The Video Subsystem
Video problems may not stop your computer from working, but they can make using it a miserable experience. Your computer's video subsystem is comprised of its monitor, which is connected by a cable to the video card; the graphics (or video) card, which is an expansion card that generates electric signals to the monitor; and a device driver, which the operating system uses to control the video card and ensure that it sends the correct signals to the monitor.
These three pieces work together to create the image you see on your monitor's display. Getting them to work together properly can be more of an art than a science, and fine-tuning the process can try the most patient person.
Moreover, the best monitor will provide a poor quality image if it is connected with a cheap video card or the wrong driver.
Video Card
Pixels and Other Jargon
As with most of the other components of your computer, the video subsystem has its own special jargon. This jargon revolves around the art and science of images, and primarily focuses on pixels, resolution, and refresh rate.
Pixels
The image you see on your screen is made up of pixels (or small dots). The pixels are arranged in columns and rows across the screen. Typical screens range from a total of 480,000 to 1,920,000 pixels.
In a 480,000 pixel screen image there are 800 dots in each horizontal line, and 600 lines from the top to the bottom of the screen. This results in a 800 x 600 image. (800 x 600=480,000)
In most monitors each pixel consists of three sub-parts, each part representing one of the primary colors (red, green or blue). By varying the intensity of these three sub-parts, the various other colors of the rainbow can be created. The number of possible colors that a given pixel can display is referred to as color depth. Color depth is directly correlated with the amount of video RAM in your video card - the greater the amount of RAM, the greater the possible color depth you can achieve.
Refresh Rate
The image on your screens is refreshed many times per second. The rate at which it refreshes itself is referred to in Hertz (Hz), which means times per second. Typical refresh rates are from 70 to 85 times per second.
One way to think of it is that the higher the refresh rate, the more stable and steady the screen image will appear. Low refresh rates in the range of 60 Hz will seem to flicker in Windows. Higher refresh rates of 70 Hz are acceptable, but may be taxing to your eyes after a few hours of steady use. The current common wisdom is that for for extended work periods, a refresh rate of 80 or 80 Hz is desirable.
Of course, to have a high refresh rate you must have a good monitor. You can try to boost the refresh rate of your monitor beyond its normal capability, but your resolution will then suffer. For example, you can run a high quality Trinitron 17" monitor at 110 Hz at 800 x 600, but when you push the resolution to 1600 x 1200, you must settle for a refresh rate of 85 Hz: a significant difference.
Resolution
The greater the number of pixels in your screen image, the better its resolution, and the sharper the images on your display will appear.
The screen size of your monitor is closely related to the resolutions it can accommodate and the number of pixels that it holds:
Screen Size Pixels Resolution
15", 16" 480,000 800 x 600
17", 19" 786,432 1024 x 728
17", 19", 21" 995,328 1152 x 864
19", 21" 1,310,720 12808 x 1024
The easiest way to think of it is that the greater the resolution, the clearer and more detailed the image on the screen. Someone who just runs DOS would not need a resolution higher than 800 x 600, but a person who runs modern games would need something much larger.
Moreover, if you like to fill your desktop with icons, you can get up to three times as many at 1280 x 1024 resolution than at 800 x 600.
If you desire both high resolution and high refresh rate, you will need a good monitor and a good video card. There is no cutting corners here.
The Video Card
As stated earlier, your computer's video card (sometimes referred to as the graphics card) is one of the three main components of your its video subsystem.
In many computers the video card is an expansion board that can be replaced. In other systems it is built right onto your motherboard (as is the case in laptops). For your desktop system it may be preferable to make sure that it is an adapter, and thus is upgradable, as opposed to an integrated video card.
You can think of your video card as similar to your CPU in that it is a processor that is designed to control the images you see on your monitor's display. In fact, your video card contains a processor chip (made perhaps by ATI, Matrox, or Cirrus Logic, for example), which creates the electric signals that are received by the screen in order for it to form an image.
Your video card also contains RAM, which it uses to "remember" the display's entire screen image. As we've seen, the amount of RAM is directly related to the quality of the image you see on your screen (for example, the greater the RAM the greater the color depth and the finer the resolution).
The Video Driver
The difference between a terrific video card and an average one is more than just physical - it has to do with the software, too.
A good video card will have a driver that allows it to perform optimally, thus providing you with good screen performance. For example, the Matrox driver will determine for you what the ideal refresh rate is for your monitor at a given resolution. Another good sign of a quality video driver is that it will allow you to adjust the refresh rate.
Making It All Work
The video driver is what makes your monitor and video card work with the operating system. Often times if you allow Windows to install the default drivers for your video card and monitor, the result will be less than optimal.
It is therefore advisable to make sure that you have the current drivers for both your monitor and video card and that you install them both. This will insure that you get the optimal performance out of your display. Be warned that the drivers that ship with the hardware may be out of date. It is always wise to check the manufacturer's web site for the latest drivers.
Installing both monitor and video card drivers is done by using the Advanced button in the Settings tab of the Control Panel's Display Properties. In the Adapter Properties you can change the video driver and the video card's refresh rate. You can update the monitor driver in the adjacent Monitor tab.
In the Settings tab of the Display Properties window you can set your color depth and resolution.
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