explain #2 in more detail, can you never ever go into S3 sleep, or does it just not work with remote control or what?
Correct - I can never get into sleep mode. If I shutdown, no matter what method I use (keyboard or remote, from inside MP or via Vista start button) the PC appears to shut down but then immediately reboots back up.
so what happens if you close both mp2imon and the vspe programs does S3 sleep then work?
I looked into this sleep mode problem and found a solution: Slick Solutions - MCE Standby Tool (MST). By tinkering I had noticed the problem was caused only by my wireless keyboard (when unplugged, sleep mode works fine). The MST tool allows you to select which devices should allow the wakeup. With my HID keyboard and mouse disabled (see devices tab in the MST tool), S3 resume now works fine. I can resume using the Harmony remote. Rather than using the MST tool, I could probably have achieved the same effect by disabling the keyboard from Control Panel > Device manager > Keyboard > Right click Properties > power managment > uncheck allow device to wake from sleep.
Back to the original question, I think I've given up getting anything more useful out of the display.