That sounds awful. I don't want or need to have my email and messaging clients up at all times, but on the occasions that I am doing something novel at work and reading through documentation at...
That sounds awful.
I don't want or need to have my email and messaging clients up at all times, but on the occasions that I am doing something novel at work and reading through documentation at the same time as writing the code to do the thing, I do not want to be toggling between windows on one screen or workspaces.
It sounds a lot like "I had too much clutter so I burned down my house and now I'm living in my car". Yeah, it works, I guess. But the problem isn't the big monitor. It's that he's using it to...
It sounds a lot like "I had too much clutter so I burned down my house and now I'm living in my car".
Yeah, it works, I guess. But the problem isn't the big monitor. It's that he's using it to watch YouTube videos while working. Surely there's a better way to improve focus (and if there is, I'd appreciate tips).
Like, it's great that this works for this guy. But in my experience, this is just treating a symptom and not the cause. You can still distract yourself with your cellphone or any number of other things.
When I’m ONLY writing code one is fine, but I’m usually bug-fixing by changing code on one monitor and displaying it on the other, and that process cannot be done with one monitor.
When I’m ONLY writing code one is fine, but I’m usually bug-fixing by changing code on one monitor and displaying it on the other, and that process cannot be done with one monitor.
I'd love to use only my laptop when working, but I can't go back after using a larger display (27" standard here). In my age — near 40s —, the increased real state and therefore larger fonts are...
I'd love to use only my laptop when working, but I can't go back after using a larger display (27" standard here). In my age — near 40s —, the increased real state and therefore larger fonts are hard to give up.
When I replace my laptop, I plan to get a 15–16". My current has a tiny 13" screen. The only remaining issue would be ergonomics. Yes, I can replace the large monitor with external keyboard and mouse, but I very much prefer using the whole of my laptop instead.
I've worked remotely for a long time, so a majority of my working years have been in coffee shops or coworking spots which means no big monitor. I do have a ultrawide at my home office, but I...
I've worked remotely for a long time, so a majority of my working years have been in coffee shops or coworking spots which means no big monitor. I do have a ultrawide at my home office, but I rarely work at home. I'm very productive working with just a laptop screen, as long as I have an OS with virtual desktops (absolutely couldn't imagine doing it on windows, their implementation is so clunky).
I find clutter makes me feel less productive and like to be focused on just a single app at a time. I'll usually have a desktop for the web, one for design and another for code. I'll keep the web browser as the center desktop, and design/code on the left/right desktops respectively. Makes it easy to switch between and build muscle memory.
I have started carrying one of those USB C 1080p 15" portable monitors, and while it is nice, I rarely pull it out.
Similar here. Bring home is quite a bit harder to get into the zone for me. Being in a cafe surrounded by other people is so much easier to stay on target. My main machine is a 14” laptop, though...
Similar here. Bring home is quite a bit harder to get into the zone for me. Being in a cafe surrounded by other people is so much easier to stay on target. My main machine is a 14” laptop, though I’ll occasionally use an iPad or even just my phone with an external keyboard
My work made some questionable policy changes with no notice which, while it wasn't their intention, meant I couldn't use my two giant hi-res monitors. I was very annoyed that I had to go down to...
My work made some questionable policy changes with no notice which, while it wasn't their intention, meant I couldn't use my two giant hi-res monitors. I was very annoyed that I had to go down to my single, small laptop screen.. for a day. Then I realized I actually liked it a whole lot more. I now just keep the important stuff front and center rather than having everything spilled out everywhere. I now do almost all my work off just that laptop and occasionally put a bit of work into another monitor.
Hah! If anything having one monitor and it being just my laptop monitor will give me less focus. As I explained last month when someone asked about monitor preferences. For my current work I have...
Hah! If anything having one monitor and it being just my laptop monitor will give me less focus. As I explained last month when someone asked about monitor preferences.
2x 27“ 1440p monitors side by side in landscape is the sweet spot for me. One as my primary monitor I am centered in front of, the second one to the side for referencing stuff.
I tried various methods over the years but I keep coming back to this. Sometimes the reference monitor gets used in portrait mode but that is rare.
For me it is the opposite as you experience. If I need to keep switching to reference things it distracts me and pulls me out of focus. If I just need to turn my head a little I keep my focus.
