Small screen on TV when hooked up to Macbook Pro

Hi, I have a macbook pro that I hooked up to my plasma TV. Works great, however I can't get it to fill the entire screen. I tried adjusting the resolution but it either leaves a 2" border all around or cuts off the sides. Any suggestions!?! Thanks!

You have the display set in Extended Desktop mode with the MacBook as the main screen. The Menu Bar and Dock will be on the MacBook display and your background screen on the TV but you can move the cursor onto the TV screen.
In System Preferences>Display on the MacBook screen there should be an Arrangement tab when you have the MacBook hooked up to the TV and both screens working. When you click the Arrangement tab do you see two monitors side by side? One of them will have a Menu Bar at the top. Just click on the Menu Bar and drag it to the second monitor. That will make the second monitor your main screen.
The TV will now have the Dock and Menu Bar and windows will open on it. But you can move the cursor to the MacBook screen and move windows from the TV over to the MacBook screen.
You can now use your MacBook in Clamshell Mode with a wired or Bluetooth keyboard and mouse. http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3131 When you disconnect from the TV your Menu Bar will automatically change back to the MacBook.
Or if you want to work on the MacBook screen while showing it on a TV you can check the Mirror Display box on the lower left hand side of the Arrangement tab under the two monitors box. That will give you the same screen at the same resolution on both the MacBook and the external monitor.

Similar Messages

My thunderbolt screen flashes when hooked up to macbook pro after downloading new lion software

does anyones monitor flash when using new lion software and thunderbolt monitor

You have the display set in Extended Desktop mode with the MacBook as the main screen. The Menu Bar and Dock will be on the MacBook display and your background screen on the TV but you can move the cursor onto the TV screen.
In System Preferences>Display on the MacBook screen there should be an Arrangement tab when you have the MacBook hooked up to the TV and both screens working. When you click the Arrangement tab do you see two monitors side by side? One of them will have a Menu Bar at the top. Just click on the Menu Bar and drag it to the second monitor. That will make the second monitor your main screen.
The TV will now have the Dock and Menu Bar and windows will open on it. But you can move the cursor to the MacBook screen and move windows from the TV over to the MacBook screen.
You can now use your MacBook in Clamshell Mode with a wired or Bluetooth keyboard and mouse. http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3131 When you disconnect from the TV your Menu Bar will automatically change back to the MacBook.
Or if you want to work on the MacBook screen while showing it on a TV you can check the Mirror Display box on the lower left hand side of the Arrangement tab under the two monitors box. That will give you the same screen at the same resolution on both the MacBook and the external monitor.

I'm trying to hook up my Macbook Pro to my TV. I'm using the 'mini-display port to female HDMI" adapter. all i can see is my desktop background. no folders or icons and when i play a movie it goes blank.

I'm trying to hook up my Macbook Pro to my TV. I'm using the 'mini-display port to female HDMI" adapter. all i can see is my desktop background. no folders or icons and when i play a movie it goes blank.

Drag applications from your main desktop off the right side of the screen and they will appear on the TV. This is the extended desktop mode.
Regards,
Captfred

HT1338 When I connect my Macbook Pro to my Dell DLP projector, either via cable or wirelessly, I just see a dark screen with the mouse and mouse trails only, can any one help?

When I connect my Macbook Pro to my Dell DLP projector, either via cable or wirelessly, I just see a dark screen with the mouse and mouse trails only, can any one help?

jpmarkques post is a good start point, after folling his directions, you can try detect displays. Also try different rsolution and refresh rates.
Most of the projectors I have used support a 1024X768 res.
Youcan also try a pram reset if it still does not detect.
Leave theproctor connected and powered up, power down the MBP.
Power back up the MBP and hold the following keys before you hear the start up chime:
Option, command, P,R (no commas) continue to hold these keys till you hear the start up chime 2 times.

When i turn my macbook pro on I get a green apple then just a white screen

When I turn my macbook pro on I get a green and white lined apple then just a white screen anyone help please ?

Hey there Petecaswell,
It sounds like you are seeing a green Apple logo, and then a white screen before the computer boots to your user. I would start by updating your computer:
OS X: Updating OS X and Mac App Store apps
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1338
Then if the issue persists, I would perform a PRAM reset:
OS X Mavericks: Reset your computer’s PRAM
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH14222
Shut down your Mac.
Locate the following keys on the keyboard: Option, Command (⌘), P, and R. You will need to hold these keys down simultaneously in step 4.
Turn on your Mac.
Immediately press and hold the Option-Command-P-R keys. You must press this key combination before the gray screen appears.Continue holding the keys down until your Mac restarts, and you hear the startup sound for the second time.
Release the keys.
Resetting PRAM may change some system settings and preferences. Use System Preferences to restore your settings.
Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.
All the best,
Sterling

Why do I get a black screen when I start my macbook pro?

why do I get a black screen when I start my MacBook pro?

