Matrix Games Forums

ORIGINAL: LuckyJim1010

Actually I think anyone moving to 2 Monitors will find they get a lot out of them no matter what they are playing.
My main is the Wargame on the left monitor and the manual/google on the other, both widescreen.

Too true.
Once you go multi-monitor you can't imagine going without them.
I've got four (yeah, yeah I know....Uber-Geek [:D] ) bought specifically for my flight-sim, but I found it was extremely useful for WitE.
3 screens wide allowed for a view of the front from Poland to Moscow, and still left the fourth screen for manuals and forums.

ORIGINAL: CheerfullyInsane

ORIGINAL: LuckyJim1010

Actually I think anyone moving to 2 Monitors will find they get a lot out of them no matter what they are playing.
My main is the Wargame on the left monitor and the manual/google on the other, both widescreen.

Too true.
Once you go multi-monitor you can't imagine going without them.
I've got four (yeah, yeah I know....Uber-Geek [:D] ) bought specifically for my flight-sim, but I found it was extremely useful for WitE.
3 screens wide allowed for a view of the front from Poland to Moscow, and still left the fourth screen for manuals and forums.

Awesome, you need a steering wheel/pedal setup, that's made for racing games!

I have a mate with six big, high-quality ones, arranged 3 wide by 2 high. He's an awesome software developer and no doubt he's into gaming too. He also has a CNC machine. I think a 3D printer is next on the list.

Cheers, Neilster

Playin on a 42" TV now .. and will definetly need another .... [X(]
IDG [X(]

advice setting up a "second" monitor when it will likely be a HDTV ? Doesn't support native monitor resolution ..... how does one go about this ?

In Properties for your desktop you should have a Settings tab wherein you can extend your desktop onto a second monitor and set its resolution. Check your HDTV specs to see what setting would be best.

That's in XP, if it's real different in Vista, Win7 or Win8 maybe someone that has those can advise.

ORIGINAL: Dorb

ORIGINAL: CheerfullyInsane
Too true.
Once you go multi-monitor you can't imagine going without them.
I've got four (yeah, yeah I know....Uber-Geek [:D] ) bought specifically for my flight-sim, but I found it was extremely useful for WitE.
3 screens wide allowed for a view of the front from Poland to Moscow, and still left the fourth screen for manuals and forums.

Awesome, you need a steering wheel/pedal setup, that's made for racing games!

Way ahead of you. [;)]

Yes, like almost everyone here it seems, I've connected the laptop to the TV monitor. When funds permit I'll buy a 2nd monitor to go with the PC.

Is it best to get the 2nd monitor the same size as your main? At work they are all the same size. I didn't know if it matters or not.

I bought an app for the iPad called Air Display and have tested it out with this game. In general it works very well; the only problem I've noted so far is that there is an irritating delay (about five seconds) when I move the main form to the iPad and then try to open a menu on the main form.

Also note that you have to turn OFF retina display in the app's program which is installed on your computer, or the iPad is used as a very large display with text so small as to be unreadable.

While it would be more convenient to play with a real second monitor, I don't want to clutter up my desk, and this seems like a workable alternative.

paulderynck posted some helpful info in the tech support forum about how to avoid problems when using two monitors, so I wanted to repost it in this thread about using two monitors (text below verbatim from paulderynck's post:
***************
But if you start using them here are two things you should do to avoid potential problems that can give you a sense the game has crashed (when it hasn't) because the form you need to interact with is off-screen.

1. Your left hand monitor should have the 0,0 coordinate (i.e. it should be the "primary") - avoid negative number coordinates.

2. Keep the Main Form above the Detailed Map. People often try to totally max out the Detailed Map to a full monitor screen but in this case you are better to give up some space at the top, even if you have to resize the Detailed Map slightly so there's no overlap between it and the Main Form. I recommend no overlap because which one stays on top is usually the one you don't want to stay on top.
***************

As paulderynck says, if you ignore these tips what happens is that forms open in portions of the screen which are not visible on either monitor, and you think that the game has frozen, but it has not, it is just waiting for input on an invisible form.

I guess this means to put your second monitor on the right, and keep the main form on the same monitor with the map.

ORIGINAL: Dorb

Is it best to get the 2nd monitor the same size as your main? At work they are all the same size. I didn't know if it matters or not.

No they can be different sizes because most likely you'll not try to get the Detailed Map to span across more than one monitor - that's the only way you'll have trouble with different sizes and resolutions.

FREX I have the Detailed Map and Main Form on the larger screen and the Global Map, Set-up trays, SL, MV and some other forms on or opening on the smaller screen.

after playing a bit more last night with the app that I described and paulderynck's tips, I have to say that I continued to have the "hidden form" problem on a pretty regular basis. Often I could see the bottom corner of the missing form but could not drag it onto either monitor. The funny thing is that even after I would turn off the app, forcing all of the forms back onto the main screen, the missing screens would not appear, and I would have to restart the game.

Not sure if this problem is limited to this app or it also happens alot with a real second monitor?

Also paulderynck, do you know why the main form should be on the same monitor as the map? And does it really have to be above it, rather than below it, for instance?

It all relates to where all the other forms appear because they reference the location of the Main Form. You may find a post from Shannon somewhere here in the forums saying the same thing.

So if the Main Form is at the bottom, other forms may try to open below it, which in my case would make me try to look underneath my keyboard. [;)]

As for being on the same monitor, it's a related issue, but I'm unsure of the exact details. I did a lot of experimenting and can only relate what worked best for me.

ORIGINAL: paulderynck
So if the Main Form is at the bottom, other forms may try to open below it, which in my case would make me try to look underneath my keyboard.

OK, thanks, I will try it again, but this time at the top!

ORIGINAL: Doggie3

I already have two monitors, will use this as an excuse to add a third, wide-screen as the primary.

Cheers,

Me too. I'm thinking it is time to get monitor #3. I have the widescreen in the middle, and currently an older 4:3 flat screen to the side. Normally the side monitor has email and such open while I'm playing WitP on the big monitor. With all these forms, I might just want to a third monitor for more info goodness. We'll see though - the books might be fine for a lot of the quick reference stuff.

We have played for years with a beamer for the map view. Its nice, and hard to accept anything else once you are accustomed! It is also hard to imagine to work with just one monitor, or two.. when you don't have a pad for surfing.

Three monitors! Wow - you could like a trader or something Buy, Buy - ah Porkbellies!

No trader and not three monitors Just two monitors, more is hard to keep track of (for me). Banished all browsing and coms onto my pad, which runs a browser, mail client, skype, irc and currently needed pdfs. Can take it everywhere, kitchen to have a coffee, toilet.. you get the picture.. So Matrix Forum in Flames is happening on my pad, which usually resides next to the keyboard. Leads to a almost popup free screen estate, which is rather important for me.


On topic: In the lab we have one of these (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-t2O5lvUDXA). The current generation is probably too expensive for home use, and has bad colours. But in a couple of year from now, they are probably fit for our gaming room instead of the beamer. You would not have you sit in front of a desktop/laptop to operate things. Could be the virtual variant of a wall-mounted physical wif-game with magnets and stuff. Just a dream though

I wanted to report that after some initial success with the iPad app (Air Display), for the last two days I have not been able to get it to connect to my computer at all, which is not good.

ORIGINAL: Dabrion
We have played for years with a beamer for the map view.

OK, I'll bite...what's a beamer? A projector?