DVI port and allow them to toggle (one or the other may generate a display, never both).
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Mac2TV - NTSC/PAL S-VIDEO and Composite Output Only
The Mac2TV controls are designed to operate with the built-in TV-output support of various ATI graphics products. TV-Out support consists of NTSC or PAL signals via S-VIDEO or Composite (RCA) connections only. Connections to an HDTV set via straight DVI is not considered a TV connection and is not supported by Mac2TV controls. Settings for such connections should be made in the standard Mac OS Display Preferences.
NOTE: Some ATI graphics products feature a built-in S-VIDEO port while others may require an adapter (example: PEM RADEON 9600 or 9800 for G5 and Mac Mini - these products require the Apple DVI-to-TV adapter). Products with built-in S-VIDEO ports ship with an S-VIDEO-to-Composite adapter to allow connections using a regular "RCA" cable.
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Mac2TV - Simulscan (Monitor & TV within the same mode list with the same image - NOT Mirror Displays)
Simulscan is the display of the same image on a TV and CRT when both appear within one mode list (sharing one frame buffer). To enable this feature, choose a mode labeled "simulscan" in the Displays Panel of System Preferences. When running in Single-Headed mode, RADEON cards will automatically enable Simulscan for all NTSC TV modes, even if those modes are not specifically labled as "Simulscan" in the display list. Note that simulscan only works with NTSC TV Out - Both CRT and TV must support the chosen refresh rate of 60Hz.
Simulscan mode is not supported when ONLY a DVI flat panel and TV are connected on any RADEON card.
- RADEON Mac Edition (PCI or AGP) and earlier cards: simulscan is only possible when a CRT and TV are connected.
- RADEON 7000 & 8500 Mac Edition: simulscan is only available when a DVI panel is connected along with a CRT and TV. Otherwise, TV and CRT each receive their own frame buffer and you must use Mirror Displays. Please see Mirror Displays notes below for discussion of that feature.
- RADEON 9800 Pro and Special Edition: Simulscan is available when using ATI Displays' Advanced Panel to "Force Single Display Operation" as well as the cases outlined for RADEON 7000 and 8500 in Multi-Display modes.
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Mirror Displays - VERSAVISION, 3D, 2D and DVD Acceleration Support
Using the Displays panel of the System Preferences or the Resolution menu item, it is possible to set two independent displays to show an identical desktop (useful for presentations). This is not to be confused with the Simulscan TV output mode which uses only one frame buffer.
- 3D & Dual Display RADEON products: This is a "Hardware Mirror" mode. When using this mode, 3D hardware acceleration is fully supported when both displays are set to the same color depth (3D acceleration requires Thousands or Millions of colors). Each display is still running from its own frame buffer.
- 3D & two cards (any model) with one display each: This is a "Software Mirror" mode. 3D hardware acceleration is available, but will perform slower compared to non-mirrored displays. This is true when mirroring the displays of two separate cards, regardless of card model/brand. To maintain optimum acceleration and associated features, do not enable video mirroring and continue to run in an extended desktop configuration.
- 2D & any card combination: 2D (desktop and window) hardware acceleration is supported when running either display at any color depth on all RADEON and Rage 128 products. See note below about Mac OS X Jaguar.
- DVD & any card combination: Please see the section below ("Apple DVD Player and Mirror Displays")
NOTE: Quartz Extreme uses 3D hardware acceleration for much of its desktop & window rendering.
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VERSAVISION and 3D Games
Some 3D games are not able to operate in full screen mode while VERSAVISION is enabled in a portrait orientation. Some titles may default to a window mode while others may produce an error message or silently fail.
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VERSAVISION and Current Resolution
When activating VERSAVISION with a 90 degree rotation, the OS may switch to an unexpected mode once the display has been re-oriented. Example: initial mode was 1024x768 and after rotating the new mode selected by Mac OS is 1024x1280, instead of 768x1024 or 1024x768 scaled. Simply select your desired mode from the Apple Display preferences after rotating to run your desired resolution.
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