Re: Graphics Card for Xy 3.57?

[Harmon F Seaver hseaver@xxxxxxxx]

Ellen,
  First off, I think you have to decide exactly which monitor you are going
to use, because they use differenet refresh rates, and setting the refresh
rate is a monitor function, really. That is, you can only use the rate that
the monitor supports --- beware, also, because you can actually destroy the
monitor by setting the wrong refresh rate! And, refresh rate also pertains
to the level of definition you want to use, number of colors, etc. For
instance, I set my screen at 1024x768 resolution, and 256 colors, which for
my 14" Viewsonic 6 is a non-interlaced rate of 60mhz. This is in OS/2, but
DOS or Linux is the same, these are hardware parameters that are the
ultimate my graphics card (an older "2 the Max" card with 1 meg and the
Tseng ET400 chip) and monitor will do. This gives me a very good, solid,
flicker-free screen with rather small, clearly defined text. I used to hate
looking at computer screens, they made my eyes hurt, and so my first monitor
was an Amdek 1280, which was a propriatory format at 1280x800 resolution in
monochrome (B&W, not amber) which was about the best you could get at the
time. Very sharp text -- but I think my present SVGA rig is about as good. I
just ordered a STB 2meg card which fits the PCI slots on my new motherboard,
and uses the Tseng ET4000/W32 chip, and should be better, or at least a lot
faster.
   All in all, I'd say don't worry so much about the absolute highest
refresh rate, as to actually looking at the brand and model of monitor you
are going to get --- I've noticed some amazing differences in monitors in
the same price range -- that is, some bother my eyes, some don't. Generally,
the NECS and Viewsonics I like, but that's not to say they are the only
ones. Dot size also, don't get anything larger than .28 pitch and
non-interlaced is also a must. In short, I think the monitor is far more
crucial than the card. I've seen Solaris graphics running on a el-cheapo
generic brand $100 card and a good monitor that was just awesome. Hope this
helps.

--
Harmon Seaver
hseaver@xxxxxxxx
hseaver@xxxxxxxx
seaverh@xxxxxxxx
harmon@xxxxxxxx

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