CRT or LCD?

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Hi Guys,
When considering buying a new system, those LCD monitors look real nice.
Now on my Inspiron 7000 (laptop) with a 15" screen I run at a resolution of
1024 X 768, on our HP desktop (wife's) we have a 20" CRT monitor (19"
viewing area),also weights a ton,, we run that at only 800 X 600. If we
crank the resolution up any higher, the text is just to difficult to read
(we're old 42 / 57. Also we,re not much into gaming, the wife plays some
of those Tetris type games or some of that play gambling. Not exactly
intensive video work. So in your humble opinion, would an LCD monitor be
advisable? I wasn't sure if I remember someone saying that the text and
images aren't as clear on an LCD when run at low resolution as they are on a
CRT monitor. Your thoughts please.
Thanks,
Paul

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

YEs. Get the LCD.

"Paul Schilter" <paulschilter@comcast,dot,net> wrote in message
news-KdnfzbVNnFSOPcRVn-oQ@giganews.com...
> Hi Guys,
> When considering buying a new system, those LCD monitors look real
nice.
> Now on my Inspiron 7000 (laptop) with a 15" screen I run at a resolution
of
> 1024 X 768, on our HP desktop (wife's) we have a 20" CRT monitor (19"
> viewing area),also weights a ton,, we run that at only 800 X 600. If we
> crank the resolution up any higher, the text is just to difficult to read
> (we're old 42 / 57. Also we,re not much into gaming, the wife plays
some
> of those Tetris type games or some of that play gambling. Not exactly
> intensive video work. So in your humble opinion, would an LCD monitor be
> advisable? I wasn't sure if I remember someone saying that the text and
> images aren't as clear on an LCD when run at low resolution as they are on
a
> CRT monitor. Your thoughts please.
> Thanks,
> Paul
>
>

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Paul Schilter wrote:
> on my Inspiron 7000 (laptop) with a 15" screen I run at a
> resolution of 1024 X 768

> I remember someone saying that the text and images aren't as clear on
> an LCD when run at low resolution as they are on a CRT monitor. Your
> thoughts please. Thanks,
> Paul

Go for an LCD; at least 17" if you can afford it.

The unknown someone was correct, however. A CRT will work at several
resolutions, so you can play around to find the one that best suits you. LCD
monitors are built to a specific resolution, and if you run the monitor at a
different resolution, one of two things will happen (depending upon your
graphics card); either the display will appear in the centre of the screen,
with a big black margin around it, or the display will enlarge, and become
blurred.

The solution is to decide what resolution the LCD needs to run at, and buy
an LCD that works at that resolution as standard. With standalone LCD
monitors it's an easy choice, because there aren't actually that many
resolutions available (laptops, for some reason, get all the best resolution
choices); if you buy a 15" LCD (equivalent to a 17" CRT) look for 1024 x
768. A 17" LCD should be 1280 x 1024, and above 17" should be 1600 x 1200.
These are based on standard 4:3 monitors- widescreen will be slightly
different.

HTH,

Pete.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Pete,
Thanks for the advice. It appears that I'll have to find the type of LCD
monitor I want and see if its native resolution suits my needs.
Paul

"Peter Connolly" <newsgroupsdemon@removethisbitacutecomputing.co.uk> wrote
in message news:clnl5u$i99$1$830fa7a5@news.demon.co.uk...
> Paul Schilter wrote:
>> on my Inspiron 7000 (laptop) with a 15" screen I run at a
>> resolution of 1024 X 768
>
>> I remember someone saying that the text and images aren't as clear on
>> an LCD when run at low resolution as they are on a CRT monitor. Your
>> thoughts please. Thanks,
>> Paul
>
> Go for an LCD; at least 17" if you can afford it.
>
> The unknown someone was correct, however. A CRT will work at several
> resolutions, so you can play around to find the one that best suits you.
> LCD monitors are built to a specific resolution, and if you run the
> monitor at a different resolution, one of two things will happen
> (depending upon your graphics card); either the display will appear in the
> centre of the screen, with a big black margin around it, or the display
> will enlarge, and become blurred.
>
> The solution is to decide what resolution the LCD needs to run at, and buy
> an LCD that works at that resolution as standard. With standalone LCD
> monitors it's an easy choice, because there aren't actually that many
> resolutions available (laptops, for some reason, get all the best
> resolution choices); if you buy a 15" LCD (equivalent to a 17" CRT) look
> for 1024 x 768. A 17" LCD should be 1280 x 1024, and above 17" should be
> 1600 x 1200. These are based on standard 4:3 monitors- widescreen will be
> slightly different.
>
> HTH,
>
> Pete.
>

