Has anynone bought and is using a LCD Flat Screen monitor for Poser and Vue,If so are they ok? I am purchasing a new machine soon and I was wondering what the differences there are in quality and viewing? I have been told by one school of thought that they are not suitable for high end graphics others say the opposite.Any expert help from the community would be appreciated. arrow1

I have a 17" one and love it, images seem much crisper, i think with the older ones they may not have been so good, as an example my laptop screen is great if your sitting straight on but move to let someone else see and the view isn't as good, but i don't have this problem with the TFT screen, i think you must insist on seeing it in use and preferably with an image of yours on the screen (i took a floppy with me), you could go even further and take a screen shot of Vue and Poser to see what they'll look like......Steve

Thanks Steve for your advice.I will take one of my renders with me test it out.

The main problem with LCDs, for graphics work, is that they are hard to profile for colour management. However since Poser and Vue are non-Colour Managed applications this is not going to worry you unless you take your images into PhotoShop/Illustrator/Quark etc. with the intention of producing printed output - for web galleries there is no point in worrying since that is as un-Colour Managed as you can get.

I do use Photoshop for working on my images and I sometimes print them out! Also, I am learning animation in both Poser and Vue.How would an LCD Flat screen affect the routine working environment of these programs? arrow1

Not sure how much you bother with CM, so: with a CRT you can use Adobe Gamma (or Colorsync if you're on a Mac) to generate a quick-and-dirty profile for your display which enables PS to know what actual colour is being displayed on your screen when any given RGB value is sent to the adapter. If you have similar profiles for your printer (which usually means using the manufacturer's paper and ink) then the software has all it needs to give a fair match between screen and print, allowing for the difference in colour and brightness ranges between glowing-phosphor-on-glass and dye-on-paper. If you spend (lots of) money on the right hardware and software you can get an even better match. Unfortunately, to the best of my knowledge, none of the free/bundled screen profilers and few of the pay versions work on LCDs, and you are also limited by the inability to adjust brightness and contrast on most models of LCD. There are tools that work, but they tend to be pricey.

In my experience, these screens have a slower refresh rate than a standard monitor. This makes them fine for day to day computer work, but animation can appear to be disjointed or jerky...
Take some Poser/Vue animation samples to your computer supplier - get them to run these on a computer similar to the one you are considering buying. This will allow you to see how your animations look on the screen model(s) you are interested in.
The newer model screens are getting much better and faster (and cheaper), but you are entitled to make sure you are happy with the results first.
Also, if you will be watching movies on your new computer, ask to see a DVD running as well.

The biggest problem I'm aware of with modern reasonably-priced LCD's (neither "bargain basement" nor "The bleeding Edge" but comfortably in-between) is that they don't really support the full colour depth that a CRT does. In terms of clarity though - they're so pin-sharp that I've switched long ago to a 17" from RELISYS, and regretted not a minute of it. To the degree that I recently ahd to buy a 15" for wifey (who "doesn't do graphics") because mine is just to sharp and gorgeous.

i bought a 15" lcd a year ago. and it works fine. very clear colors - no problem with animations and DVDs. the only drawback maybe is: the screen is darker than a CRT. it's no problem when working in the evening, but at daylight it's sometimes too dark.

Hmm... I have a Dual LCD setup. I've a nice 17" for important stuff and a 15" which I mainly use for E-mail and writing code. I'm quite impressed with the 17". The colours are realistic over a large viewing angle, and the definition is excellent. 75Hz refresh rate is fast. I can't remember ever needing 75 frames/second! The only problem it has is a VERY slight difference in contrast between the top and bottom of the screen. The bargain 15" is not any good for art. But it's fine for text! The pros for me are reduced real estate and NO RADIATION!!! So getting an LCD monitor, like giving up smoking, is probably a good idea. H:)

Well for dyed in the wool geeks like me, (who pride ourselves on our CRT tan :) I have to say that LCD's are not a patch on a decent CRT. They're great if you have limited space, or you want an Apple flat panel to go with the decor :) But for anything more complex than text entry or 2D graphics it's hopeless. Try playing doom or UT on one. Try using one in uneven light conditions, (such as having a South facing window behind you :) They're just hopeless. I've used every large LCD going, the 21" SGI, the 18" Sun Microsystems, and the Apple Cinema. The only one I'd give house room too is the Apple, it's a work of art to look at and it will actually switch to a few other resultions without loss of image quality. That said it costs $3K At home I have a 21" premium flaftscreen CRT, it's perfectly flat, (but sodding huge!) you can buy the same thing today for around $250 from the ghosts of former dot coms. The image quality is superb, if you want one throw the following into google: GDM 5410 later jb

Actually I know someone who used the glare from the window behind him as the reason for junking his 21" CRT in favour of a much nicer LCD screen. Improved visibility no end - and my 17" LCD is great for games and DVD movies (while still lacking the colour depth of a good CRT). I suspect one issue is apples and oranges. The very best LCD/CRT is ALWAYS going to be better than the very worst CRT/LCD. Perhaps the biggest factor is not so much "LCD or CRT?" as how much one can afford to spend...

Hrm - I use both, and here's what I've found... I have the following screens that I see Poser stuff with: - 25" (23" viewable) NEC SVGA Accusync @ 88 pixels per inch and 1400x1024 resolution. It is fed by a GeForce 2 MX 400 card. - 15" Dell Inspiron 8100 (laptop) XVGA LCD monitor @ 124 pixels per inch and 1400x1024 resolution. It gets fed by the onboard GeForce2Go mobile video card. It is also semi-polarized, as many laptop screens are, to afford a small measure of viewing privacy in public places. This is what I've found... Brightness: The LCD screen is usually much brighter and of higher contrast by default. The CRT OTOH tends to be a bit darker, and even the best CRT's will tend to 'wash out' darker hues if you make it equal to the LCD in brightness. Colors (General): The CRT is on top here, with the colors much warmer and much more able to blend into each other, creating an eye-pleasing picture... and color depth is much better on an LCD. The colors of the same image on an LCD may tend to be starker, less smooth. Moire (color gradients that look choppy): If you use just generic video drivers, or use a resolution set that doesn't quite jibe with your actual screen size, you will more easily see Moire in an LCD screen. CRT's are more capable of handling mismatches and ill-fitting drivers. There is hope for LCD, though - to cure this you either use the driver that comes with the monitor and vidcard, or in some OS GUI settings (like in Linux' /etc/X11/XF86Config) you simply state the exact screen size (in millimeters) and the Moire goes away. Moire is nowhere near as big a problem in CRT screens, but I did have to tweak my laptop LCD screen heavily to make it go away. Viewability: Depending on te quality of the LCD screen, this can be a factor or not... Macintosh LCD screens are awesome in their ability to maintain viewability at any concievable angle, whereas a cheap LCD screen will force you to move your head around to get an overall idea of color flow from top to bottom of your render, unless your head is in a certain position relative to the monitor. For instance, with the laptop in my lap, no sweat, but if I'm on the floor with it, I gotta bob my head or flip the monitor up and down a bit to get an idea of the color blending. contrast and sharpness: LCD wins by a huge margin... you simply won't get anything near the 'paper-cut' kind of sharpness in a CRT, no matter how much it costs. But, in summary, I still use and enjoy both... the LCD for its convienience and technical strengths, the CRT for its color warmth, size, and ability to accurately portray natural gradients and color balance. HTH a little, /P