This is a screen capture of my dual monitor screens showing my Photoshop CS5 setup spanning both screens. This was prompted because of issues I had in CS5 configuring Photoshop.
Normally when I do a screen capture, by default I use the ‘active window’. The PS app window itself is never active when ‘any image is loaded’ and can only be made active previous to when the first image is opened. With that said the PS app window can still be minimized-maximized-closed even when it is not stereotypically active... as in when the ‘X’ is NOT red. This, in itself, is not a unique feature however.
I really don’t know what the inability to make this PS app screen active actually means but it is unique in my experience or at least in my memory. The probable implications are that Adobe is playing programming games for some unknown purpose and I suspect the result is either a mistake or a dubious value added feature…you pick.
With all that said here is a dual screen capture showing my setup. I suppose something like this would work on one screen too. The image is opened on the left and note the red X in that window. The PS app screen is opened on the right 'half' with no red X and all the ‘tools’ are permanently situated there.