| Dual Monitors - Hype or Greatness? |
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Lately, there has been some buzz about dual monitor set-ups. PC World Magazine, Entrepreneur Magazine, even The New York Times have all written articles about how great they are. So what is all the hype? Well, for starters, multiple monitors increase the efficiency and productivity of the PC user. Extended desktops, multiple work environments, etc, all from one PC, helps to truly maximize the power of the PC. So what is it exactly and how do you do it? Multiple monitors is simply 2 or more monitors hooked up to 1 computer system. Most stock and pre-assembled PCs, such as a Dell or HP, probably only came with one VGA or DVI output to connect a monitor to. However, by utilizing a second video card, or a video card with dual outputs, you can easily add another monitor to your system. Once done, your desktop real estate doubles and your productivity is bound to increase. So how does it work? We'll believe it or not, I am writing this article from a PC that has 4 monitors attached to it. They are set-up as an extended desktop. This basically means that it is like having 1 big, long desktop with lots of space for open programs. Picture this... You are writing an article, and at the same time, you are doing research on the web for information to put in that article. With a single monitor, you more than likely would be bouncing back and forth between tabs to accomplish this task. A real waste of time. With 2 monitors you could have your Internet browser open in one monitor and MS Word or another word processing software program going in the other. Both full pages, fully expanded, everything visible, greatness. You could then seamlessly surf while writing, never having to go back and forth between tabs. You simple move the mouse which seamlessly jumps from one monitor to the other. The second option besides an extended desktop is multiple desktops. So instead of extending 1 desktop between your monitors, you have individual desktops on each monitor. Same basic functionality, but operating independently of one another. With this set-up, it almost feels like you have multiple computers. For web designers and graphic designers the opportunity presents the best possibilities. Having multiple pallets and sidebars open on one monitor while having a completely separate monitor for rendering. Add 1 more and now your photo download site or Internet research browser is in a constant and quickly accessible state. You get the idea. So what are my options? Well, depending on the age of your PC, you will need at minimum an available PCI slot and a dual VGA or DVI output graphics card. Look for one with at least 256 megs of on the video card memory. For gaming PC's and really high intensity graphics applications, look for even more memory or use dual cards. With dual cards you will need a second available PCI slot. Make sure you get a card specific to the slot you want to use, PCI, PCI express, AGP, etc. Installation of these cards is the same as with any PCI style device, simply follow the manufacturers recommendations or call a reputable company for assistance. Once installed you are in for a real treat. It takes only a few hours to get over the learning curve and once your on the other side, you'll never look back. enjoy. For any questions regarding multiple monitors, feel free to call On-Site at 1-888-725-4509. |