On 05/19/2016 09:40 AM, Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic wrote:
Starting to think I need a second computer monitor. My PC is 5 years old and only has the one VGA port (no DVI/HDMI), so do I need to get a video card? For those who've done it -- do you find it distracting to have your display spread across two screens? A priority is to spend as little as possible.
I've nearly always used two or three displays on my desktop system, until fairly recently when I rearranged my main work area and moved to a single 24" display. That was pretty restrictive. After that, about a year ago I moved to a 42" 4K display. That finally gave me enough workspace, but more is always better. I'm getting closer to moving my lab to the new building, so I've been thinking about how my new desk arrangement will be set up, and I will probably either add another 4K display or at least a smaller "ancillary" display. The biggest issue adjusting to two displays is the "looking in the middle" problem. If they're placed symmetrically, and you're accustomed to looking at the middle of one display, well, you see the problem. So you're faced with either learning to split things in half and look back and forth, or have one "primary" display and a "secondary" off to one side. Of course that's not an issue if you do three. ;) More desktop real estate can be a tremendous productivity booster, whether you get it with more resolution and size on one display or from multiple displays. Either way, do it, and you'll likely immediately see the benefits. -Dave -- Dave McGuire, AK4HZ New Kensington, PA