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Paul Schilter wrote:
> Pete,
> Thanks for the advice. It appears that I'll have to find the type of LCD
> monitor I want and see if its native resolution suits my needs.
> Paul
>
>

Always...always test any monitor, especially an LCD or
flat-panel monitor, at the location where it is going to
be used and not just in the store.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Ghostrider wrote:
> Always...always test any monitor, especially an LCD or
> flat-panel monitor, at the location where it is going to
> be used and not just in the store.

Good advice. The manufacturers have very wide limits on what they consider
acceptable in terms of 'dead' pixels - 5 seems to be normal. My external TFT
has one dead pixel, and some days I really notice it. I've been lucky with
Dell TFTs so far, but I still recommend seeing the monitor before purchase.

Regards,

Pete.
--
Peter Connolly
http://www.acutecomputing.co.uk
Derby
UK

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Ghostrider and Pete,
Thanks for the advice. I think if I wanted to test the monitor in my
home I'd have to buy it. But I see where I need to see one in at least in
the store before I get one. I still seem to have all of my pixels on my Dell
7000 which is 5 years old now. I think, like as in dogs, that translates to
about 35 human years.
Paul

"Peter Connolly" <newsgroupsdemon@removethisbitacutecomputing.co.uk> wrote
in message news:clp3a7$c2k$1$8300dec7@news.demon.co.uk...
> Ghostrider wrote:
>> Always...always test any monitor, especially an LCD or
>> flat-panel monitor, at the location where it is going to
>> be used and not just in the store.
>
> Good advice. The manufacturers have very wide limits on what they consider
> acceptable in terms of 'dead' pixels - 5 seems to be normal. My external
> TFT has one dead pixel, and some days I really notice it. I've been lucky
> with Dell TFTs so far, but I still recommend seeing the monitor before
> purchase.
>
> Regards,
>
> Pete.
> --
> Peter Connolly
> http://www.acutecomputing.co.uk
> Derby
> UK
>

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Buy the LCD.

I'm 55, my wife is 58, my parents are both 84. We all have LCD displays
17", 19", and 20". All run at the native (maximum) resolutions,
1280x1024 on the 17 and 19" and 1600x1200 on the 20". My mother has
cataracts and needs very large text. All of our needs and tastes can be
accomodated with the native resolution by going to Display Properties,
Settings tab, Advanced button, then changing the DPI setting.

The LCDs provide much clearer text. None of us play action games.

Paul Schilter wrote:
> If we
> crank the resolution up any higher, the text is just to difficult to read
> (we're old 42 / 57. Also we,re not much into gaming, the wife plays some
> of those Tetris type games or some of that play gambling. Not exactly
> intensive video work. So in your humble opinion, would an LCD monitor be
> advisable? I wasn't sure if I remember someone saying that the text and
> images aren't as clear on an LCD when run at low resolution as they are on a
> CRT monitor. Your thoughts please.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Tom,
Thank you very much, your post says a lot.
Paul

