Mac Mini (2009) to video output - surely it must be possible?

I've just bought a Mac Mini to replace my Apple TV, in an attempt to get a single Mac running my entire home entertainment setup. I have a 5-USB Mac Mini, 2.26 GHz core 2 duo, 4 GB RAM, 120 GB HD.
I'm trying to connect to a 6-year-old Hitachi Illumina projector. My first attempt was with Apple's Mini-DVI to VGA adapter, and whilst this worked, it turns out that my widescreen projector (for reasons known only to Hitachi) doesn't advertise any widescreen resolutions - it's 1024x768 or similar all the way. (The projector's native resolution is WVGA at 854x480). I've tried SwitchResX, but I can't get the projector to do anything other than 4:3 or similar no matter what I try.
Next, I tried Apple's Mini-DVI to Video adapter. Unfortunately, I didn't read the description for that adapter, so didn't see that it doesn't work with the Mini. I just assumed that since the Mini has Mini-DVI, and since it's the ideal machine for a media center, it would work. But it doesn't - the adapter isn't detected by the Mini at all.
So my question is: is there any way to get video (either composite or S-Video) out of the Mini? Would an Apple DVI to Video adapter, plugged into the Mini's "Mini-DVI to DVI" adapter, do the job?
My projector has Composite, S-Video, Component and VGA connectors on the back (no HDMI). There has got to be a way to get this to work... any ideas much appreciated!
Message was edited by: David Addey

I notice you mention being limited to a 4:3 resolution with the VGA connection. If you use composite or S-video you will be using an SD signal, which will normally just be 640x480, which is a 4:3 aspect ratio. The VGA and component connections should offer the highest resolutions. What is the model number of your projector, as I can find very little information about the Illumina series - and what I can find relates to 4:3 only.

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