As part of my home office make-over, I decided to upgrade to dual monitors. My goal is organization, time management and increased productivity.
My main issue has been keeping up with daily tasks between various programs and projects, with limited screen space, desk space and "out of sight, out of mind" personality.
My makeshift solution was to move all communications apps to my laptop, which I placed on my desk beside my CRT monitor. This gave me more room to work on my primary monitor, but still kept my email and task lists open and viewable. Obviously the problem being that I couldnt copy & paste or drag & drop between any of those applications...
Still, this setup did work better for me than having all of my applications overlapping on one 17" monitor, so I knew that dual monitors would be the ideal solution for me. Knowing that 'Black Friday' (the biggest holiday shopping day of the year) would mean incredible deals on consumer electronics, I spent the week figuring out exactly what I would need and then watching for the best deal that I could find. Of course you had to be quick, because once the deals were posted they would sell out within minutes...
I finally settled on a pair of 19" Widescreen LCD Monitors from Staples.com, which were regularly priced at $229.98 each:
$229.98 Reg. Price
- $40 Instant Savings
- $40 Easy Rebate
- $20 Coupon Savings (Enter coupon 72603 at checkout)
= $129.98 FINAL PRICEOffer Expires 12/02/06, "limit 2 per customer"
Since Staples is a local store they do charge sales tax, but they are currently offering free shipping. Tax included, these two monitors would have cost $504. With the special, the coupon code and the rebate... I got them both for a total of $299.96 - Sweet deal 😉 .
All I need now is a new video card, but I found a 128 meg card capable of dual-monitors for around $65 at a local store. I didnt buy it right away, as I noticed it had one DVI port and one VGA port. I decided to come home and research that, as I would obviously either get two VGA monitors or two digital monitors - not one of each.
A quick search on Google brought up an article that explains the port issue. Apparently all I need is a DVI to VGA adapter and I'm all set!
As soon as the new desk arrives and I get the monitors set up and everything back in place, I'll snap a few shots and give you the before & after. Like I said, the goal is to get things better organized and increase overall productivity.
Dual monitors is just about the only way to stay on top of things efficiently anymore it seems. I'm not sure how I am going to like the widescreen format, but I'll let you know!
Technorati Tags: dual monitors, widescreen monitors, computer monitors
About Lynn Terry
Quote
"My goal is organization, time management and increased productivity."
Personally, my goal is -- "Wow. Two 19 inch monitors! Thats so cool! I'll get them!".
LOL, I have to admit - it IS going to be cool 😉
LOL! We were just chatting about this over in MM. I want a second monitor too! I don't know why it has never been on my wish list before but now it definitely is.
I agree - I should have done this well before now! I am thinking that the widescreen format of the two 19's will give me a MUCH broader view of the web and my work, creating a better flow and easier way to keep up with everything that is going on at any given time.
Wow! Two 19" monitors. That's awesome. I remember from my trading days, we had dual monitors, but nowhere close to 19".
If I remember correctly, I think my first television set had a 19" screen. My how things have changed... LOL
I can hardly wait to go dual monitor, although I must admit I was just about drooling the time I saw a three monitor set up. No idea what I'd put on the third monitor, but oooooh!
If you could share a pic one you're all set-up, that would be cool. I'd love to see and hear how working off of two screens feels. I'm leaning towards getting one massive screen myself but am afraid I'll end up getting even worse eye strain and headaches!
I liked the idea of going two - and later adding a 3rd if necessary - as it lets me separate things a bit better. I'll let you know how it works out though 😉
I've got dual monitors set up here at work and it is so helpful! I have to admit, I don't use it as often as I could, though - I get so used to doing everything on one screen that I forget about that second one. I bet if I paid for both of them, though, I'd remember better. 🙂
Lynn, once you get used to two you will have to try out 3. 😉
http://www.marketingwithmiles.com/office/
I was actually curious about any studies that show this make an individual more productive? Of course, if you need to be tracking what's happening on one screen (ex...stock prices) and then working on the other, that makes sense.
I've seen a lot of discussions about dual monitors on Internet Marketing forums, and now here, but I don't understand why the average Internet marketer needs two monitors. I sometimes use 2 computers because if I'm processing audio or video on one computer it slows things down. Other than that, for me, looking at two screens would be counterproductive...in my humble opinion, of course. Watching email or a forum in another window just scatters your focus. I find focusing on one task at time, without email or other interruptions is what works best.
So, please tell me...why two monitors? It sounds cool, but I just don't understand why. 🙂
I found the article that a lot of people reference in showing dual monitors increase productivity and it's here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/16/magazine/16guru.html?ei=5088&en=2864cc65d74cefb8&ex=1287115200&pagewanted=all
(If you have a better source, I'd love to hear it)
I think the situations described are not reality for many Internet marketers...but for some, I suppose they are. I think most of us are able to control our interruptions and we may just create more with the use of dual monitors.
Interesting stuff. Maybe we are all becoming robots and all these screens and buttons are what we need to function!
Nice Miles - That is sweeeet! 😉
Hi Alice - Great question!
There are some links and information here, and a search on Google brings up many more studies.
For me personally, its all about productivity and decreasing the distraction in my workspace. I decided last year to move all of my communications apps to the laptop, and then set it on the desk beside my CRT monitor. This helped dramatically as I no longer had to switch between windows to keep an eye on my email, and chat windows no longer popped up (or blinked annoyingly) in my line of vision on the monitor I was working on (which required focus - writing, coding, etc).
The only problem with this setup is that I cannot copy & paste or drag 'n drop between applications, and so it is just not as productive as it should be. Using the network is one solution, but a bit cumbersome compared to the smooth transition between dual monitors.
At any given time I may be researching, blogging, keeping an eye on email for important details, chatting with my "go to guy"... while also keeping an eye on my discussion forums, among other things.
Having too many windows open on one 17" CRT means that all of the tabs wont display horizontally, contributing to my 'out of sight, out of mind' frustration of keeping up with the flow of things.
I have multi-tasking down to an art... my current setup just hasnt been keeping up with me 😉 . Having a wide-open view of everything at hand will help tremendously.
That's interesting, Lynn and I can see how that set up would work. For me, I'd worry I'd spend too much time chatting, on email, etc. But that definitely has me thinking.
I am currently using Outlook for both email and tasks - using the Calendar and Task List/Reminder features that are integrated with the program. I'll be able to keep all of that open and available at a glance on one monitor, while writing/coding/working on the other. Being able to move between apps and screens without layering things on top of each other is the goal.
As for chatting or responding to email too much, or getting distracted with that, I dont think it will be a problem. I have it open on the laptop already, I just cant copy & paste between the apps on the two different systems. I'm not much of a chatter (as most people know lol), but there are a couple of people that I stay available to (and vice versa) throughout the day.
Hey Lynn!
Looking good. Pretty soon you'll have your own communications/data center.
Just add a couple of these ...
http://www.digitaltigers.com/multiple-monitors.shtml
LOL
Rick Wilson aka Corprebel
Ooohh - Mega overload! lol
Now that the price of technology is falling, I have incorporated a triple screen setup consisting of a 42" LCD and (2) 22" LCD's. It's amazing that you can find a 22" monitor for less that $150 now. Wait until black friday 2009, the deals will be even better.