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Multiple Monitors
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Posted by Graham Rhind
Jan 15, 2013 at 08:05 AM
Jeez, am I the only poor s*d on this forum with a single, rather small, monitor!? I must admit, it wouldn’t cross my mind to install a second one.
Mind you, I have three computers running side by side ... ;-)
Posted by MadaboutDana
Jan 15, 2013 at 10:31 AM
What an interesting range of hardware - some big brutes on the monitor side, too!
What fascinates me, however, is that no Mac users have responded. And yet the iMac is one of the few desktops (apart from some of the more expensive AIOs produced by e.g. Samsung) that comes with a second monitor port as a matter of course.
Any Mac users out there? Do any of you use multiple monitors? On notebook or desktop?
Posted by Hugh
Jan 15, 2013 at 11:58 AM
My desktop is a 2011 Mac Mini. Currently I use only one monitor - a 22-inch Acer. It suits me for most of what I do. But the 2011 Mac Mini also has two monitor ports - HDMI and Thunderbolt, if I remember correctly - so a second monitor would be a possibility.
Posted by jamesofford
Jan 15, 2013 at 01:56 PM
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Here’s a Mac user, albeit a MacBook Pro, not an iMac with its giant screen.
I was, for a short while, also a multi-monitor user. At my last job I had a very large desk with lots of space for a multi-monitor setup the company provided Lenovo laptops running XP . I had a 24 inch main monitor and a 19 inch monitor as a secondary. I found that I didn’t use the 19 inch monitor for much. During the day I kept Outlook up all the time(bad habit). I also usually had a browser up. Then in my main window I would have Word, Excel or Powerpoint or all three up in which I would be working.
I loved that 24 inch monitor. I could keep a spreadsheet with lots of columns up on that screen and see all of them. Or if I was working in Word or Excel, I could set them up so that they were showing the view at 200-400%, and give my tired old eyes a rest. I found that with modern operating systems it is easy to switch from one program to another as your primary focus, and this seemed to work better for me than having more than one monitor.
I gave the 19 inch monitor away.
I am now using a MacBook Pro. At home, where I have lots of desk space, I have a 24 inch monitor as my external monitor. In a sense, I have two monitors because I also have the MacBook Pro laptop monitor. However, I run the two monitors mirrored, so both of them have the same information. At work, I have a fairly restricted amount of space on my desk, so I just use the laptop screen.
Jim
Posted by Ben
Jan 15, 2013 at 02:01 PM
I have used a MacMini with multiple monitors—one via HDMI and one via Display Port. IMO the experience is inferior to Windows. OS X lacks Aero snap, the fixed menu bar makes for long mouse travel from the second screen, and—most galling—the new full screen app mode only uses a single monitor—any additional screens are just covered with the grey linen pattern Apple seems so fond of.
I’ve recently switched to a MacBook Air which brings it’s own problem: there’s but one Thunderbolt port which forces me to choose between an ethernet connection and a monitor out. Technically Thunderbolt can drive multiple devices but the only Apple products to have additional Thunderbolt ports are monitors. I already have a monitor and Apple’s products don’t fit my budget. A few companies have released Thunderbolt hubs and I’m reviewing them for purchase.
On the positive side, I have felt less of a need for multiple monitors since discovering the four-finger swipe shortcut that switches full-screen applications. For much of my work the ability to easily switch from application to application eliminates the need for side-by-side display.