I hope this is not too far off topic..
I'm a BIG fan of Sony xbrite monitors, and I just found what I think is a super value on ebay...
19" monitor for $189+ some 30 bucks shipping.  Mine is shipping [happy dance].
I have a 17" of the same kind, and I paid $350 for it, brand new... 19" LOT of mulah brand new. After having this monitor, my tired eyes don't want to stare at anything else!
So, in case you were contemplating a new monitor, I thought I'd share this tidbit.
you can get them here:
http://cgi.ebay.com/SONY-19-FLAT-PANEL-MONITOR-SDM-HS95P-B-BLACK-LIKE-NEW_W0QQitemZ140044547889QQihZ004QQcategoryZ99229QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

This vendor has about 30 of them. Usually they are pretty hard to find, especially at this price!!!!!!

I'm envious. Mine works ok (17") but it looks like someone smeared something wet on one side of the screen. As long as there's no reflection from any light in the room on it, it's ok . . . . so I sit in the dark. lol! Congrats on yours! Maybe Santa will visit me this year.

This sounds like a fun thread. I'm using 19" NEC monitors on all my systems except two. My main computer, though, I'm looking to upgrade from a 19" NEC into something huge like a 41" LCD TV, but I'm not too sure about resolutions. I like 1280x1024 on my desktops, or 1280x800 on my laptop, but I keep reading about strange resolutions on the LCD's. Things like 1399x1024 or so. Weird stuff. So I'm just wondering if anyone has hooked up their machine to a big LCD screen, and if so, how does a computer application look in terms of eye strain, comfort, etc. Of course I'll be Brycing with this, so I'm also curious. But maybe I'm thinking too deeply into this and I have nothing to worry about.

--Death_at_Midnight

Viewsonic G90f here,..........yes, still prefer CRT's over flat panel.

Sackrat, how come u prefer crt's? They're heavy, eat up tremendous amounts of space on ur desk, and flatscreen monitors are becomming so cheap and the quality is really outstanding. The clear quality difference from a number of years ago is just blown away completely these days. I'm working on an Apple Cinema Display and it's absolutely awesome. As is the Sony HDTV we've recently aqquired at the office for video-editing and such, viewing angles are excellent (close to 180degrees) contrast and brightness vivid enough to hurt your eyes and the visual sharp as a needle.

I agree with sackrat, crts look best. I have plenty of room. My wife has a flatscreen and, I know they're all the rage, but it just doesn't have the look I want.  Neither do any of the ones I've seen in the stores.

Quote - This sounds like a fun thread. I'm using 19" NEC monitors on all my systems except two. My main computer, though, I'm looking to upgrade from a 19" NEC into something huge like a 41" LCD TV, but I'm not too sure about resolutions. I like 1280x1024 on my desktops, or 1280x800 on my laptop, but I keep reading about strange resolutions on the LCD's. Things like 1399x1024 or so. Weird stuff. So I'm just wondering if anyone has hooked up their machine to a big LCD screen, and if so, how does a computer application look in terms of eye strain, comfort, etc. Of course I'll be Brycing with this, so I'm also curious. But maybe I'm thinking too deeply into this and I have nothing to worry about.

--Death_at_Midnight

 

If your vidcard isnt too old theres probably tools out there to customize your computers resolution output. At the office we work with a 40 inch lcd tv (dont go plasma, they burn in) and we got it to work excellent with our computers so far. Just make sure you have DVI out if you want to make use of the HD resolution. Once you have ur computer set to output to the exact optimal resolution of your TV screen the result will be hella sharp. I'd suggest you look into the sony screens, they're amongst the best out there and pricing is very reasonable.

Do make sure to avoid the various graphical enhancements the tv offers though, as they will affect the way your grahpics come out. Things like contrast or color boost filters and such will make your renders look different on the tv screen then on a normal computer screen or on print.

On our sony tv we can turn off all filters and goodies and optimizations and once that's done it's great to work on.

Oh, another thing to take care of would be the distance to your monitor. Dont go sit too close to it because you will defenitely either ruin your eyes or cause urself headaches. I'd suggest taking at least 1 meter and 20 centimeters distance, preferably more.

I used to prefer crt's, more particularly NEC's, and then later on, Sony, their high end line for graphics... till I found the xbrite. It makes my Sony GDM-400PS look fuzzy!!! Nothing before that could make that thing look fuzzy!

Maybe it's my eyes. They're a bit fuzzy themselves. lol!    Perhaps I should go looking at the new stuff out there.  Then I could have a Real reason to sulk. hehehe!

