Dual Monitors – Worth Every Penny

As I write this in 2006, it is a very late post. Back in January 2003, I got a major PC upgrade: two 19″ LCD monitors and a dual-DVI video card to drive them. This was somewhat less common (and much more expensive) in 2003 than today. The monitors are “Samsung SyncMaster 191T”. I took this photo at the time, meaning to post it:

Dual monitors are a remarkable productivity tool – I am confident that this upgrade paid for itself within the first few months of use. Another developer here at Oasis Digital uses three screens; I’m planning to go that direction, or two larger screens, next time I upgrade. I’ve since moved to a faster computer, but I’m still using these monitors.

For best results, don’t even think about plugging LCDs in to analog VGA – the difference between analog and DVI is immediately visible and stark. I’ve seen many sources online claim that DVI is only a minor improvement; I find this unfathomable.

I use and recommend Ultramon for making best use of multiple screen – it seems to work better than the similar software which ships with some video cards.