jg@eagle.ukc.ac.uk (J.Grant) (07/12/88)
A nice simple one this ... does anyone have one, either size will do (19 or 25 inch) - if so, what's it like ? What resolution are you using ? Reason for question - basis for purchase decision, whilst no product is currently imported for evaluation.
mkent@dewey.soe.berkeley.edu (Marty Kent) (07/15/88)
In article <5350@eagle.ukc.ac.uk> jg@ukc.ac.uk (J.Grant) writes: > > A nice simple one this ... does anyone have one, either >size will do (19 or 25 inch) - if so, what's it like ? What >resolution are you using ? > > Reason for question - basis for purchase decision, whilst >no product is currently imported for evaluation. I have a couple of Moniterm 19"-ers (Viking I's), a Moniterm 24"-er (Viking 2400) and a 19" Megagraphics. I got the Viking I's with the 72dpi cards, not the 90dpi, because I like text and graphics to show up the same size on all the displays. The image quality on the Megagraphics is clearly superior to that of either Moniterm, but the difference is not really that big a deal; i.e. the display quality is certainly acceptable on all three monitors. The small Vikings look better than the 2400 - the big display has a whiter tint and I think it looks a bit "washed-out" by comparison with the 19". The Viking I has 1024 by 768 pixels, the Megagraphics 1024 by 860 pixels, and the V 2400 about 1280 by 960 pixels. Price-wise, at least here in the states, Viking seems to be about the best deal available: as a developer, my price on the Moniterm 19" was about 75% of the Megagraphics price. At the time I got the Megagraphics (it was my first) I didn't know the 19" Moniterm was available with a 72dpi card - if I'd known that, I'd probably never have gotten the Mega. Problems: the main problem with the Megagraphics is a people problem: the people at Megagraphics are absolutely some of the rudest, most moronic scumbags it's ever been my displeasure to deal with, right up their with the customer service people at Apple. After 6 or 7 phone calls and 2 letters to my Megagraphics rep, I haven't received a single word of documentation, or any of the software that was supposed to be shipped with the display (they advertise some communications software). I live in fear and trembling of the day the Mega needs service... Unfortunately I'm just about to find out about the service setup for the Moniterms, because we just got two new machines (Mac II's) with the revision B roms, and the Moniterms don't work with the new roms! So far the Moniterm folks have been pretty good (which is really a huge selling point to me, after the Megagraphics a**holes) and I'm hoping this doesn't bring out the worst in them. All in all, I recommend the Moniterms pretty highly... Marty Kent Sixth Sense Research and Development 415/642 0288 415/548 9129 MKent@dewey.soe.berkeley.edu {uwvax, decvax, inhp4}!ucbvax!mkent%dewey.soe.berkeley.edu Kent's heuristic: Look for it first where you'd most like to find it.
kuzminsk@thorin.cs.unc.edu (David Kuzminski) (07/15/88)
In article <5350@eagle.ukc.ac.uk> jg@ukc.ac.uk (J.Grant) writes: > > A nice simple one this ... does anyone have one, either >size will do (19 or 25 inch) - if so, what's it like ? What >resolution are you using ? > I have been evaluating several large screen monitors for Macs lately, including the Radius Two Page Display and both the 19 and 25 inch Moniterms. The Radius display is very crisp and clear with excellent resolution and good contrast. Because of the smaller pixel size, it is possible to display two full pages (a MacDrawing, for instance) on the screen. This monitor is the choice for people in our department that are doing work with medical images where they want to have "more picture" on the screen. There are some drawbacks, however. The smaller pixels result in text that is much more difficult to read, especially in WYSIWYG applications that are displaying 10 and 12 pt. text. Another consideration is that what you see on the screen isn't necessarily what you see on the paper. What I mean by this is that a 5 inch line on your display may actually print out to be 6 1/2 inches long. Now, before you say "What a dumb reason not to like a monitor", I would like to point out that this is not a limitation as far as I am concerned since you can always pull down the ruler and see what you are doing, but there ARE users who like to hold up a text-filed sheet of paper with space left for a drawing to see how big that drawing should be. No comments, please. That's just the way things are :^). The people who have objected to the Radius for this reason have really liked the 72 dpi Moniterm monitors. My personal favorite has been the 19 inch, and for one simple reason. This monitor has the very best antiglare screen that I have ever seen. I have has as many as four monitors on my system during this period of evaluation, and there have been times when the Moniterm was the only one I could look at without getting a headache. Admittedly I have an east facing window in my office which lets in the morning sun, but the Moniterm is in the worst position of all the monitors for reflection yet provides the best performance. Some people objected to the lower level of brightness caused (I presume) by the antiglare feature of the screen, but I have not found this to be a problem at all. The display is clear and crisp and is very easy on the eyes. With the 72 dpi display, yoiu can't quite get two full pages on the screen at once, but it's close. I have not been nearly as happy with the 24" Moniterm. The first one I received had serious arcing problems. I ran it for about 30 minutes then put it back in the box. Moniterm admitted that they had been having serious problems with these units, but that they had changed tube manufacturers. They sent me a newer unit for evaluation, but I still wasn't very satisfied. The screen arcing had gone, but there other problems of focus as well as a continuous crackling sound. The Moniterm rep was really surprised to hear this, so maybe I just got a bad unit, or maybe it got bounced around in shipping. Another minus for this system is that it didn't have the antiglare screen that the 19" model has. Moniterm plans to provide this feature in the future, hopefully field upgradable for older units, but at a cost of several $100. One nice thing about any 24 inch 72 dpi monitor is that you can get the two full pages on the screen in full size. If this is important, you may want to look at other manufacturers. There is a rumor that Apple will be providing a 24 inch monitor in the Fall. Oh, one more thing. The Radius and 19" Moniterm are both 256 level gray scale monitors. The 24" Moniterm si monochrome. The Apple unit is rumored to be either monochrome or a limited number of gray scales. 16 level gray scale.