Quote - I agree with sackrat, crts look best. I have plenty of room. My wife has a flatscreen and, I know they're all the rage, but it just doesn't have the look I want.  Neither do any of the ones I've seen in the stores.

That's how I felt till I ran into the monitor I'm plugging. Seriously, if you happen to see it in a store, take a look. You won't believe that such a crisp picture can come out of a flat panel.
I used to 'demand' a CRT monitor that will run high resolution (1200x1600) at .25 dot pitch or finer and a minimum refresh rate of 85 Hertz, and was dreading that all you can get at the stores any more were flat panels, till I saw this. It's a flatscreen with CRT quality and clarity, if not better. Being that I stare at fine graphics all day long (cad, photo, 3d) I'm veeeery finnicky about monitors. For example, I don't do View Sonic CRT's. They're okay, but after couple of days I get a monster headache from low refresh rates.

With graphics, and not much in a way of fast paced gaming or TV viewing, I really don't care a whole lot about the LCD response time or the viewing angle, although I hear they're really good for this monitor.

The other two monitors I have at home are NEC Multisync LCD 1700V flat panel, and a Sony Trinitron Multiscan G400, and at the office a dual widescreen 24" Gateway, and a Viewsonic Professional Series on the spare computer, and this monitor knocks the socks off all of them.
I used to think my NEC flatpanel was darn clear. After this monitor, I can't stand to look at it, it looks like major fuzz.
aaanyway... rambling here....

...SONY GDM-400's!!!!

I own FIVE (two new in boxes in my garage as back up)- why?

You can get high quality color and definition on CRT's and can buy them at DIRT CHEAP prices!!!

I got three about a year ago from Overstock.Com for around $100 each and THEY PAID the SHIPPING!!!...What a DEAL!

Funny how people pay BIG BUCKS for "trendy" Flat-Screens and these beautiful SONY CRT's were selling for BIG BUCKS just 4-5 years ago, heh!- Now really CHEAP! (Buy them if you can still get them!-Excellent Monitors- last a LONG TIME.)

NOTHING beats a CRT if you do professional level color work in Photoshop!  Flat-Screens are for Games and Internet Surfing...IMHO...

I'll take a look. Thanks for the info, Connie! Still, even if I LOVE it, I can only dream at this point. Working expenses (that won't pay off for a while) like travel and new software have drained my resources. I could just afford Bryce 6, but I did manage that today so I'm happy. But I will look at those flats at the store just to see what I'm missing (and to hint around about my wish list to my wealthier friends! haha!)

Flat panels are indeed improving, very dramatically! But - I have yet to see a flat panel that I can afford that does not have banding artifacts issues with delicate transitions. Visible volumetric lights with ranged fall-offs are a great way to discover this. I currently use a 20 inch NEC CRT at 1600x1200. Going to keep looking though.

Yeah,............I'm old and getting older by the minute,........so maybe it is an eye issue, plus I have Macular Degeneration, a definite eye issue, CRT's don't bother the eyes as much, so that's why I still use CRT's (and I'm a fuddyduddy and a monitor luddite). Oh yeah,............and there's the fact that the flat panel displays that I really want, my wife won't let me buy(wayyyy to expensive).

Most of your run of the mill flat panels do suck for graphic work.  Even my 17" flat panel NEC, if I had my way, I wouldn't have gotten it, but it was a gift...

The new 19" sony xbrite will sit next to my Sony G-400, and I'll get to compare.
Right now I like my 17" sony xbrite better then the G-400, but they're in different rooms. Different lighting and applications.

My G-400 is pushing on 7-8 years old, if not more. I almost never turn it off (Except for it's own power save mode). It's outlived about 3 computers.  If I can find another one for a $100 or less, I wouldn't mind getting it as a backup.  I looked for them about a year ago, and couldn't find one. I could only find the lesser models, without the good refresh rate and dot pitch.

With my astigmatisam, quality monitor vs. lower quality means a difference between a migrane or no migrane.

Years make a real difference on crts. My older one was sharp as a razor when I got it in '96, but now it looks really fuzzy next to my newer one. 

My monitor arrived, and it's hooked up next to my Sony G400 in a dual monitor configuration.
Suh-weet!!!!!!!!!!!!

Congrats, Connie!! Happy viewing!

Right now Dell is selling their 30" which has a res of 2560x1600 pixels for 1279.20. They have a extra 20% off. It uses the same panel as what Apple has in their 30" but they have theirs priced at $2000. Pretty good deal.

Connie, that asks for a picture :P comeon show us ur computer valhalla :D