"Tom Almy" <tomalmy@aracnet.com> wrote in message
news:cm0h0o0222b@enews2.newsguy.com...
> Buy the LCD.
>
> I'm 55, my wife is 58, my parents are both 84. We all have LCD displays
> 17", 19", and 20". All run at the native (maximum) resolutions, 1280x1024
> on the 17 and 19" and 1600x1200 on the 20". My mother has cataracts and
> needs very large text. All of our needs and tastes can be accomodated with
> the native resolution by going to Display Properties, Settings tab,
> Advanced button, then changing the DPI setting.
>
> The LCDs provide much clearer text. None of us play action games.
>
> Paul Schilter wrote:
>> If we crank the resolution up any higher, the text is just to difficult
>> to read (we're old 42 / 57. Also we,re not much into gaming, the wife
>> plays some of those Tetris type games or some of that play gambling. Not
>> exactly intensive video work. So in your humble opinion, would an LCD
>> monitor be advisable? I wasn't sure if I remember someone saying that the
>> text and images aren't as clear on an LCD when run at low resolution as
>> they are on a CRT monitor. Your thoughts please.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

On Tue, 26 Oct 2004 18:53:32 -0400, "Paul Schilter"
<paulschilter@comcast,dot,net> wrote:

>Hi Guys,
> When considering buying a new system, those LCD monitors look real nice.
>Now on my Inspiron 7000 (laptop) with a 15" screen I run at a resolution of
>1024 X 768, on our HP desktop (wife's) we have a 20" CRT monitor (19"
>viewing area),also weights a ton,, we run that at only 800 X 600. If we
>crank the resolution up any higher, the text is just to difficult to read
>(we're old 42 / 57. Also we,re not much into gaming, the wife plays some
>of those Tetris type games or some of that play gambling. Not exactly
>intensive video work. So in your humble opinion, would an LCD monitor be
>advisable? I wasn't sure if I remember someone saying that the text and
>images aren't as clear on an LCD when run at low resolution as they are on a
>CRT monitor. Your thoughts please.
>Thanks,
>Paul
>
If possible, go to the store and check them out first, but a 17"
should be really sweet. I want one too!
--
Top 10 Conservative Idiots:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/top10/

 

[Dave]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

In article <0i19o093iujn3lnp2gqgtbip7ovul9nvnj@4ax.com>, Paul Knudsen <HughG@dodgeit.com> wrote:
>On Tue, 26 Oct 2004 18:53:32 -0400, "Paul Schilter"
><paulschilter@comcast,dot,net> wrote:
[...]
>>So in your humble opinion, would an LCD monitor be
>>advisable? I wasn't sure if I remember someone saying that the text and
>>images aren't as clear on an LCD when run at low resolution as they are on a
>>CRT monitor. Your thoughts please.

>If possible, go to the store and check them out first, but a 17"
>should be really sweet. I want one too!


Yes, LCD's have a "native" resolution mode. For a 17", it is
(always?) 1280x1024. When you run them at a different res, they
interpolate and scale and clearly doesn't look as good. My dad's
SO runs a 17" at 800x600 (I believe) and I find it unpleasant, but
she seems happy with it. So best bet is to check it out in a shop
and have them change the resolution for you.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Some 17" run at 1024x768.

An even divisor works well, so if you need low-res, get a 20" panel that
does 1600x1200 and run it at 800x600.

Tom
"Dave" <dm@nospam.com> wrote in message
news65hd.32122$JS4.2125@twister.nyroc.rr.com...
> In article <0i19o093iujn3lnp2gqgtbip7ovul9nvnj@4ax.com>, Paul Knudsen
> <HughG@dodgeit.com> wrote:
>>On Tue, 26 Oct 2004 18:53:32 -0400, "Paul Schilter"
>><paulschilter@comcast,dot,net> wrote:
> [...]
>>>So in your humble opinion, would an LCD monitor be
>>>advisable? I wasn't sure if I remember someone saying that the text and
>>>images aren't as clear on an LCD when run at low resolution as they are
>>>on a
>>>CRT monitor. Your thoughts please.
>
>>If possible, go to the store and check them out first, but a 17"
>>should be really sweet. I want one too!
>
>
> Yes, LCD's have a "native" resolution mode. For a 17", it is
> (always?) 1280x1024. When you run them at a different res, they
> interpolate and scale and clearly doesn't look as good. My dad's
> SO runs a 17" at 800x600 (I believe) and I find it unpleasant, but
> she seems happy with it. So best bet is to check it out in a shop
> and have them change the resolution for you.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

I have been running 19" CRT's at home for years now. When I was using 17"
CRT's , I ran them at 1024x768. When I went to the 19", I went to using
1280x1024.

