CHANGING TO WIDE MONITOR: DISTORTED IMAGES

[orizaba]

Dear Fellows,

Once more, I am asking for your explanations and best advice.

I must say I am a bit confused and upset!

1. I am changing my "second" computer to a new one which will include graphic card "Connect3D ATI HD5770 1 GB". It will use XP PRO SP3.

2. My actual problem is to choose the monitor because:

a) The "old" monitor of my "old" second computer is a "square" "HP L1706" which delivers several resolutions. I always use the maximum which is 1280x1024 and this is the resolution I also use in my PTE projects, so I get a "native" full screen picture. OK.

Trying to choose a new monitor I only find WIDE MONITORS. "Square" monitors are not built any more, it is said. So, I was thinking in SAMSUNG 2433BW said to have 1920x1200 max. I couldn't see it yet, but testing another wide model, and opening my blog on it, my big surprise was to see all my videos and PTE projects completly distorted, I mean, "fat" or "slim", I can't remember. Trying to adopt other existing resolutions, even "my" 1280x1024, none of them could give an undistorted image.

c) My big concern is: is it the case that I (and all my blog viewers using wide monitors) will not be able any more to look at decent undistorted images? Even in case I state that blog is optimized for 1280x1024 resolution? Is this possible? I can not believe!

3. I also saw catalogue of a monitor "LG W2486L-PF" (TFT LED type, much better, it is said) which informs to be able to deliver 4:3 images, showing two side black strips. OK. But my projects are not 4:3, they are 5:4. What will it happen in case I use monitor 4:3 mode? I doubt if I get an undistorted image because choice of resolution falls in my above point 2 doubts.

Would you please give me some help trying to clarify all this mess for me, and even give me your advice for a "civilized" monitor?

Thanks and best regards,

Jose

[davegee]

You must set your computer to the FULL resolution and aspect ratio of the monitor - 1920x1200 - 16:10.

Then all will be fine.

DG

[Guest Yachtsman1]

Hi Jose

You've hit my nail on the head, I too am considering changing my hardware, but don't like the current trend to widescreen monitors & TV sets. I have two laptops, one with 4-3 format & one with 16-9 format. The 16-9 laptop displays my images correctly but with a black space each side of the screen.

Re your new monitor, I searched recently for 4-3 monitors and found quite a number available, I will come back later with a list of what I found. Re- your existing shows on your new monitor you will have to tolerate the black strips or distortion. From what I believe is the case having followed all the topics I can on the subject. To fill you monitor screen you will have to go right back to scratch, to your original JPEG pictures & re-size them to fit the 16-9 format then build them into a new show to suit 16-9. I'm sure someone will come on with the actual sizes you need to convert your pictures to.

Yachtsman1

[fh1805]

Jose,

Can I first clarify that I have understood what you currently do?

You build all your PTE sequences using main images with no background and the images are sized to 1280x1024. Is this correct? Or if you use a background image and then super-impose your images on that, then the background images are 1280x1024. Correct?

And you have the options on the Project Options...Screen tab set to "Fullscreen" and 1280x1024. Is this also correct?

If that is indeed what you do, and you then do as DaveG has suggested and set the resolution on your new computer to be the native resolution of the new monitor that you buy, then there should be no distortion.

When you run your PTE exe files on your new system, PTE will expand the image equally along both axes until it has filled one of them. Let's say that the new monitor is 1920x1200. PTE will expand the images until there are 1200 vertically. There will, at this stage, still be fewer than 1920 pixels across the horizontal and so there should then be black bars at each side of the image.

However, you might still want to re-build your sequences because when PTE expands the image to fit the screen it is having to add in pixels that never existed (this is called interpolation) and there will almost certainly be some visible degradation of the image quality.

I know English is not your first language, so if you need me to explain things differently to help you understand please ask again.

regards,

Peter

[Guest Yachtsman1]

Hi Jose

I said I would come back with the monitor information I got together last year, the first is a copy of a request I made on the forum, then 3 PDF files on monitors to suit my situation. Sorry its a bit long winded, some of the monitors mentioned may be out of date now.

Previous post.

Hi All.

Soap Box Time Again.

As mentioned on a number of occasions I try to fight shy of technology chasing. However recent experiences have led me to believe my hardware may be at the end of it’s ability to cope with future advances in PTE.

So, I had to make the decision to either stick with what I have, or plan for a future upgrade that could have the facility to be upgraded bit by bit, unlike my present approach, using lap top computers.

