Do not accept the small monitor originally offered with your
computer. A good large monitor will earn its place in your
heart as you spend hours working with it.
Your monitor must display at least one full page of your
document. A two page monitor is even better.
In the Macintosh world, stores and catalogs offer one and
two page monitors with the appropriate monitor drivers. You
can get them in color or monochrome.
In the PC marketplace, vendors have never heard of one or
two page monitors. However, a 21 inch monitor with 1280x1024
resolution and .28 pitch will display two pages on the screen
in readable form. The top SONY monitors will cost about
$2,000, but I’m delighted with my $1,100 Daewoo.
Such a large monitor is not absolutely necessary, but the
closer you can get to that size, the happier you will be.
Remember, you are not simply writing with your monitor. You
are also formatting pages.
When you can see the entire page on the screen, you can
decide on your formatting as you view the page. When you
cannot see the entire page on the screen, you will spend time
squinting at a tiny, unreadable, full-page view, or scrolling
around to different parts of the page. You will also find it
necessary to print every time you want to see the final
overall view of the page.
You would find a small screen to be an aggravation and a
huge time waster. Don’t economize by getting a small
monitor. Make the best deal you can, and make your life easier
with a nice large monitor.
