v1.1.0 pre-release discussion

[waydabber]

Please let me know if you have any suggestions or issues regarding the v1.1.0 alpha versions! Thank you!

[jb-ks]

I had an interesting problem with the alpha version:

I had put the BetterDummy icon of the aplha-release on the desktop of my second screen and then launched it. After that I could see the BetterDummy icon in the taskbar at the top of the screen, but all menu items were inactive.

The cause was that BetterDummy's welcome screen was mapped to a dummy screen that was not visible. After I set Mirroring in the control panel, I could confirm the welcome and everything ran smoothly again.

It would be good if the welcome screen is always displayed on the main screen, regardless of where the icon is located.

[waydabber]

You are right, this might indeed be an issue. I'll probably forfeit the welcome notification from the next alpha version, it is just to inform the thester about the time limit. I can add this info to the //.. test header of the menu anyway.

...or I'll show this notification before creating the dummies. :)

[jb-ks]

I'm mostly interested in the fullscreen streaming so I can get a better picture on my 4k monitor connected via DisplayLink.

When I first tried to enable fullscreen streaming, I didn't notice any functionality at first (PIP worked fine).

After a few restarts of BetterDummy and some trial and error, fullscreen streaming now works without problems on the specified monitor.

Unfortunately, I can no longer reproduce the problem.

[waydabber]

@jb-ks - yes, full screen streaming is rather buggy at the moment and will fail to work sometimes. If it does not work, just restart the app and go straight to the full screen streaming without changing other stuff. I really just duct-taped together this release and if I saw something working, I moved on to an other feature. I'll test and iron out all the issues methodically - I really appreciate all the feedback as that helps me with the process.

[waydabber]

About full screen streaming - it is important to note that the quality will be best if the stream target display is set to native resolution (not an issue with DisplayLink as I think you don't have a choice in the matter...) and the dummy aspect ratio matches the aspect ratio of the display obviously.

[jb-ks]

No problem, it is an alpha version after all.

But in terms of function, fullscreen streaming is exactly what I need for my display link application. It's much simpler to use than PIP, actually just like mirroring.

And, just like in the tests before, the quality is actually very good. Better than mirroring, and indistinguishable from the original quality on a normal desktop. :-)

I noticed that the performance is a bit lower than with the mirroring: when you move a large window, it jerks a bit. But you don't notice it when working in office applications or in the web browser. Completely problem-free.

[waydabber]

fyi, v1.1.0-alpha2 is released.

[Zorast]

HAHA

"" Lots of brand new bugs. :)

So nice!! :-D

[waydabber]

It's a feature. :)

[Zorast]

And for the user its a challenge.. Find the Bug !! :-D

[waydabber]

Hi all, there is now an updated beta version without the 10 minute tryout hinderance for the Pro stuff. :)

[jb-ks]

Thank you for the new version!

My primary interest in this version is the "full screen streaming" (for better HiDPI redering in conjunction with DisplayLink @4k).

I found two points that can be improved:

1. "Autostart full screen streaming" does not work for me.

2. after starting the "full screen streaming" the resolution is not correct at first. I have set 2560x1440 (and the slider shows this), but on the screen appears a much lower resolution. When I move the slider and release it, the resolution changes and shows a correct image on the screen. Then I move the slider back to 2560x1440 and everything is fine.

Many greetings
Jan

[waydabber]

Thanks for the response. I'll finetune this functionality. I also need to take the destination screen exclusively and prohibit the mouse (and windows) from entering to it.

[seratosteve]

Hi, is there a way to choose the virtual refresh rate of the virtual display?

[waydabber]

Hi - no, it is 60Hz only as other refresh rates are not currently supported for virtual displays in macOS.

[sbabych]

1.1.0-beta2 after sleep/lock loses scale and main display setting. So I need to reconfigure it after each sleep/lock
macOs Monterey 12.2.1
MacBook Pro (14-inch, 2021)

All three checkboxex under Sleep and screen lock behavior are checked

[sbabych]

After I've switched to 1.0.13 - it remembers main display and scaling now after sleep/lock, but has few new issues:

1. sometimes I see flickering after sleep/lock
2. when I disconnect external dislpay - BetterDummy remains connected .. and some apps goes there and becomes "hidden"

[sbabych]

a bit more info:
when I have set up association with my external monitor - I see flickering,
without association betterdummy remains connected

[waydabber]

Thanks for the report!

Yes, association is needed for betterdummy to auto connect/disconnect, so that is normal (without that you need to manually connect/disconnect).

The flickering issue is indeed problem for some users, see this thread about it: #261. There is no 100% solution to it as of now, you can try adjusting the color profiles but that did not work for some.