Issue with monitor scaling

Ok, just to set the picture. I'm using an old Dell Studio 1535. My GPU is an AMD 3450M so pretty old. I'm currently docking my computer and using a keyboard, mouse, and monitor for a better at the desk experience. The monitor I have is an ASUS VS Series 23".

I'm connecting my Xbox 360 to my monitor using VGA connection as that is my only option for my Xbox (it is pretty old too). My Laptop has two options however, VGA and HDMI. With my Xbox 360 using the VGA input that leaves me with a DVI and HDMI input. So naturally, I decide to connect via HDMI. Now, I tested my monitor first with my laptop when it arrived using the VGA connection. It allowed me to extend the desktop, duplicate the image, and use the monitor only all appropriately and the correct aspect ratios, resolutions, and proper scaling. Basically the 1920x1080 resolution properly fit my monitor when doing anything, including gaming. A note: my laptop's built in display is 1440x900 (16:10).

Now, using HDMI, as soon as I set my screen resolution to any 16:9 aspect ratio, it underscans the image so I get black bars all around the screen. In any 16:10 aspect ratio there is no underscan and it autiomatically fills the screen. Obviously this annoyed me as I wasn't getting a true resolution out of my monitor. I looked up some info on the internet and saw that some people had this cause by allowing audio to also pass through the HDMI cable. So I went into the Sound Options on the control panel and disabled HDMI audio (note: I have kept this disabled since). This did not fix my issue. I then opened up Catalyst Contol Center (I believe I'm on version 11.07 or 11.7 can't remember, I'm not updating it though because whenever I do mess around with graphic drivers, it always messes up my computer and I need to completely reinstall my OS).

Under 'My Digital Flat-Panels' I selected 'Scaling Options' to see that it was automatically underscanning the image so I set it to 0%. This fixed the issue. I had to do this seperately for Extended Desktop and External Display only. However, when I launch a video game (occured for both StarCraft II and Battlefield 2). If I run at a 16:9 aspect ratio still, I get the image underscanning again. If I run the game at a 16:10 aspect ratio, I get a full monitor fill, but of course at 16:10, I get a stretched image on my monitor. Backed to being annoyed again. Alt + Tab out and my desktop is perfectly fine no underscanning. Click back on the game icon in the taskbar back to an underscanning. I've tried messing with the CCC settings with a game active but, the only way to do that is when in Windowed or Windowed Fullscreen mode which no underscanning occurs. If I try in fullscreen extended desktop, the game only goes to my laptop display no matter which one is the main display, if the monitor is the main display, it does this weird glitch where the laptop is the display, but the mouse appears over a black area on the external monitor so nothing I can do there.

What it boils down to is that in all scenarios (desktop, youtube, etc.) my external monitor properly displays in 1920x1080 with no scaling so it fits the monitor properly. As soon as I start a game, if I run it in 16:9 (1280x720 or 1920x1080) then it underscans but if I run it in a non 16:9 resolution then it fits the entire monitor (800x480, 1280x800, 1440x900) but then the aspect ratio doesn't match the monitor (StarCraft II does adjust the aspect ratio by adding black bars to correct the image, but it only does that on my laptop, not the monitor, so on laptop a 16:9 res is corrected to 16:10 by adding black bars, but a 16:10 res will no correct to 16:9 on my external monitor). Note: I did try both selecting and deslecting the option for scaling values listed in Scaling Options on CCC but there is no difference.

So this leaves me with 3 options:
1) Find a way to remove the underscanning so that the image fills the entire monitor screen which is why I'm posting here
2) Deal with the underscanning so that I still at least get the appropriate aspect ratio, I lose a slight bit of clarity from the underscanning plus lose almost 2 inches diagonally.
3) [This will be my most likely option] Buy a VGA to DVI adapter and connect to the VGA output on my laptop and the DVI input on my monitor. [Worried about 2 things on this option though will VGA to DVI be the same quality of VGA to VGA, I don't want to lose clarity because of adapters. And last is for some reason the VGA output on my laptop has no screw holes on it so it always seems like the VGA plug is about to come out.]

 

Right click in CCC and chose my displays/external displays/HDTV panels.
there is an option under one of those called Scaling. There you can change the Scanning whether you want Over/Under scanning.

 

You didn't read my post