turning 1 pc into 2

QlimaxUK

QlimaxUK

QlimaxUK

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whats the easiest way to turn 1 desktop pc into 2 pc's (or more)?

thats separate monitors, keyborad, mice so that each 'user' has their own 'PC' so they are logged into 1 system? EDIT: at the same time

do i need to buy a special box or something to handle connected devices or is there a free way of doing this?
 
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What exactly are you trying to do? :S

A VM would sound perfect for what you're trying to do, but it will have it's limitations to the amount of machines you can run simultaneously.
 
Well faecetiously you could buy a small box called a PC and connect it to the second set of peripherals.

There are devices which allow his, haven't seen one advertised in years, but they probably still do the same rubbish.

Any reason you wish to do this, other than saving £250 on a cheap PC?
 
Semple said:
What exactly are you trying to do? :S

A VM would sound perfect for what you're trying to do, but it will have it's limitations to the amount of machines you can run simultaneously.
Click to expand...

How would a virtual machine allow you to plug in 2 keyboards and 2 mice?
I've clearly missed something.
 
Hikari Kisugi said:
How would a virtual machine allow you to plug in 2 keyboards and 2 mice?
I've clearly missed something.
Click to expand...

I've never tried it but i'm quite confident it could be possible. There must be a way of choosing which keyboard and mouse the VM wishes to use. This shouldn't in theory affect another VM or the host machine itself.
 
QlimaxUK said:
ok heres a video showing basically what i want to do :)
Click to expand...
You want to move your camera in and out while filming young Indian boys? :eek:

Anyway, this is the answer (et. al.):

Raist said:
http://www.sharemypc.eu/
Click to expand...

Check the bay for 'em as they seem to be about 6 times as expensive in the UK as they are in the US.

dave_beast said:
These

http://www.wyse.co.uk/products/software/wsm/index.asp
Click to expand...
Wow! That isn't exactly affordable! :p With a name like Wyse, you know it has to be overpriced. :D
 
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thats what im after! but a bit pricey at £156 for the L230 :(

is there a free/cheap method of doing this with usb keyboard/mouse, 2 monitors in my graphics card and some software to handle everything?

software being the 'key element' here :)
 
If you install linux and run windows inside virtualbox, you can have each monitor run its own x session and attach a specific keyboard and mouse to each session. So, run a copy of virtualbox in each session. That'll do what you're after. Unless you want to play games, which virtualbox isn't good at.

Free in terms of money, potentially expensive in terms of time. Otherwise thin clients may be worth looking at, they'll cost more money but less time :)
 
JonJ678 said:
If you install linux and run windows inside virtualbox, you can have each monitor run its own x session and attach a specific keyboard and mouse to each session. So, run a copy of virtualbox in each session. That'll do what you're after. Unless you want to play games, which virtualbox isn't good at.

Free in terms of money, potentially expensive in terms of time. Otherwise thin clients may be worth looking at, they'll cost more money but less time :)
Click to expand...

ok I downloaded virtualbox, installed xp on it so it's now xp/xp but does it support multiple mice/keyboards so they can be used by 2 users at the same time? (1 on each 'system') and does the extra network thing open me up to hackers?

EDIT: do the extra devices have to be USB as im using a ps2 mouse/kb? the reason i ask is that i havn't yet got a secondary mouse/keyboard to test myself so will have to buy one especially :)
 
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SiriusB said:
Why do you want to do this? :/
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mainly for 2 person LAN gaming (like in that video) or to have an extra web-surfing pc when gaming if i need to check something or need to login to something twice... the possibilities are endless :)

EDIT: it also gives me a taste of what life will be like if i ever have to upgrade to windows 7 if i get a pc with lots of RAM!
 
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This sounds stupid to me unless space is such a big issue. It is bound to cos more problems than its worth.

Why not buy a second cheap desktop for 50-100 quid off gumtree or eBay?

You can use the second rig for lan and browing the web while you game ...
 
SiriusB said:
And if you need to log into something twice - use another browser? :/

Not stopping you from trying stuff out, I just see it as largely pointless.
Click to expand...

i mean like logging into rpg type games twice not for websites :p doing this over 2 screens will allow both to be played at the same time

all this is just experimenting for now just to see 'what can be done' so nothing serious for the moment, but in future if i get windows 7 i will NEED an xp machine for compatibility reasons and i don't want a dual-boot or a second machine to have both :)
 
Do you know for a fact that you will have compatibility issues with Windows 7?

If it is just for software, you can run XP in a virtual machine. No need for multiple inputs.
 
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