For my current work I have to use a VDI which I will have in full screen on both my monitors. This is great to focus on work, but all messages, mail and calendar reminders will also be hidden. I used to have my laptop closed tucked away. So now I have it open with all that stuff on it, making sure it is out of the way of my field of view for the most part. Every now and then I will glance to to it to see if I need to pay attention to something there. Which, again, helps with focus as I otherwise would need to minimize the entire VDI instance and switch back.
It's almost as if different people focus differently :P
Counterpoint: A single 43" OLED 4k at home makes me much more productive. I wouldn't mind adding a portrait-oriented monitor, too, but don't feel like paying for it out of pocket. I wear dedicated...
Counterpoint: A single 43" OLED 4k at home makes me much more productive. I wouldn't mind adding a portrait-oriented monitor, too, but don't feel like paying for it out of pocket. I wear dedicated computer glasses with a 24" focal plane, which is perfect for seeing everything clearly on a single big screen.
Though I do some work in terminal windows, coding isn't the bulk of what I do. I've more often got to refer back and forth between RDP sessions and CAD or PDF blueprints, keep a Slack, Teams, or WebEx conversation going, refer to and update spec documents, and update a browser-based project management app, all concurrently. Not having to split that activity between screens, and resizing windows without screen size constraints, allows me to prioritize visual real estate for what needs the most attention. There's also some graphics and presentation work that benefits from big windows.
I've got early cataracts that aren't bad enough for surgery yet, and the higher OLED contrast and brightness helps avoid eyestrain. When I'm working in the field with a dim 14" laptop and external 17" LED screen, it's a miserable experience shuffling windows back and forth, zooming in and out, while squinting at fuzzy text. If I'm working in the office, I've got laptop, portable screen, and two (old, dim) 24" 1080p LED screens going at the same time, with the laptop dedicated to e-mail, calendar, and other notifications. I always have a headache by the end of the day from neck and eye strain, and haven't found any ergonomic tweaks yet that will avoid this.
It sounds like there is a split amongst how people interact with screen real estate when it comes to productivity: A. Those that can't or won't get distracted and therefore see real estate as...
It sounds like there is a split amongst how people interact with screen real estate when it comes to productivity:
A. Those that can't or won't get distracted and therefore see real estate as space to display more things relevant to the task at hand; and
B. Those for whom more real estate is more opportunity to have distracting content visible, such as YouTube.
It sounds like you very much fall in group A, either by necessity or ability to remain focussed.
I find when I get sucked into something I naturally remain focussed on it, and if I've got to do something that doesn't suck me in I will get distracted no matter how constrained my screen real estate is, and so for me screen space only really improves productivity.
Definitely - I'm on the hyperfocused end of the attentional spectrum, not the "every train of thought derails if I see an e-mail notification" end. To be effective, most people arrive at something...
Definitely - I'm on the hyperfocused end of the attentional spectrum, not the "every train of thought derails if I see an e-mail notification" end. To be effective, most people arrive at something that works for their level of focus.
I've been working with a 32" 4k display and a vertical 27" combination (plus the laptop screen, but that's usually just my music player) and this seems to be pretty good. I can fit two windows...
I've been working with a 32" 4k display and a vertical 27" combination (plus the laptop screen, but that's usually just my music player) and this seems to be pretty good.
I can fit two windows side by side on the big screen and two on top of each other on the vertical one.
That sounds awful.
I don't want or need to have my email and messaging clients up at all times, but on the occasions that I am doing something novel at work and reading through documentation at the same time as writing the code to do the thing, I do not want to be toggling between windows on one screen or workspaces.
It sounds a lot like "I had too much clutter so I burned down my house and now I'm living in my car".
Yeah, it works, I guess. But the problem isn't the big monitor. It's that he's using it to watch YouTube videos while working. Surely there's a better way to improve focus (and if there is, I'd appreciate tips).
Like, it's great that this works for this guy. But in my experience, this is just treating a symptom and not the cause. You can still distract yourself with your cellphone or any number of other things.
When I’m ONLY writing code one is fine, but I’m usually bug-fixing by changing code on one monitor and displaying it on the other, and that process cannot be done with one monitor.
I'd love to use only my laptop when working, but I can't go back after using a larger display (27" standard here). In my age — near 40s —, the increased real state and therefore larger fonts are hard to give up.
When I replace my laptop, I plan to get a 15–16". My current has a tiny 13" screen. The only remaining issue would be ergonomics. Yes, I can replace the large monitor with external keyboard and mouse, but I very much prefer using the whole of my laptop instead.
