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pjavon - 13/3/07 at 07:50 PM

I've bought a new monitor which has got a normal plug and a digital connection in the back of the screen, from looking at the instructions both should be connected but i only have a normal(blue) connection in the back of my computer, it is also supposed to have a screen resolution of 1680*1050 which i don't have in my settings, 1280*1024 being the biggest, does this mean i need a better graphics card and if so can anyone recomend a good one that will do the job i need.
Any advice please
Paul
By the way it's a samsung 22'' Syncmaster 225BW if that makes any difference, and i have tried downloading the drivers off there web site but not sure if i'm getting the best out of the screen.
Thanks

[Edited on 13/3/07 by pjavon]


scottc - 13/3/07 at 07:56 PM

I'd check for new drivers for your graphics card. There might be some which do wide screen.


tks - 13/3/07 at 08:11 PM

no,

you only need 1 Input on the monitor

RGB (the blue small one) or the digital input wich is the WIDE (mostly white one)

from what you say you have the oldest one the RGB..

just hook up the comuter to that input on the monitor and it will be fine.

Tks


mark_mcd - 13/3/07 at 08:15 PM

quote:
Originally posted by tks
no,

you only need 1 Input on the monitor

RGB (the blue small one) or the digital input wich is the WIDE (mostly white one)

from what you say you have the oldest one the RGB..

just hook up the comuter to that input on the monitor and it will be fine.

Tks


what he said. you may want to update to the latest drivers for your current graphics card though


Keith Weiland - 13/3/07 at 08:39 PM

A digital monitor benifits from a graphics card with DVI out which is the larger white port. Any decent graphics card should come with at least one DVI out. If you don't play games and are happy with the performance of the PC then no need to upgrade the card just for that though. Just connect the VGA connectors.

I also recommend NOT upgrading your drivers unless you have problems or the new driver enables a feature your current drivers don't. If it ain't broke don't fix it.'

[Edited on 13/3/2007 by Keith Weiland]


scottc - 13/3/07 at 08:59 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Keith Weiland
I also recommend NOT upgrading your drivers unless you have problems or the new driver enables a feature your current drivers don't. If it ain't broke don't fix it.'

[Edited on 13/3/2007 by Keith Weiland]


That feature being a wide screen resolution maybe?


tks - 13/3/07 at 09:02 PM

driver seems a bitt time consuming

also because 1280*1024 should be enough haveing 22inch monitor aka television...

Tks


RazMan - 13/3/07 at 10:19 PM

As already said, to get the best out of your monitor & graphics card, use the DVI port. Always choose a resolution that matches the native res of the monitor, or the display will be rubbish. Depending on your graphics card you could try the latest Nvidia or ATI drivers (google for them) which are being updated on a weekly basis sometimes.


Keith Weiland - 13/3/07 at 10:40 PM

quote:

That feature being a wide screen resolution maybe?


Maybe, but my point was not to update a driver until you actually check that it does enable that feature.

I own a computer shop and contract as a support rep and have had to deal with uncountable problems due to unnecessary driver updates.


pjavon - 14/3/07 at 07:59 PM

Thanks for the many comments, but i'm still not sure, are we all saying that unless i play games it's not worth upgrading my graphics card to digital? But then what about the screen resolution, i'm currently on 1280*768 to keep the ratio as near to 1.6 which it would be if i could up it to the recomended 1680*1050.
Just trying to get the best out of the screen so if i'm not going to notice the difference i won't bother, but i'm one of those blokes who likes to get the best out everything i've got
Raz your car is soooo you must be well pleased with the results
Paul


tks - 14/3/07 at 09:40 PM

Paul,

Trust me its bullchit to say you want the best of everything you have got because the weakest point of a machine is never ending!!!

My VGA card is a oldy now a days it has DUAL outputs VGA old and digital new...
it has 128Mb of ram its a GEFORCE FX 5200 my max resolution is 2048x1536..

if you tell us your RAM of your card or the name and brand its easy to tell if its a bottle neck or not.. anyway with higher resolution you will need better/bigger and faster VGA cards

but what kind of computer is it anyway? PIII?PIV? 22inch has allot of pixels to fill up

Tks


RazMan - 14/3/07 at 10:01 PM

quote:
Originally posted by pjavon
Raz your car is soooo you must be well pleased with the results
Paul


Yep, I have widened all the doors in my house to fit my head through

Matching your graphics card & monitor resolution is vital for the best image quality, especially if you have an lcd monitor. If you cant select the native resolution of the monitor you will never get the best out of it.