help setting up dual display

currently i use an alienware m17x r3 laptop for everything.
i have been able to duplicate the laptop display onto my tv via the hdmi out plug. the laptop corretly identifies and recognises my tv as a panasonic 50". i am able to view a movie/dvd on the tv been played on the laptop so that is the duplicate display sorted, however the extended display is kind of confusing me and am struggling to get it to work

now i like playing a particular game (EVE) and was thinking of using dual display for this by way of extending the display across the 2 monitors (laptop and tv)
both the laptop and the tv have 1920x1080 display options.

now when i choose the extended display i see my laptop screen as normal and on the tv i only see the alien head.

see piccy this is NOT my display but it will do for this example




the graphic card is the ati 6970 card

on my laptop i will see what is in the piccy above, on my tv all i will see is the alien head, no mouse pointer or icons or anything else. any advice appreciated.

thanks

 

It's an extension of your desktop, hence the extended display option you choose. You should be able to to move a window over, either left or right depending on how you have your displays set up, to your TV. I'll do this while playing MMOs. It's easy to have the game on my TV and FireFox open on my laptop. That way I can research or surf the web while I play.