At present I am investigating the possibility of building my own cube PC, which would give me a certain amount of portability. I did post a possible spec in another thread, but didn’t get any response, maybe it was “lost in translation?”.

The reason for this post is to gain experience of what others use to “Monitor” their work.

I did intrude with the subject on another thread, but said would come back with a dedicated thread when I had studied the subject a little more.

So here goes, I want a 19inch monitor to use to edit my photographs & compile my PTE shows. Because of my situation, I am limited to 19inch.

Next factor, wide-screen 16-9 or conventional 4-3, I have a widescreen sony laptop, but much prefer my 4-3 laptop as it is closest to the pictures my camera takes 3-2, so I have decided to get as near to 4-3 as I can.

We are pushed down the landscape format when taking pictures, as portrait shots have either to be cropped, or animated to show the full picture in PTE.

I am not knocking wide-screen, I just think it’s alien to our art.

The final deciding factor to stick with 4-3 is my projector/s. They are both XGA 4-3, have years of life left in them so for the moment they will be used if I have to show in public.

I have compiled a list of Monitors I have looked at which various links follow this post. Weight is another factor, 3kg is about the maximum my viewing facility will take, unfortunately the AG Neovo range exceed this.

I would appreciate any comments pertinent to what I have written.

Monitors

1. LG M1994D 19 LCD TV /MONITOR

2. AG Neovo SX-19A 19-inch Glass CCTV TFT Monitor

3. http://www.pcbuyerbeware.co.uk/Monitor.htm

4. http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/detail/spec.do?group=itbusiness&type=monitors&subtype=lcd&model_cd=LS19MYMEBQ/EDC&fullspec=F

5. http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/detail/detail.do?group=itbusiness&type=monitors&subtype=lcd&model_cd=LS19LIUKFV/EN

6. http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/detail/spec.do?group=itbusiness&type=monitors&subtype=lcd&model_cd=LS20LIUJFV/EN&fullspec=F

7. http://eu.envisiondisplay.com/products/p951w_s.htm

8. http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/gbweb/LenovoPortal/en_GB/catalog.workflow:item.detail?GroupID=38&Code=R35AEUK&current-category-id=3094BA5C504142D1BE0E29B7117BE542

9. http://www.samsung.com/au/consumer/detail/spec.do?group=computerperipherals&type=monitor&subtype=archive&model_cd=LS20AQWJFV/XSA&fullspec=F

10. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-Widescreen-Monitor-Black-20000/dp/tech-data/B0017H98FI/ref=de_a_smtd

Yachtsman1

E-19_DS_E19K0_V100_20090401.pdf

F-419_DS_F19V0_V160_20080530.pdf

P-19_DS_P19000_P19010_V050_20081201.pdf

[orizaba]

Jose,

Can I first clarify that I have understood what you currently do?

You build all your PTE sequences using main images with no background and the images are sized to 1280x1024. Is this correct? Or if you use a background image and then super-impose your images on that, then the background images are 1280x1024. Correct?

And you have the options on the Project Options...Screen tab set to "Fullscreen" and 1280x1024. Is this also correct?

If that is indeed what you do, and you then do as DaveG has suggested and set the resolution on your new computer to be the native resolution of the new monitor that you buy, then there should be no distortion.

When you run your PTE exe files on your new system, PTE will expand the image equally along both axes until it has filled one of them. Let's say that the new monitor is 1920x1200. PTE will expand the images until there are 1200 vertically. There will, at this stage, still be fewer than 1920 pixels across the horizontal and so there should then be black bars at each side of the image.

However, you might still want to re-build your sequences because when PTE expands the image to fit the screen it is having to add in pixels that never existed (this is called interpolation) and there will almost certainly be some visible degradation of the image quality.

I know English is not your first language, so if you need me to explain things differently to help you understand please ask again.

regards,

Peter

Hi Peter,

Thanks very much.

I can say that your paragraphs 2 and 3 are 100% correct. I do exactly as you say.

I agree 100% with your paragraph 4: "... there should be no distortion." Concerning this point, my doubts arrised because I got distortion when testing a wide monitor at the shop (as I told you before).

But... I spent all night trying to clarify this in the internet and I think I can conclude that this problem occured in the shop because the computer (and monitor) were not correctly installed.

I mean: may be the the monitor was not correctly installed (drivers on monitor CD installation were not installed) and this is reason enough, I think, to get distortions, even if we put monitor in its maximum (and optimized) resolution.