M1 Air here as well. I can read (using glasses), but I'm often increasing zoom on a variety of web pages 👀
you can get a 13" monitor with a VESA mount. I've got one as my second screen and I love it.
I've worked remotely for a long time, so a majority of my working years have been in coffee shops or coworking spots which means no big monitor. I do have a ultrawide at my home office, but I rarely work at home. I'm very productive working with just a laptop screen, as long as I have an OS with virtual desktops (absolutely couldn't imagine doing it on windows, their implementation is so clunky).
I find clutter makes me feel less productive and like to be focused on just a single app at a time. I'll usually have a desktop for the web, one for design and another for code. I'll keep the web browser as the center desktop, and design/code on the left/right desktops respectively. Makes it easy to switch between and build muscle memory.
I have started carrying one of those USB C 1080p 15" portable monitors, and while it is nice, I rarely pull it out.
Similar here. Bring home is quite a bit harder to get into the zone for me. Being in a cafe surrounded by other people is so much easier to stay on target. My main machine is a 14” laptop, though I’ll occasionally use an iPad or even just my phone with an external keyboard
I have a 32" monitor, and it definitely makes me less focused. Maybe that is why I can only write longform on my laptop.
My work made some questionable policy changes with no notice which, while it wasn't their intention, meant I couldn't use my two giant hi-res monitors. I was very annoyed that I had to go down to my single, small laptop screen.. for a day. Then I realized I actually liked it a whole lot more. I now just keep the important stuff front and center rather than having everything spilled out everywhere. I now do almost all my work off just that laptop and occasionally put a bit of work into another monitor.
Hah! If anything having one monitor and it being just my laptop monitor will give me less focus. As I explained last month when someone asked about monitor preferences.
For my current work I have to use a VDI which I will have in full screen on both my monitors. This is great to focus on work, but all messages, mail and calendar reminders will also be hidden. I used to have my laptop closed tucked away. So now I have it open with all that stuff on it, making sure it is out of the way of my field of view for the most part. Every now and then I will glance to to it to see if I need to pay attention to something there. Which, again, helps with focus as I otherwise would need to minimize the entire VDI instance and switch back.
It's almost as if different people focus differently :P
Counterpoint: A single 43" OLED 4k at home makes me much more productive. I wouldn't mind adding a portrait-oriented monitor, too, but don't feel like paying for it out of pocket. I wear dedicated computer glasses with a 24" focal plane, which is perfect for seeing everything clearly on a single big screen.
Though I do some work in terminal windows, coding isn't the bulk of what I do. I've more often got to refer back and forth between RDP sessions and CAD or PDF blueprints, keep a Slack, Teams, or WebEx conversation going, refer to and update spec documents, and update a browser-based project management app, all concurrently. Not having to split that activity between screens, and resizing windows without screen size constraints, allows me to prioritize visual real estate for what needs the most attention. There's also some graphics and presentation work that benefits from big windows.
I've got early cataracts that aren't bad enough for surgery yet, and the higher OLED contrast and brightness helps avoid eyestrain. When I'm working in the field with a dim 14" laptop and external 17" LED screen, it's a miserable experience shuffling windows back and forth, zooming in and out, while squinting at fuzzy text. If I'm working in the office, I've got laptop, portable screen, and two (old, dim) 24" 1080p LED screens going at the same time, with the laptop dedicated to e-mail, calendar, and other notifications. I always have a headache by the end of the day from neck and eye strain, and haven't found any ergonomic tweaks yet that will avoid this.
It sounds like there is a split amongst how people interact with screen real estate when it comes to productivity:
A. Those that can't or won't get distracted and therefore see real estate as space to display more things relevant to the task at hand; and
B. Those for whom more real estate is more opportunity to have distracting content visible, such as YouTube.
It sounds like you very much fall in group A, either by necessity or ability to remain focussed.
I find when I get sucked into something I naturally remain focussed on it, and if I've got to do something that doesn't suck me in I will get distracted no matter how constrained my screen real estate is, and so for me screen space only really improves productivity.
Definitely - I'm on the hyperfocused end of the attentional spectrum, not the "every train of thought derails if I see an e-mail notification" end. To be effective, most people arrive at something that works for their level of focus.
I've been working with a 32" 4k display and a vertical 27" combination (plus the laptop screen, but that's usually just my music player) and this seems to be pretty good.
I can fit two windows side by side on the big screen and two on top of each other on the vertical one.