Two is good, three is better

If you’ve never had the opportunity to use multiple monitors with your PC setup, you have no idea what you’re missing.

Somewhere back in the day I realized that I had a video card with two video out ports. I had an extra monitor laying around and thought, ‘Why not plug another monitor in and see what happens?’ WwoowW! It opens your desktop to untold productivity gains. Instead of switching between active programs by going down to the task bar and clicking whatever you want to view, just move your mouse to the other monitor and keep working. Essentially, you’re doubling the size of your desktop. A quick glance left or right allows you to monitor your e-mail while also viewing the Internet or watching a video.

As one who spends most of my day in front of these things, I might as well enhance the experience as much as possible. I highly recommend you do the same. Check the back of your PC and see if you have an unused video port. If you do, pick up (at least) a used 17-inch tube monitor for $25 at a local PC repair place. If you want to splurge, go ahead and get a better one. You can thank me later.

Sure, two is good…but what about three? or four? That would require another video card and, obviously, another monitor. There were times when I had three open applications but only two screens. But I want to see everything all the time! Hmmm. Sure, let’s do it. I had the extra monitor, but needed another card. After a couple of unsuccessful purchases and returns to Amazon, I found the right card for my motherboard. Much to my pleasant surprise, Vista had no trouble recognizing the additional card and allowing me to set up the monitors exactly as I wanted.

This is my home setup:

For me, the middle monitor is my main screen. It’s got the Start button and the Quick Launch toolbar. It’s my best quality monitor so I’m usually watching or editing video on it. The right one usually has a browser open and the left one is usually open to e-mail or something else.

As you might imagine, having enough desk space can be a problem. If you can go vertical, do it. The display setting in Windows allow for monitor stacking. For now, I’m OK with a horizontal look.

I installed a free little program called DisplayFusion to allow me to span a wallpaper photo across all monitors.

Proof of concept, done. Time to upgrade that left-most monitor.