Can't use second monitor from xfce4

[Mike McNally]

I've got Ubuntu (not Xubuntu) 10.10 installed on a Lenovo U460 laptop. The
laptop has a dual-GPU architecture. I find that in no circumstances (from
Linux) can I access a second monitor plugged into the DVI port when I've got
the laptop "forced" (via BIOS setting) into using the NVidia GPU. With the
BIOS set to use the Intel GPU, however, I can use the secondary monitor, but
only when I log in with a Gnome or Openbox session. From XFCE, I can't get
the second monitor to do anything at all.

One of my points of confusion is that I can find no tool in the xfce4 suite
that allows monitor configuration like the Gnome "Monitors" tool in the
Gnome control center. When I use that to set things up within a Gnome
session, it all works  just fine - the second monitor is correctly detected,
gets the right resolution, is positioned correctly for mouse movement, etc.
Same goes for Openbox.  From xfce4, however, the second monitor remains
dark. Even if I run the gnome-control-center from the xfce session, nothing
happens, though the Gnome tool does "see" the second monitor; it just
doesn't actually work.

So, what *is* the "normal" xfce4 way of setting up monitors?  Any clue as to
why I'd be seeing this behavior?

Thanks.


-- 
Turtle, turtle, on the ground,
Pink and shiny, turn around.
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