Mirror mode. Does it have to show only whats on the desks monitors?

Not an Element expert, but afaik ist not possible in mirror Mode to Show a diffrent display than the One on the console. This kind of makes sense, since the Laptop mirrors the console, including the display.
It will work as you intend if you log in as client with a dongle.

I know it will work if I use a dongle, but that is a very expensive way of doing it. In mirror mode I know I can't control the console from the laptop, but surely it should be possible for the laptop to mirror everything the console is doing and not be limited to just what is on the consoles display?

However, I'm afraid that's the case. If you change the display on the console, it should change on the mirror as well.
If I'm standing in front of a mirror at home, it also mirrors everything, not only face or only clothes or.....
In terms of cost: it's a question of standpoint I guess. The client dongle (Nomad 256 to be more correct) does not cost a fortune and is still lots cheaper than a RVI

But the Nomad 256 dongle is only half a universe, isn't it? Our Element has 250 Channels over 2 universes so I'd need the 1024 dongle, wouldn't I?

No. In client mode the master defines parameter count. Plus it's not of interest how you distribute your DMX addresses. With a 256 dongle you can control 256 Dmx adresses, no matter on how many universes they are spread.

If you sign in as client, you could control a TI with max channel count with the 256 dongle.

Thank you for clarifying what the 256 dongle can do. However I don't want to control the console from the laptop. I just want to be able to see what it is doing on my laptop, and I don't see why I'd need to buy a dongle to do this. Surely mirror mode should allow me to see everything the console is doing, not just what it is showing on its monitors? I can think of no good reason why it shouldn't work like I'm suggesting.

Sorry, I don't get the question.
What do,you mean "should show everything the console is doing"?
It does show everything the console shows (on its own monitor).. But nothing more. If you want a different view on your Laptop, you need client mode (technically you are controlling the desk if you switch arround displays).

Like it or not, mirror mode won't show anything different on the laptop's monitor than on the console's monitor.

What I meant was that I should be able to see the cue list or the channel list, for example, on the laptop regardless of what is being shown on the consoles monitors. Because the laptop is synchronised with the console, all the console would need to do is say to the laptop "I'm in this cue", or "These are the channel levels", and the laptop should then update the relevant parts of the display. I don't see why you think that this means the laptop is controlling the console.

Basically I'm asking why the laptop doesn't simply mirror the state of the console (channel levels, cue state, etc) and then display whichever portions of that data that I want to look at. To me, mirror mode should mean that the laptop mirrors the state of the console and not necessarily its appearance.

I completely understand what you want or what you wish what would be. But unfortunately the system is not designed to work that way.
Mirror mirrors the whole console, including its display status. If you change a display on the console, you are controlling the console, ie you are giving a command. Now you wish to give this command on the mirror, to change a display. And that just doesn't work.

Again, if I stand in front of my mirror at home wearing a coat, the mirror won't show my shirt. Only if Imtake the coat of, the mirror shows the shirt. Consider me as the console and the mirror on my wall the mirror mode laptop. (I know it's a kind of stupid example but it kind of explains it). In this example the mirror is also not able to tell me to take the coat of (neither would it be possible to see coat and shirt at the same time.

That's just the ETC defined the modes. I'm pretty sure it's more marketing reasons than technical reasons, but that's the way it is.

The definition of mirror mode is: the laptop shows exactly what the consoles first monitor shows, nothing more nothing less.
For everything else you need a dongle

So if I had a dongle does that mean that if I change the display on the laptop it would also change the display on the console?

NOT IF you have a dongle. Then you can log in as client.

Thx Ueli

Okay. I'm wondering if anyone from ETC could explain why I can't see everything the console is doing on my laptop. Doesn't seem very useful just to repeat only what is on the consoles display.

Because the system is designed like this. Mirror is for example useful if you want a remote monitor, for example for the stage anger to follow the cue list. Or for the designer to see the channel values without bending over....

But you can't display channel values on one mirror client, and the cue list on another mirror client at the same time, can you? So in your example the stage manager would have to wait for the designer to finish what they are doing so they can see the cue list, and vice versa. Also the board op. would have to change what is shown on monitor one so that the stage manager and designer can see what they need to see. You can get round all of this by having a combined cue/channel list that the board op, stage manager, and designer all share, but why should they have to? I doubt they've all got high-res. monitors....