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hardware fun
Oct. 28th, 2001 05:44 pmLately I've been trying to figure out what to replace my (home) computer monitor with. The one I have works just fine, but it's a 17" CRT (not flat-screen) and I've been having more and more eyestrain problems with it. Specifically, I need enough screen real estate for the applications I use most often that I have to have at least 1024 x 768, but in some apps that results in things being too small. (For example, many web sites still hard-code their fonts, and the ones that choose small ones are illegible to me at that resolution on a 17" monitor. But aside from that, I've had pesky problems with other apps too where it's not clearly the fault of some loser who let Microsoft write his HTML for him.)
So monitors are getting cheaper (I think I paid close to $600 for that 17" monitor, lo these many years ago), but there are also more options. I can get a 17" LCD for about $900, but before I plunk down that kind of money on a new-to-me technology I'd really like to use it for several days, at least. A quickie look in a store won't tell me what I need to know. I could get a flat-screen 21" monitor for about $450; the flat screens help with distortion (another problem I've been noticing) and definitely help with glare (more of a problem in my office now than in the previous house). But I'm not going to buy any monitor without seeing it in action first (my top concern not covered by specs is flicker). So today on the way out for groceries I decided to do a quick survey of the offerings at Office Depot. Hardly a hardware mecca, but I figured it would give me a quick overview.
While there, I decided on a different approach. Why restrict my angsting to the $900 option and the $450 option, both of which are well over the "think about this seriously" threshold? I bought a 19" flat-screen monitor for $250. (Well, $100 of that is a rebate.) This will do for at least a couple years, and by then maybe the LCDs will have come down in price and become more ubiquitous. (Hay, maybe I'll even get one at work before then.)
19" at 1152 x 864 seems to give me what I need. (Flicker rate is 85hz, which is my minimum acceptable. Higher would be better, but I think the problem might be my graphics card.)
By the way, I think there is actually an upper bound on usable monitor sizes for me. It might be 21". I've never had the opportunity to use one of the really large ones, but I have to sit close enough to the monitor due to poor vision that even a 19" monitor is never fully within my field of view. There may be a point where the neck and shoulder muscles have something to say on the subject.
So monitors are getting cheaper (I think I paid close to $600 for that 17" monitor, lo these many years ago), but there are also more options. I can get a 17" LCD for about $900, but before I plunk down that kind of money on a new-to-me technology I'd really like to use it for several days, at least. A quickie look in a store won't tell me what I need to know. I could get a flat-screen 21" monitor for about $450; the flat screens help with distortion (another problem I've been noticing) and definitely help with glare (more of a problem in my office now than in the previous house). But I'm not going to buy any monitor without seeing it in action first (my top concern not covered by specs is flicker). So today on the way out for groceries I decided to do a quick survey of the offerings at Office Depot. Hardly a hardware mecca, but I figured it would give me a quick overview.
While there, I decided on a different approach. Why restrict my angsting to the $900 option and the $450 option, both of which are well over the "think about this seriously" threshold? I bought a 19" flat-screen monitor for $250. (Well, $100 of that is a rebate.) This will do for at least a couple years, and by then maybe the LCDs will have come down in price and become more ubiquitous. (Hay, maybe I'll even get one at work before then.)
19" at 1152 x 864 seems to give me what I need. (Flicker rate is 85hz, which is my minimum acceptable. Higher would be better, but I think the problem might be my graphics card.)
By the way, I think there is actually an upper bound on usable monitor sizes for me. It might be 21". I've never had the opportunity to use one of the really large ones, but I have to sit close enough to the monitor due to poor vision that even a 19" monitor is never fully within my field of view. There may be a point where the neck and shoulder muscles have something to say on the subject.
