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Flat or Curved?
Most monitors have a curved front to them but some of the more expensive have a flat screen. Why would you pay more for the flat screen? The flat screen will have much less glare. A flat screen will have more usable screen space than the same size curved screen. There will be less image distortion on a flat screen. When you first look at a flat screen, the image will look funny, as though the screen is bowed out. You will get used to it quickly.
Dot-Trio Shadow-Mask CRT
The most common type of monitor tube uses a thin sheet of perforated metal in front of the CRT to create discrete phosphor dots. Look for a dot pitch-the shortest distance between phosphor dots of the same color-of 0.27 mm or less. This CRT style is well suited for text.
Aperture-Grille CRT
Sony invented aperture-grille CRTs, sold by Sony as Trinitron and by Mitsubishi as DiamondTron. Aperture-grille uses an array of stretched wires (instead of the hole filled metal plate) to create images using phosphor lines. Look for a stripe pitch of 0.25 mm or less. Aperture-grille designs boast improved brightness and contrast over shadow-mask tubes, without a loss of focus. This style CRT is best for image editing and is not as sharp for text work.
Slot-Mask CRT
NEC invented this combination of shadow-mask and aperture-grille designs called CromaClear. It uses a 0.25-mm mask with elliptically shaped phosphors. They claim that it provides good images for both text and graphics.
LCD Panel
It is a pity that LCD panels are so expensive because everyone should be using them. LCD panels consist of a thin panel of liquid crystal shutters that open and close to let the appropriate color of light through them. There is no cathode ray gun firing at you, so they do not emit much in the way of radiation. As a bonus, they take up very little desk space. They provide a rock-solid display that is easy on the eyes. This style is suitable for text work and general graphics but may not have enough color depth for photo work. This display technology is not quite as fast as CRT technology and so may not be suitable for some games.
There are two styles of LCD monitors, digital and analog. The digital model requires a special video card that outputs the appropriate digital signal. A normal video card creates a digital signal and convert that signal to an analog one that is sent to the monitor. An analog LCD converts this analog back into the digital signal required to drive the screen. The digital-only version will provide a sharper screen since it avoids an unnecessary translation.
LCD monitors are available in various sizes with each larger size being significantly expensive. The reason is that the display is really a large integrated circuit. There is a lot of surface area where problems can occur during manufacturing. If more than a couple of dots are bad, they have to scrap the display. We end up paying for the cost of the scrapped displays.
If you can afford the price, buy a digital LCD panel; you will love it.
Liquid Plasma
Liquid plasma screens are large and expensive, but beautiful. I do not know anyone who has one on his or her desktop. They are normally used for conference rooms or tradeshow booths.
Bottom Line on Monitors
This is an important component of your system. You spend a lot of time staring at it and it will have a lot to do with your satisfaction with your system. You should sit in front of the potential monitor and use the computer for a while to determine if you really like it.
It is possible to spend more on the monitor than the computer. If that is what it takes to be comfortable, do it. I use an expensive 21" ViewSonic that is very comfortable to work with. I have used cheap monitors (that normally came with the computer they were hooked to) and could not wait to get away (Continued on page 9)
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