Comments For Flat Panel Monitor Users
Flat panel monitors have a maximum resolution commonly referred to as the "native resolution".
For 17 inch and 19 inch "square" monitors, this is typically 1280 x 1024, where the "1280" refers to the
number of pixels in the horizontal direction on the panel and the "1024" refers to the number of pixels in the vertical direction.
Wide screen monitors typically have native resolutions of 1920 x 1080 for larger monitors and 1600 x 900 for
smaller ones.
The "size" of the monitor in inches refers to the diagonal measurement of the screen; thus a 20 inch wide screen
monitor has a smaller actual physical height than even a 17 inch square monitor which means that the same
size picture (in pixels) will appear much smaller to the viewer on the wide screen monitor than on the square one. It also
means that any text will appear much smaller and thus harder to read.
Purists tend to shudder when anyone suggests running the monitor at less than the native resolution
because maximum sharpness is achieved at that setting. Unfortunately, particularly with 17 inch square monitors, and
the smaller wide screen monitors,
the physical size of the monitor is sufficiently small that it may be difficult to read text, properly
view some pictures, etc., on the screen at its native resolution setting. However, many monitors can
be operated at less than the maximum resolution without excessive degradation of the picture while
providing enlargement of the material being displayed that greatly eases the eye strain.
Therefore, as of this revision in 2009, the most widely used monitor resolution setting seems to be
1024 x 768 for square monitors. This setting is basically two "steps" down from the maximum of 1280 x 1024,
since most video drivers also provide an option of 1152 x 864. However, the most commonly used
resolution settings are in a state of flux because of the proliferation of wide screen monitors at this writing.
But the above said, how well any particular flat panel displays fine detail at settings less
than its native resolution seems to vary significantly from one model to another based on experiments
I have conducted on a variety of different monitors at local stores; some seem to become downright
"fuzzy" looking when they are used at even one step less than the native resolution. My observations
seemed to be confirmed by a magazine review I recently read concerning a 22 inch wide screen monitor with a large color
gamut supposedly intended for photo use and the comment was made that the performance deteriorated
so drastically at anything less than the native resolution that the user would almost have to put
up with text so small as to be difficult to read in the menus of the photo editing software.
Hence, if you are running your monitor at the native resolution and the pictures seem too small,
I would suggest experimenting with setting the resolution a step or so lower than the maximum, which
will significantly enlarge the size of the displayed pictures. I have set the heights of the scenery and animal
pictures to fairly well fit the browser screen with a vertical resolution setting of 768, which
of course, is based on the commonly used (in 2009) square monitor setting of 1024 x 768.
If you are using a wide screen monitor some experimentation with settings, as described above, may also
be in order. Additionally, as mentioned above, you should keep in mind the fact that to obtain good
vertical height with a wide screen monitor, you need a somewhat
larger unit than with a square one since, typically, it takes roughly a 22 inch wide screen monitor
to provide the same number of inches of physical height as a 17 inch square one. Also, bear in mind
the fact that just having the same number of inches of height on a monitor does not mean that the number of pixels
will be the same.
If you experiment with the resolution settings of your computer's video driver, keep in mind that any combination
of horizontal and vertical pixel numbers you choose must have the same aspect ratio (width to height ratio) as
the native resolution, or the results will appear distorted on the screen. As of this update in
2011, most square monitors have an aspect ratio of 5:4 (1.25) while the majority of wide screen ones currently being sold,
have an aspect ratio of 16:9 (1.78).
Below is a sphere that is 200 pixels in diameter. If it appears essentially round, then your video
settings are presumably correct for your monitor with respect to aspect ratio. If it appears
oval shaped, then you should check your settings.
For example, if you were previously using a standard aspect ratio monitor with a
computer resolution setting of 1024 x 768, and you have recently acquired a new wide screen monitor,
unless you changed your computer to the appropriate video settings, the sphere will no longer be round; it
will be "squashed" into an oval shape because your computer's video system width to height ratio setting
no longer matches your monitor's width to height ratio.
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