I ran duel monitors for four years. Untile about three weeks ago.

I loved it at first. Then it got so I only had icons and the tool bars on the second monitor...

Clients were always impressed with the duel monitors but after using it for 4 years I don't think it's worth the hassel and expense. I'd just go buy one monster monitor instead. And buy a real good quality onewhile you are at it.

Well my motherboard fried in the old puter. It was time for an uprgrade anyway. It was also time to rethink the whole monitor situation.

Two monitors take up a whole lot of real estate on my desk. I had a super quality 19" and a lesser 17. I gave away the 17 and will just use the 19" for now. My ultimate plans are to get a flat screen 21" in the future. They are coming down in price quickly.

It may be a while or then again.... the extended warrantee is up on my 4 year old 19" so it could happen any day.

I was using a 19" and an old 15" together at work, and I liked it, but if you're going to do it, I would use two monitors the same size. It's kind of a pain otherwise. I stopped using the old one altogether.

I'd have to agree with Dan, a huge good quality monitor at a high resolution would be my preference over dual monitors. I guess it all depends on how you want to use them, and what screen resolutions you prefer.

Just before Christmas I bought a DELL Precision Workstation with dual-monitor set up. I ordered a 21" Trinitron monitor, and have a 19" secondary, the old 21" is here at home, I guess I could have 2 21"'s at work, but I use the second monitor for GSP plot menu, and tools in other programs giving max design area. I used to be impressed seeing a friends mac doing the same thing years ago.

It was also great for CAD... stick the menus, toolbars and icons on one screen and devote the other all to drawing real estate.

I should probably just get a really good set of computer glasses and see how much that helps first.

Dan, before you go flat screen, check out what Screensavers has to say.

http://www.techtv.com/screensavers/

I've spent a bunch of time in front of monitors at my local retailer. He has different monitors hooked up to the same computer side by side.

I see a big difference depending on the brand.

The one I like the best is the Viewsonic 23. It certainly isn't cheap by any means.

I currently have a viewsonic CRT PS790 (19" tube) professional series monitor, I had it in for some warrantee work (after 4 years of flawless service) and used a new one only one model down... what a difference!

I think this is what was frustrating like Mike atated above. My second monitor was smaller and the resolution wasn't as good and the color was crappy comared to my good monitor.

I spend a bunch of time in front of my computer and would only get the very top end when I buy.

From what I've seen of the top end flat panel LCD's they are my kind of screen. But I'll wait until I can afford the best or until my old one bites the bullet, whichever comes first.

quote:

---

if you have customers visiting, they can sit and watch in their own monitor and not breathing down your neck

---

I've been promising myself for over a year to set up a secondary monitor for customers use. 14 months ago I remodeled my office/showroom and made my office half a little more inaccessible.

I still get so many bold & curious customers that think nothing of squeezing back in my zone to "help" change fonts or change case or justification while I'm still trying to just get the copy typed in, and not actually forgetting their "complex" specs of Helvetica, all caps, centered!