how to power and put an image on an old 12.1" laptop screen.

[Plester]

i salvaged a working 12.1" TFT from an old fujitsu laptop the other day, it is the full assembly w/ bezel, etc. and 2 wire harnesses coming off of it. i would love to convert this into a small display for my kids pc, but have no idea how to power it and get an image to it. i suppose i need to track down a wiring diagram for it before i do anything...

anyone ever done this?

 

[Plester]

just found my answer - buy a controller card that cost more than a 15" lcd monitor.

 

[Peter]

Right. Notebook internal displays want to be fed with their own unique timings and data formats. You need to have a VGA card that has this direct digital connection (this is parallel digital or LVDS, but never TMDS as found on DVI plugs). Then you need to customize the card's VGA BIOS to produce the right timing and format.

Everyday work for BIOS engineers in these markets, but practically impossible for an end user. That's what DVI with its neato plug&play mechanism is there for.