Laptop as the Primary Display for a Desktop?

[Game Ender]

Is it possible to use my laptop (Inspiron 600m) as the primary display for a desktop computer. I am looking into buying a small from factor desktop and I don't have space for a CRT or the money for a LCD monitor. So I was wondering if it would be possible to use my laptop as an LCD monitor. I don't care about performance I am not going to be using this for gaming, just Linux tinkering.

I do know of the technology that allows you to use your laptop as a second screen over a network connection but i don't think that will work here.

 

[Cristatus]

setup up you PC so that you can VNC into it, and put a wired connection between the two. other than that, IDK

 

[silverpig]

Yeah, that's pretty much how I'd do it... although installing and setting up windows that way would be a problem.

 

[uOpt]

VNC if you have to use Windows.

If you can use Unix (Linux, FreeBSD whatever) on the remote computer (the desktop with no monitor), then this capability is naturally built in via X11 (X Window System).

If you use X11 the notebook can run Unix, too, or Windows with an X11 server. So you wouldn't have to set up your notebook to do Unix. But obviously the applications you want to call are Unix applications. Between Mozilla, Openoffice and Outlook clones many people are happy.

As a plus, you'd be pretty much virus safe. Even if the Notbook runs Windows, if all the apps are remotely displayed Unix apps and you don't allowthe Windows box direct access to the Internet you'll be fine, too.

 

[M4tth3wV]

RDP works well. Yes, MS sucks goats but RDP is great.

 

[geejo]

But doent VNC lag too much ??

 

[uOpt]

VNC is pretty bad but reasonable with two P4-class machines and 100 MBit network. The bigger problem is that the mouse doesn't precisely work as it does on a native screen.

X11 is a baziilotimes faster an, the mouse feel is always the same, and the network badwidth demands are less, WLAN is not a problem.