I understand that such monitor drivers MUST be installed. In case they are, common resolutions (monitor and graphic card resolutions) will show, and among them we must choose the recomended (optimized) one for the monitor (which uses to be the maximum one). If this happens, ANY picture we pass to monitor should automaticaly present no distortion at all (even in case of interpolation in order to fullfil one of monitor's dimensions.

So, I think that this was the problem in the shop, don't you think so?

In conclusion, I think that I can buy any WIDE MONITOR (either 16:9 or 16:10), install it correctly, and hope that I will get no distortions at all whatever is the picture's resolution I present, is this so?

Jose

[orizaba]

You must set your computer to the FULL resolution and aspect ratio of the monitor - 1920x1200 - 16:10.

Then all will be fine.

DG

Hi DG,

Yes, I agree. Please read my reply to Peter, where I explain what I think was the problem.

Thanks very much,

Jose

[orizaba]

Hi Jose

I said I would come back with the monitor information I got together last year, the first is a copy of a request I made on the forum, then 3 PDF files on monitors to suit my situation. Sorry its a bit long winded, some of the monitors mentioned may be out of date now.

Previous post.

Hi All.

Soap Box Time Again.

As mentioned on a number of occasions I try to fight shy of technology chasing. However recent experiences have led me to believe my hardware may be at the end of it’s ability to cope with future advances in PTE.

So, I had to make the decision to either stick with what I have, or plan for a future upgrade that could have the facility to be upgraded bit by bit, unlike my present approach, using lap top computers.

At present I am investigating the possibility of building my own cube PC, which would give me a certain amount of portability. I did post a possible spec in another thread, but didn’t get any response, maybe it was “lost in translation?”.

The reason for this post is to gain experience of what others use to “Monitor” their work.

I did intrude with the subject on another thread, but said would come back with a dedicated thread when I had studied the subject a little more.

So here goes, I want a 19inch monitor to use to edit my photographs & compile my PTE shows. Because of my situation, I am limited to 19inch.

Next factor, wide-screen 16-9 or conventional 4-3, I have a widescreen sony laptop, but much prefer my 4-3 laptop as it is closest to the pictures my camera takes 3-2, so I have decided to get as near to 4-3 as I can.

We are pushed down the landscape format when taking pictures, as portrait shots have either to be cropped, or animated to show the full picture in PTE.

I am not knocking wide-screen, I just think it’s alien to our art.

The final deciding factor to stick with 4-3 is my projector/s. They are both XGA 4-3, have years of life left in them so for the moment they will be used if I have to show in public.

I have compiled a list of Monitors I have looked at which various links follow this post. Weight is another factor, 3kg is about the maximum my viewing facility will take, unfortunately the AG Neovo range exceed this.

I would appreciate any comments pertinent to what I have written.

Monitors

1. LG M1994D 19 LCD TV /MONITOR

2. AG Neovo SX-19A 19-inch Glass CCTV TFT Monitor

3. http://www.pcbuyerbeware.co.uk/Monitor.htm

4. http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/detail/spec.do?group=itbusiness&type=monitors&subtype=lcd&model_cd=LS19MYMEBQ/EDC&fullspec=F

5. http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/detail/detail.do?group=itbusiness&type=monitors&subtype=lcd&model_cd=LS19LIUKFV/EN

6. http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/detail/spec.do?group=itbusiness&type=monitors&subtype=lcd&model_cd=LS20LIUJFV/EN&fullspec=F

7. http://eu.envisiondisplay.com/products/p951w_s.htm

8. http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/controller/e/gbweb/LenovoPortal/en_GB/catalog.workflow:item.detail?GroupID=38&Code=R35AEUK&current-category-id=3094BA5C504142D1BE0E29B7117BE542

9. http://www.samsung.com/au/consumer/detail/spec.do?group=computerperipherals&type=monitor&subtype=archive&model_cd=LS20AQWJFV/XSA&fullspec=F

10. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-Widescreen-Monitor-Black-20000/dp/tech-data/B0017H98FI/ref=de_a_smtd

Yachtsman1

Hi Yachtman,

Thanks very much for your help.

Here in Lisbon it's hard to find 4:3 monitors on shops, only 16:9, and I am almost decided to adopt 16:9 because I think I will have no distortion problems as I explained to Peter.

Thanks for your list. I am thinking to choose a 24'' monitor, if possible a LED one.

Best regards,

Jose

[davegee]

Be carefull when setting the resolution.

1920x1080=16:9

1920x1200=16:10

Use the MONITOR's Resolution.

Another point - if the new monitor (and your computer) have HDMI (the monitor will) use it in preference to VGA!

DG