I would think multiple desktops are good for some purposes, and multiple monitors are good for others.
In my case, programming, multiple desktops works well, I have my development on one desktop, a reference page (web browser to look stuff up) on another, etc. Most of the times I’m bouncing between two windows on one page (IDE and test site browser), when I’m stuck I flip to the research desktop and do my lookups. I use a third sometimes to move files around.
For a co worker (fiscal manager) she has two displays, usually one is the accounting system and the other is a spreadsheet. For those instances when she needs to work out something complex before input, she can use the spreadsheet, and check the results with the accounting system. For her, its a matter of having view of everything at the same time, no to mention wicked fast cut and paste between windows.
Though I like the 52% increase statistic, justifies the 19"+ display I want to replace my 15" one.
its really interesting that no one has touched on WHAT your doing on those monitors to begin with. if your doing basic word processing a dual monitor is useless yet if you are into tasks like coding (using one to code the other to test) then you can have tremendous improvement.
take that to something like audio/video editing, cad/cam and you should already be requiring the second monitor not hoping for it.
another issue here is the OS’s ability to ergonomically let you switch things around. but i wont go into that to not get flamed here…
Does anyone remember the movie Grandma’s Boy?, where the antagonist programmer would lie down on a recliner, where he had a complicated array of monitors hanging above him? I think he had his office made to closely resemble the techy interior of the Nebuchadnezzar from the Matrix.
(BTW, Grandma’s Boy is very funny, but also insanely offensive. Be warned!)
@Jason Monroe
"Each monitor is in 1280x1024 resolution at 70Hz refresh…"
I could be wrong but I’m pretty sure that refresh rate has no real effect on LCD monitors, since they aren’t actually “refreshing” in the same way a CRT does. Most LCD monitors I’ve seen recommend you select 60Hz for optimal results.
jeff, it is so sad to see those three beautiful monitors not have a seamless wallpaper spread across your workspace. go to http://www.mandolux.com/ to rectify this abomination now! unless of course that is a screen saver in which case i will go cower in the corner.
Being a student programmer currently studying and still learning to program, having 2 monitors is absolutely vital for me, I’m not sure I could go back to one screen any more…
I’m always having reference documents, sample code, websites and other such help info open on one screen, whilst having VS2005 on the other, and it works a treat. The time it would take to switch between them by alt-tabbing would take too long, compared to just glancing at the code / info on the monitor next to it.
Also, with the use of UltraMon, I have one long task bar, separate desktops with separate wallpapers and icon layouts, and moving windows in between monitors is just a case of using the handy shortcuts the program builds onto your Windows forms. If I have several windows on one monitor, the task bar lets me change between them with a single click, with each task bar working for each monitor seprately via the power of UltraMon…
I can’t imagine working without a dual monitor. The additional productivity is immeasurable. I work with a few windows open at the same time, usually my workspace, specs, email, and chat. Having to shuffle through these every minute or so is a real hinderance, especially with tight deadlines. In fact, I’d rather go into the office to use my dual monitors rather than work at home with just one.
Virtual desktop is not a solution to users that we suffer of carpian. Second monitor is great. I personally use it for MSDN help, so I don’t need to change between windows, and main monitor is just for programming pleasure.
I must say that the title of this blog entry is a bit disingenuous. Having read the title alone, and having read previous blog entries, I didn’t expect to see a balanced discussion. I didn’t get one, either. 52% faster at ’ tasks like editing documents and tossing numbers between spreadsheets’ does entice me, if I was doing data entry.
More monitors won’t make you a good designer. It won’t implement your design into code correctly, either.
That being said, they’re not without benefit, either. More real estate to have watch windows up, or perhaps to have your requirements design documents up side by side - that’s good stuff. But I fear that most folks will use the other monitor to read RSS feeds, or reply to blog posts mid morning (guilty as charged).
This is no news to graphic designers and Mac users. I had two CRT monitors on my Mac 10 years ago, when a good monitor might weigh 15 pounds and cost $1500. When your job depends on the spatial arrangement of information, the advantages are obvious.
The blog has become a burden to read, so God know’s what it’s like to write. You’ve become a dull ‘readers digest’ of tech blogging. A banal drudge combination a list of trivia and a pointless retrospect on things that don’t matter. What you write about has little worth and no meaning. I can only hope you do it for a little money and a the self-induced ego stroke. You’re like Scott Hanselman’s nerdy cousin who knows what CAS and RAS stand for, and that through the faux-encouragement of ad revenue and obsession with page views, now thinks you have something worthwhile to say; please, you don’t.
Next Week on Jeff’s Tech Digest - Are Gold Cables Worth the Extra Money? PLUS!!! Programmer Horoscopes YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO READ!!!
In my experience using 1, 2, and 3 monitors to write code, design websites, etc., two 21-24 inch monitors is all that is necessary 99% of the time. The third is nice to have dont get me wrong, but hardly ever have I found myself thinking “what would I do without this third monitor”. That said I’d never give back my third monitor, but it only marginally increases productivity when compared to the upgrade from one to two monitors.
I have the opportunity to compare 2 setups. I office at home and also have an office at one of my clients. At home I have 3 19" LCDs and at the office I have 2 22’ wide screens. While 2 22’s are better than one but there is no comparison to the 3 19’s. I constantly have SQL Management Studio open on one, Visual Studio open on one and usually Firefox or Excel open on the third.
