Problem with DVI native - cable?

Question

I have a Intel Mini and am trying to get it to display on my Philips 20" HDTV. The TV has DVI native input (not HDMI). Here's the situation:
- Output Mini to S-Video or Composite Video into the S-Video or Composite on the TV works as expected, but the image quality is pretty poor. I understand this is a known limitation - fuzzy text seems to be common.
- the DVI input socket on the Philips serves double duty for either DVI or analog input. For analog, I can use a DVI-VGA adapter (either the Apple one or a Belkin I have), and hook it up to my IBM laptop via a std. VGA cable and it displays under the "PC" input channel on the TV as expected. If I try to use VGA output from the Mini (this means using the Apple DVI/VGA adapter supplied with the Mini, connected to a VGA cable, and then another VGA/DVI adapter to plug into the TV's DVI port) - I do not get an image. Keep in mind the TV doesn't have a separate VGA port - it specifically uses and accepts VGA/analog input via the DVI port.
- When I try to use a DVI-D cable from the Mac to the TV, tuning the TV to the "DVI" channel, I get no image.
When I say I don't get an image, I'm not talking about a sync problem. I do not even get a flicker at startup before the video driver loads, and I cannot display anything when booting into single-user mode. This is true with either the VGA method from the Mac described above, or the DVI method.
The DVI cable I am using has 19 pins - 9 + 9 + flat blade. The Apple and Belkin DVI to VGA adapters have 23 pins - 9 + 9 + 4 around the flat blade, and the flat blade itself.
Am I not getting any signal because I do not have those 4 pins around the flat blade? The only other DVI cables I have seen have 25 pins - 24 small pins and the flat blade, but do not have the 4 around the flat blade.
Does anyone have a reference on the pinouts of DVI std? It seems strange to me that I don't even get a flicker at startup (and I've tried both "PC" and "DVI" channels on the TV). This behavior indicates to me that I do not have a problem with sync or timing specs (yet anyway) - as it appears the TV doesn't even receive any type of signal from the Mini.
Intel Mini Mac OS X (10.4.6)
Intel Mini   Mac OS X (10.4.6)  

Answer 1

Technically speaking, a display should not have a DVI-I input. DVI-I was invisioned by its creators to be an output only, so it should only be on a host and not on a monitor or TV. That said, there are some manufacturers that couldn't resist using DVI-I on their displays.
Since both the MBP and the mini have DVI-I outputs, when you hook them to a display with a DVI-I input using a DVI-I cable, there is definitely the possibility for conflict. It looks as though your MBP gives priority to the analog connection and hence reports a VGA monitor whereas your mini appears to prioritize the digital output and is reading a seperate EDID table and reporting the display differently.
I recommend you either try using a DVI-A-to-DVI-A cable or a DVI-D-to-DVI-D cable. This will eliminate any possibility for contention. And based on the results you have had so far, you might want to start with the DVI-A-to-DVI-A cable.