On 3/16/08 6:02 PM Phil brightened our day with:

Benjamin Gawert wrote:
* Michael Pachta:


I don't own a LCD monitor, so here's my current knowledge:
As far as I know LCD monitors have a fixed screen resolution. Lower
resolutions can be obtained by extrapolation (interpolation?),

interpolation (extrapolation is something different)


which
makes the graphics worse. I once saw this at a friend's.



So, if I buy a large monitor, say 22", I need to have a good graphics
card that is capable of displaying the given resolution fast enough.
Otherwise I would have to switch to a lower resolution which would
result in bad graphics.

Or am I wrong here?

No, basically you're right. However, the effects of interpolation was
much worse with the first generation of displays (usually 15" and 17"
displays with 1024x768 or 1280x1024) on which lower resolutions such
like 800x600 or 640x480 look really bad. But on modern high resolution
displays with 1440x900, 1680x1050 or 1920x1200 lower resolutions usually
don't look as bad as they did on the first generation displays.

Benjamin



"don't look as bad as they did on the first generation displays" - is
just as bad !!!
Any current LCD monitor is look as bad as the next one unless you run
game / windows at its native (and only) resolution - even in 2d Window
mode.

Now, here is a relationship that I can not understand: you spend a
bunch of money to get a nice 24" LCD; unless you spend another big
chunk of money to upgrade to to top of the line video card and faster
CPU inorder to play game (this is a game discussion group so I would
use game as sample, not a Windows 2d application group) some what
acceptable at its native resolution. Other wise, you would have to
lower the resolution and get a ****ty image. Now, why spend extra
money to get the big screen but then playing game at a lower
resolution? What have you gain in game playing wise ?


I have a 22" widescreen and I don't play Crysis at 1650. I think I'm
playing at 1280x720. It looks fine.

It's not incredibly cheap but you can get a 22" monitor for less than
$250 and you can get a 8800 GT for $230. With that combo and a half
descent CPU you can run just about everything but Crysis at native
resolution.

I also have a 46" HDTV that I play Xbox 360 games on in 1080P, that's
pretty awesome.

You don't really know what a big deal HD is until you've got it.

--
"Out here on the perimeter there are no stars"

Steve --Inglo--