Mac Keyboard Guide
KVM (Hang Your Mini Off of a ...)
If you want to incorporate your mini into an existing computer desktop, a KVM switch will do the trick. A variety of them are on the market, with a variety of options for cabling and device interconects. If the KVM does it’s job correctly, the attached computer thinks it’s connected to a standard keyboard, mouse and display.
For our test, we used an Avocent SwitchView MP . This particular unit suppors up to four computers, attaching via special cables. These cables can be ordered in varying lenths, with connectors for VGA displays and either PS/2, USB or Sun input ports. For connecting mice and keyboards to the SwitchView, choose from either PS/2 or Sun devices.
In normal operation, our unit controls two Dell PCs and two Power Mac G4s, all with USB cabling. The display is an NEC MultiSync 1850; the keyboard is a standard Dell 101-key; the mouse is a Kensington PS/2 ExpertMouse.
To test the Mac mini, we attached it using one of the cables usually attached to a Power Mac G4. (The cables are identical; the Power Mac was the most conveniently accessible.) The VGA connector slides on to Apple’s DVI/VGA adapter, and the USB connector attaches as one might expect. On powering on the mini, we found… well, a Mac mini attached to a VGA monitor with a PS/2 mouse and keyboard. The trackball’s primary button immediately became left-click, with right-click mapped to the secondary button; the Windows and Alt keys mapped to Command and Option as expected. Some have reported “dark” video images with VGA monitors and some KVM switches, but we saw no such artifacts.
In short, your KVM will work as you expect. If you have USB cabling, that’s certainly easiest. If not, use the dual-head PS/2-USB adapter and enjoy your multi-platform desktop.