(BTW, I'm 52)

For a while now, I had been contemplating buying a LCD monitor myself.
I figured that if I had a 19" screen now, and I was going to spend a good
amount of money, I should get something larger than what I already had.

Well, as it's been pointed out, LCD's have a 'Native' resolution that they
look best when used at.

I found that most 17" and 19" LCD's are best run at 1280x1024. But as soon
as you go past 19" to 20" or larger, They run best at 1600x1200.

Well, for me, 1280x1024 is great, but 1600x1200 makes the text waaaay to
small when using the default DPI settings. Yes I know you can adjust the DPI
settings, but because of some of the potential side effects with dialog
boxes, etc, I didn't want to change the DPI.

Soooo, in my case, I stayed with a 19" at 1280x1024, and its great. In
addition, a CRT's viewable size will be about 1" less than the advertised
size, but a LCD viewable size is the same as the advertised size. So, even
tho I stayed with 19", by LCD screen is actually bigger that the 19" CRT it
replaced.

Also, LCD monitors don't use as much electricity as a CRT, and most
important, thaey take up much less desk space.


But.......

Keep in mind that the monitor you buy, no matter what type, is something you
will be looking at for years. Most monitors will outlive 2-4 generations of
PC's. In other words, you will probably go through 2 to 4 PC's before it's
time to buy a new monitor.

A bad monitor can cause severe eyestrain. Do NOT cut corners budget-wise
when it come to your monitor.

Now, along with that, as it's been pointed out, it's best if you can find a
local store that you can visit to actually seen the monitors on display.
It's just like picking out a TV. Find one that looks good to YOU, then look
at the specs and the price.

A problem that you might run into tho, is the resolution the monitors are
running at, at the store. Most stores will use a video splitter to feed the
same video to multiple monitors to help with comparisions.
That's good.
However, that means that all the monitors are running at the same
resolution, typically 1024x768 because it's a common resolution that most
monitors can run at.
That could be bad, because it means that the LCD monitors that are made to
run at 1280x1024 or better, aren't being displayed at their native
resolution.

Bottom line, as stated by others, go to a store somewhere and look at the
monitors running at a resoultion that looks good to you, and find one that
is easy on YOUR eyes, then pick one.


"Dave" <dm@nospam.com> wrote in message
news65hd.32122$JS4.2125@twister.nyroc.rr.com...
> In article <0i19o093iujn3lnp2gqgtbip7ovul9nvnj@4ax.com>, Paul Knudsen
> <HughG@dodgeit.com> wrote:
>>On Tue, 26 Oct 2004 18:53:32 -0400, "Paul Schilter"
>><paulschilter@comcast,dot,net> wrote:
> [...]
>>>So in your humble opinion, would an LCD monitor be
>>>advisable? I wasn't sure if I remember someone saying that the text and
>>>images aren't as clear on an LCD when run at low resolution as they are
>>>on a
>>>CRT monitor. Your thoughts please.
>
>>If possible, go to the store and check them out first, but a 17"
>>should be really sweet. I want one too!
>
>
> Yes, LCD's have a "native" resolution mode. For a 17", it is
> (always?) 1280x1024. When you run them at a different res, they
> interpolate and scale and clearly doesn't look as good. My dad's
> SO runs a 17" at 800x600 (I believe) and I find it unpleasant, but
> she seems happy with it. So best bet is to check it out in a shop
> and have them change the resolution for you.

