No worries, gonk, although I've found items like this that claim to do just what you mentioned, I don't know how...

The difference between the two cables physically vs. the signals they transmit vs. the compatibility of the ports they're plugged into is enough to crash my OS. I thought digital cabling was supposed to make things simpler

If Miscanthus has a DVI input on his TV, he can connect to that via an adapter as well and filter out the problem. In any case, he'll have to choose the annoying problem or the expensive solution.