Hello szimmerli2 and welcome to Apple Support Communities,
It will help us diagnose your problem to know the exact model, size, year built, RAM installed and OS you're running.

Hi, when powering up my macbook pro, when the apple symbol appears the screen flashes pink, can anyone advise whats up?

Hi, when powering up my macbook pro, when the apple symbol appears the screen flashes pink, can anyone advise whats up?

You can try a system reinstall:
Reinstalling Lion Without Erasing the Drive
Boot to the Recovery HD: Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD and click on the downward pointing arrow button.
Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions: Upon startup select Disk Utility from the main menu. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions as follows.
When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the main menu.
Reinstall Lion: Select Reinstall Lion and click on the Continue button.
Note: You can also re-download the Lion installer by opening the App Store application. Hold down the OPTION key and click on the Purchases icon in the toolbar. You should now see an active Install button to the right of your Lion purchase entry. There are situations in which this will not work. For example, if you are already booted into the Lion you originally purchased with your Apple ID or if an instance of the Lion installer is located anywhere on your computer.

When i open my macbook pro- the screen lights up and then goes black-

When I open my Macbook pro- the screen lights up and then goes black- keybook stays backlite- can not get screen to come back on. Must reboot-
thoughts-?? Macbook is 6 months old and on second hard drive ( failure after 45 days).

Hey! exact same thing happens to me... I use the keyboard shortcut to turn off the screen which is ctrl - shift - eject button. Then just poke a key and it wakes up again fine, it doesn't fix the problem but at elast you don't have to reboot. x

Get no video when i hook up my macbook pro to tv

Hooked up my Macbook Pro to tv but get no picture.

In addition to kristoffer-s' suggestions you can use Apple TV to wirelesslly connect your rMBP.
It may be the best $99 investment you can make for entertainment on your TV. It simply requires a standard $10 HDMI cable, not supplied with the Apple TV unit. Through Apple TV, with Mavericks, you can use the TV as a standard OS X monitor or for entertainment. Also check out the Beamer software to stream videos to it from your Mac.
http://www.apple.com/appletv/
http://www.apple.com/appletv/airplay/
http://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-High-Speed-HDMI-Cable-Meters/dp/B003L1ZYYM/re f=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1385514116&sr=8-1&keywords=hdmi+cable

Why is it that when I plug my Macbook Pro to an external monitor, the external monitor turns black and shows the mouse only

Why is it that when I plug my Macbook Pro to an external monitor, the external monitor turns black and shows the mouse only

Hi, yes preferences sees there is a second display it recognises what make of monitor it is etc but I just get a blank blue screen on the monitor when I change it to the hdmi setting! I have tried with mirroring on and off, rearranging the displays in the preference window and lots of different resolution settings but with no difference.
An old MacBook connects fine so the monitor and hdmi port must be okay. I'm sure we have used the cable before but it could have been with the previous MacBook Air. The current one I'm using is a mid 2011 version running lion and is (according to software update) all up to date.
Any thoughts or help would be appreciated!

Im trying to hook up my macbook pro with Lion os to new tv with Kanex mini displayport hdmi with no luck, any help?

I'm trying to hook up my macbook pro to my new LG tv, I have the desktop screen on my tv (I was told I had to open a 2nd desktop and then drag my dvd screen into it, it still doesn't work.

ok so you have a macbook pro with minidisplayport and you can see your desktop on your LG screen?
go to system preferences>displays>arrangement and turn off Mirroring (if it's on). This will give you two separate areas and look similar to this.
If you want quick access to this setting click the "show displays in meny bar"
a little pointer, you see on my setup that there is now one screen with no white bar at the top and one with. This marks where your main screen is (and where the menu bar and dock appear) you can click and drag this white bar to your new LG tv.
Most new tv's have a setting to fit the screen to the tv size. This is a setting that allows for edge to edge persision instead of overlapping which you'll see in older tvs. Take a look at your tv's manual for more about this sort of connection.

Homeshare worked on my PC until recent iTunes update. Cannot get homeshare to work on PC as previous. When I use my MacBook Pro on the same network, iTunes/AppleTV works just fine, so it has to be iTunes?