 

[nick]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

On Sat, 30 Oct 2004 09:54:49 -0700, in alt.sys.pc-clone.dell, Tom Almy
<tomalmy@aracnet.com> wrote:

>Buy the LCD.
>
>I'm 55, my wife is 58, my parents are both 84. We all have LCD displays
>17", 19", and 20". All run at the native (maximum) resolutions,
>1280x1024 on the 17 and 19" and 1600x1200 on the 20". My mother has
>cataracts and needs very large text. All of our needs and tastes can be
>accomodated with the native resolution by going to Display Properties,
>Settings tab, Advanced button, then changing the DPI setting.
>
>The LCDs provide much clearer text. None of us play action games.

One problem I've noticed with using the DPI setting for larger text is that
some programs and web sites don't handle the larger text properly.

Sometimes when text is displayed in a fixed-sized box of some sort, the DPI
setting will enlarge the text without enlarging the frame around the text.
Depending on the circumstances, this may put some of the text completely
outside the window, making it invisible; or it may cause parts of the text
to overlap other parts, turning it into an unreadable mess.

When I finally realized what was causing the problems, I set the DPI back to
its default setting and moved my monitor a little closer...

--
Nick <mailto:tanstaafl@pobox.com>

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Nick wrote:

> One problem I've noticed with using the DPI setting for larger text is that
> some programs and web sites don't handle the larger text properly.

That's true. Luckily most software is well behaved. For web sites that
use images to force sizes on you, there is always the Opera browser.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

Tim,
Thanks for taking the time to write this lengthily reply. Just when I
thought all could be saved with DPI. I've solved half of my problem by
buying a clone computer on eBay. It's a Pentium 4 at 3.2G, 512M DRAM with a
160G HD. Doesn't have PCI Express but for $750 delivered it's not a bad
deal. Doesn't have a monitor at that price so it'll replace the 700MHz P3,
HP desktop which is still running a 20" CRT that came with a 486 Gateway.
Monitor is still going strong. Since we're not gamers this should work out.
Plus my wife isn't willing to downsize her monitor. I'm still in the
market for a replacement for my Dell Inspiron 7000 laptop. So it's
replacement will have to have a monitor. I've got a bid in for a Dimension
8400 w/19" LCD monitor. Sweet system but I'll have to wait and see how it
goes.
Paul

