OT. KVM switch

[John John]

Any recommendations for a good yet reasonably priced KVM switch? Only
need it to switch monitor, keyboard & mouse between 2 machines.

Second question, the monitor is a pricey LaCie 19" CRT, no longer
available, are those switches hard on monitors?

John

 

[Me]

Any recommendations for a good yet reasonably priced KVM switch? Only
need it to switch monitor, keyboard & mouse between 2 machines.

We use Avocent Switchview KVM's at work and that's what I ended up buying
for home use as well.
http://www.avocent.com/web/en.nsf/Content/SwitchView
The pricing on their site seems a bit high and I don't seem to remember
paying that much for mine. Shop around and you'll likely find a better
deal.

Second question, the monitor is a pricey LaCie 19" CRT, no longer
available, are those switches hard on monitors?

I can't really answer that and have never heard of them causing problems.
But from experience I would say no. My 19" CRT (Samsung) is now 6 years old
and I've been using the switchbox with it for about 3 years with no ill
effects.


Greg

 

[Sid Elbow]

Any recommendations for a good yet reasonably priced KVM switch? Only
need it to switch monitor, keyboard & mouse between 2 machines.

- Couple of things to watch for:

- some cheaper KVM's need you to be switched into a machine's position
while booting that machine otherwise the mouse and keyboard are not
detected. I have one el-cheapo from a surplus store that does this which
is a nuisance if you want to work on one machine while booting the
other. Even more of a nuisance if you forget. Decent KVM's don't do this.

- on a related note, some video card drivers may require you to switch
to a machine while booting to correctly detect the monitor and set the
resolution. This was a new one on me recently when I updated my video
driver and it now boots into 640x480 if I'm not switched into that position.

- Many (most?) KVM's allow hotkey switching as well as or instead of the
manual switch. Be sure this hotkey doesn't clash with any hotkeys used
by applications (or that you can change either the KVM or application's
hotkey).

My main KVM is a Linksys PS2KVM2 2-port device which I've used for 6 or
7 years now. Works fine - my only criticism is with Linksys tech support
which was totally useless. This device has the hotkey problem (clashes
with the model manipulation keys hard-coded in my CAD program). The
Linksys website said it could be changed but gave no directions. Linksys
TS didn't know what a KVM was, even when given the model number and
pointed to the appropriate web page!

I've also tried a D-Link DKVM-2K but it gave ghosting on the video
signal and was not usable. I'd certainly try before you buy a KVM if you
can or make sure it's returnable

Second question, the monitor is a pricey LaCie 19" CRT, no longer
available, are those switches hard on monitors?

Don't see why they should be but in any event, I've used my Linksys
daily in my main setup for 6 - 7 years and never had a problem. Most of
that with a CRT monitor, the last year or so with an LCD.

 

[Colon Terminus]

Any recommendations for a good yet reasonably priced KVM switch? Only
need it to switch monitor, keyboard & mouse between 2 machines.

Second question, the monitor is a pricey LaCie 19" CRT, no longer
available, are those switches hard on monitors?

John

I've used KVMs for years both professionally and personally. I've gone
through dozens trying to find the "perfect" KVM. I've purchased expensive
units (well over $100.00) and el cheapo units. Units from just about every
KVM manufacturer.

I've found two that worked to my satisfaction. One from Linksys and one from
LinksKey. Unfortunately the Linksys model doesn't switch audio, a capability
I must have for home use. I've even gone so far as to write Linksys letters
begging them to produce a model with audio switching capability, all to no
avail.

This is the LinksKey model I use at home:
http://www.linkskey.com/detail.php?Productid=188&ProductName=LKU-S02ASK

Neither a Linksys nor a LinksKey KVM will harm your monitor in any way.

 

[John John]

We use Avocent Switchview KVM's at work and that's what I ended up buying
for home use as well.
http://www.avocent.com/web/en.nsf/Content/SwitchView
The pricing on their site seems a bit high and I don't seem to remember
paying that much for mine. Shop around and you'll likely find a better
deal.




I can't really answer that and have never heard of them causing problems.
But from experience I would say no. My 19" CRT (Samsung) is now 6 years old
and I've been using the switchbox with it for about 3 years with no ill
effects.

Thank you for your reply. That (Avocent) looks like a good line of
switches.

John

 

[John John]

Thank you, Sid. The information is very helpful.

John

 

[John John]

I've used KVMs for years both professionally and personally. I've gone
through dozens trying to find the "perfect" KVM. I've purchased expensive
units (well over $100.00) and el cheapo units. Units from just about every
KVM manufacturer.

I've found two that worked to my satisfaction. One from Linksys and one from
LinksKey. Unfortunately the Linksys model doesn't switch audio, a capability
I must have for home use. I've even gone so far as to write Linksys letters
begging them to produce a model with audio switching capability, all to no
avail.

This is the LinksKey model I use at home:
http://www.linkskey.com/detail.php?Productid=188&ProductName=LKU-S02ASK

Neither a Linksys nor a LinksKey KVM will harm your monitor in any way.

Thanks for taking time to share your experience and advice, CT. It's
much appreciated.

John

 

[GO]

Thank you for your reply. That (Avocent) looks like a good line of
switches.

John

Your welcome. I don't have any experience with any of the other KVMs out
there so I can't make any direct comparisons, but I'm a big fan of Avocent's
KVMs. Good luck.


Greg