An interesting observation...when I have a MacBook Pro connected and select Computers on my AppleTV2, the name of the MacBook computer comes up on the screen and allows me to select it and view photos from my iTunes library. Orks perfectly. When my Windows 8 PC is connected, and I select Computers on my AppleTV, the name of the PC does NOT come up on the computer list, but instead the AppleTV immediately tries to download pictures from the PC itunes library. It runs for ~2 minutes then generates an error message saying it could not connect to the iTunes library and to make sure it is tunrned on, connect to the same network, and use the same blah, blah, blah. I know all the settigns on the network are correct because my MacBook works perfecty. So frustrating that my PC worked previously before the recent iTunes software update. What to do to fix it?

Hi Rickgal,
Thanks for visiting Apple Support Communities.
Based on the information, it does sound like this behavior is isolated to your PC. I recommend trying the troubleshooting steps in this article on your PC:
Troubleshooting Home Sharing
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2972
Start with turning Home Sharing off and on again, as explained in step 3:
Go to File > Home Sharing and choose Turn Off Home Sharing.
Choose File > Home Sharing > Turn On Home Sharing.
When prompted, enter the Apple ID you'd like to use.
Click Turn On Home Sharing, then Done.
Best Regards,
Jeremy

I was able to hook up my macbook pro to the hdmi cable and see my desk top but it won't let me see any programs I open.

I was able to hook up my macbook pro to my tv using an hdmi cable and all I see is my desk top but not the movie playing on Netflix. Is there some utility I need to do on my computer?

Your TV is acting as an extension of your desktop. You can have some windows on your internal screen and some on your TV. Just drag the ones you want on your TV to that part of the extended screen. You can find out how the two screens are related spacially (and control it) at System Preferences > Displays > Arrangement.
If you prefer the two screen display the same windows, you can activate mirroring on that same preferences panel. You will have to choose what common resolution they both use.

Lost iPhoto when Apple replaced damaged MacBook Pro hard drive

My son and daughter-in-law recently had to replace their MacBook Pro hard drive. Apple did the replacement, but they got it back without iPhoto. Isn't that standard software when you purchase a MacBook Pro? Shouldn't it be part of the replacement, too?

If your computer shipped with Lion, follow the directions here to redownload the iLife apps:
Restoring iLife applications after Internet Restore of OS X Lion or OS X Mountain Lion
If you erase install OS X Lion or OS X Mountain Lion on a new Mac that shipped with OS X Lion or OS X Mountain Lion installed, you can download iPhoto, iMovie, and GarageBand from the Mac App Store.
After installation, start (up) from OS X.
Double-click the App Store icon in the dock.
Enter your Apple ID and password.
Click Purchases.
If you haven't previously accepted your bundled iLife applications within the Mac App Store, you should see your iLife applications appear in the Accept portion of the screen. Click Accept.
You may be asked for your Apple ID and password once again. Your iLife applications now move to the Purchased section. These applications are part of the software that came with your Lion based computer. Your account will not be charged for them. Click Install to complete installation of your applications.

When I open my Macbook Pro it shows past date

Hi -
Sometimes (pretty consistently lately) when I open my Macbook Pro it shows the screen that was there when I closed it, but everything is greyed. There is a line at the bottom that is moving across and when it finishes the color goes back to normal. But even then, the time is from when I closed it, and the computer is unresponsive. It will sometimes sit in this state for a couple of minutes or longer.
This is a six month old Macbook Pro and this happens pretty regularly, and has off and on since I first got it.
Is this just no more than annoying? I've been using Apple laptops since 2005 and never had this happen until this machine (which is my third personal one - I support two others). Any ideas on cause?
Thanks
Craig

Some users have reported solving this problem by resetting the NVRAM (PRAM.)
If you've installed something called "iCleanMemory," or any other third-party software that is supposed to "clean" or "free up" memory, remove it according to the developer's instructions after backing up all data. Reboot and test. If there's no change, continue.
Please read this whole message before doing anything.
This procedure is a diagnostic test. It’s unlikely to solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.
The purpose of the test is to determine whether the problem is caused by third-party software that loads automatically at startup or login, by a peripheral device, or by corruption of certain system caches.
Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed for the test, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards. Boot in safe mode and log in to the account with the problem. Note: If FileVault is enabled on some models, or if a firmware password is set, or if the boot volume is a software RAID, you can’t do this. Ask for further instructions.
Safe mode is much slower to boot and run than normal, and some things won’t work at all, including sound output and Wi-Fi on certain models. The next normal boot may also be somewhat slow.
The login screen appears even if you usually log in automatically. You must know your login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin. Test while in safe mode. Same problem? After testing, reboot as usual (i.e., not in safe mode) and verify that you still have the problem. Post the results of the test.

Small screen on TV when hooked up to Macbook Pro

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for