"Timothy Drouillard" <timdrouillard@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:RPCdndsKv7jKhRjcRVn-3g@comcast.com...
>I have been running 19" CRT's at home for years now. When I was using 17"
>CRT's , I ran them at 1024x768. When I went to the 19", I went to using
>1280x1024.
>
> (BTW, I'm 52)
>
> For a while now, I had been contemplating buying a LCD monitor myself.
> I figured that if I had a 19" screen now, and I was going to spend a good
> amount of money, I should get something larger than what I already had.
>
> Well, as it's been pointed out, LCD's have a 'Native' resolution that they
> look best when used at.
>
> I found that most 17" and 19" LCD's are best run at 1280x1024. But as soon
> as you go past 19" to 20" or larger, They run best at 1600x1200.
>
> Well, for me, 1280x1024 is great, but 1600x1200 makes the text waaaay to
> small when using the default DPI settings. Yes I know you can adjust the
> DPI settings, but because of some of the potential side effects with
> dialog boxes, etc, I didn't want to change the DPI.
>
> Soooo, in my case, I stayed with a 19" at 1280x1024, and its great. In
> addition, a CRT's viewable size will be about 1" less than the advertised
> size, but a LCD viewable size is the same as the advertised size. So, even
> tho I stayed with 19", by LCD screen is actually bigger that the 19" CRT
> it replaced.
>
> Also, LCD monitors don't use as much electricity as a CRT, and most
> important, thaey take up much less desk space.
>
>
> But.......
>
> Keep in mind that the monitor you buy, no matter what type, is something
> you will be looking at for years. Most monitors will outlive 2-4
> generations of PC's. In other words, you will probably go through 2 to 4
> PC's before it's time to buy a new monitor.
>
> A bad monitor can cause severe eyestrain. Do NOT cut corners budget-wise
> when it come to your monitor.
>
> Now, along with that, as it's been pointed out, it's best if you can find
> a local store that you can visit to actually seen the monitors on display.
> It's just like picking out a TV. Find one that looks good to YOU, then
> look at the specs and the price.
>
> A problem that you might run into tho, is the resolution the monitors are
> running at, at the store. Most stores will use a video splitter to feed
> the same video to multiple monitors to help with comparisions.
> That's good.
> However, that means that all the monitors are running at the same
> resolution, typically 1024x768 because it's a common resolution that most
> monitors can run at.
> That could be bad, because it means that the LCD monitors that are made to
> run at 1280x1024 or better, aren't being displayed at their native
> resolution.
>
> Bottom line, as stated by others, go to a store somewhere and look at the
> monitors running at a resoultion that looks good to you, and find one that
> is easy on YOUR eyes, then pick one.
>
>
> "Dave" <dm@nospam.com> wrote in message
> news65hd.32122$JS4.2125@twister.nyroc.rr.com...
>> In article <0i19o093iujn3lnp2gqgtbip7ovul9nvnj@4ax.com>, Paul Knudsen
>> <HughG@dodgeit.com> wrote:
>>>On Tue, 26 Oct 2004 18:53:32 -0400, "Paul Schilter"
>>><paulschilter@comcast,dot,net> wrote:
>> [...]
>>>>So in your humble opinion, would an LCD monitor be
>>>>advisable? I wasn't sure if I remember someone saying that the text and
>>>>images aren't as clear on an LCD when run at low resolution as they are
>>>>on a
>>>>CRT monitor. Your thoughts please.
>>
>>>If possible, go to the store and check them out first, but a 17"
>>>should be really sweet. I want one too!
>>
>>
>> Yes, LCD's have a "native" resolution mode. For a 17", it is
>> (always?) 1280x1024. When you run them at a different res, they
>> interpolate and scale and clearly doesn't look as good. My dad's
>> SO runs a 17" at 800x600 (I believe) and I find it unpleasant, but
>> she seems happy with it. So best bet is to check it out in a shop
>> and have them change the resolution for you.
>
>

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

"Tom Scales" <tomtoo@softhome.net> wrote in message
news:d--dnUcDV8GF-BjcRVn-jw@comcast.com...
> Just as am aside, that's about what I paid for my wife's Dimension 8400,
> full-loaded, from the Dell Outlet.
>
> Tom



Lemme know how it works for you, Tom (you and WSZsr, for that matter).

Shoot me a line if you see any quirks. I've noticed the occasionally oddity
during reboots with SATA drives as well as the DDR 2.

It's going to take a bit of time for me to be an LGA 775 fan, though I must
say the Dim4700's I've seen have been rather well-behaved.


Thanks,

Stew

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (More info?)

"S.Lewis" <stew1960@cover.bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:tWdhd.1735$T_.455@bignews4.bellsouth.net...
>
> "Tom Scales" <tomtoo@softhome.net> wrote in message
> news:d--dnUcDV8GF-BjcRVn-jw@comcast.com...
>> Just as am aside, that's about what I paid for my wife's Dimension 8400,
>> full-loaded, from the Dell Outlet.
>>
>> Tom
>
>
>
> Lemme know how it works for you, Tom (you and WSZsr, for that matter).
>
> Shoot me a line if you see any quirks. I've noticed the occasionally
> oddity during reboots with SATA drives as well as the DDR 2.
>
> It's going to take a bit of time for me to be an LGA 775 fan, though I
> must say the Dim4700's I've seen have been rather well-behaved.
>
>
> Thanks,
>
> Stew
>

So far, so good. Rock solid reliable.