[clue-tech] two monitors - the new fad

[William]

Jeff Cann wrote:
  > But, trying to be open-minded, I put the questions to the cluebies:
> 
> Who's using two monitors?
> Why?
> Are you more/less efficient with your work?
> 
> Thanks for comments.

Without reading everyone else's replies (and there seem to be many), 
here's my input.

To start, I want to clear up a misconception.  Using dual-monitors is 
not a "new fad".  I've been using dual-monitors since about 1998.  I 
learned this from a friend who'd been using this setup for a while 
before me.  As a "feature freak" and technophile, I was immediately hooked.

Now, to support the examples that will follow, I'll explain my setup.  I 
run two identical 21" CRTs side-by-side (literally touching each other 
to form as small a seam as possible between them).  I run both monitors 
at 1600x1200x32bit, netting a single combined desktop size of 
3200x1200x32bit.  My first dual-monitor video card was a Matrox; today I 
use an ATI.

Dual-monitors double desktop size and improve work flow, so I do my best 
to always have this setup whether at work or at home.  It's not 
religious, it's advantageous and habitual.  I've been doing this for so 
long that on a single-monitor machine, I literally feel unnecessarily 
confined.

Some examples of benefits include (this is not an exhaustive list, but 
this is what comes immediately to mind because I enjoy many of these 
benefits every day):
* Larger graphics editing windows in floating-tile programs like Adobe 
Photoshop; move the tiles to monitor 2 while maximizing the edit window 
on monitor 1.  I work with very massive graphics files and this has 
always been my most notable advantage over single-monitor users amongst 
my graphics-editing associates.
* Less "flipping" between application windows improves typing 
performance when writing from on-line documentation sources 
(particularly complex syntax documentation that is otherwise difficult 
to memorize).
* Less "flipping" also means that both the documentation window and the 
target/source/document window stay maximized -- seeing more 
verbiage/code without resizing/distorting the source or target windows.
* Keeping real-time communication windows visible at all times is a 
serious advantage for those who need real-time communication, like me. 
I utilize many forms of IM, IRC, VoiP, and e-mail.  Depending on the 
source of the communication, immediate replies are often necessary, so 
instant notification is imperative.
* When working on some of my client-server applications, it is extremely 
helpful to have one RDP window consuming one monitor while running the 
associated software from my local box.  This gives me instant, real-time 
access to the inputs, behaviors, and outputs of both components.  This 
is especially important when the server is located at a remote site.
* At home, it's nice to have the TV tuner's window (sometimes with a 
video game system on the input) on a dedicated portion of one of my 
monitors while still keeping my messaging windows visible AND still 
working in maximized document windows on the other monitor, be it news 
portals, school work, or work-brought-home (for people with A.D.H.D., 
this is a blessing).
* When troubleshooting especially elusive programming bugs, it is 
extremely useful to have the debugger maximized on one monitor and the 
application on another (code and debug output scrolls too fast, otherwise).
* Doing side-by-side comparisons of large images or documents is 
relatively impractical with a single monitor.  I sometimes render color 
shifts in my large graphics files and it is extremely useful to have a 
pre-render image on one monitor and the post-processed result on the other.

HTH.

-- 
William Kimball, Jr.
http://www.kimballstuff.com/
http://www.myspace.com/ryogahibiki303
"Programming is an art-form that fights back!" (Unknown)