Dual Monitors

Max Phillips

Who's got 'em? How are you using 'em?

Craig Eliason

At work I have an external monitor I hook up to my laptop to give me additional real estate. I really love it: it's hard to imagine going back to one screen. But for type design I actually don't use it that much, in part because Glyphs is set up as a one-window interface. .

Mark Simonson

Currently, I've got two 27" LCD monitors hooked up to a laptop (top down in this set up). I use one for RoboFont or FontLab font window/glyph windows, and the other for preview/metrics or text editor when working on features.

Jackson Showalter-Cavanaugh

I used to work with two monitors but stopped when I got the the retina mac. Now I can't stand looking at non-retina screens or apps. Looking back, I mostly used the second monitor for distracting myself with twitter/itunes/mail/etc anyway.

James Hultquist-Todd

My setup, like Mark’s uses one monitor for preview/metrics and one for the glyph window. I’ve found it helpful to keep all the font windows beneath the preview window for quick reference.

The laptop is usually used for testing and fooling around with Glyphs. It’s also helpful for reference images when the other two screens are in use.


Pardon the poor lighting here.

Ermin Međedović

30" Dell + 24" iMac. On the iMac there are all menus in all apps + Twiter, Mail and iTunes.
twitpic.com/ciqqmt

Rainer Erich Scheichelbauer

When I worked in a Swiss design studio last week, I was given an extra display, which was great for discussing the designs with the typographers. I had my font windows on the big external screen, but kept the font info and scripting windows on the MacBook display.

James Puckett

I stopped using two monitors when I switched to Glyphs.

Deleted Account

I use two with the retina closer than the cinema behind in vertical alignment so my Main RF menus are on the ret right in front of me and the drawing and spacing is on the cin.

Chris Lozos

That Retina looks mighty tempting, too bad I am broke ;-/

John Hudson

Only the one monitor here. But it's huge.

Lucas Leo Catalano

I have two monitors but never cared to have more than music or videos on the other since working on one display with Glyphs is fine. Instead I wished I could use my iPad as a touch screen dump for pannels, tools, and layers for crammed UIs like InDesign.

[Deleted User]

The user and all related content has been deleted.

Mark Simonson

I gave a short lettering workshop a couple of years ago and one guy there was using an iPad as a second display for his laptop, actually using Illustrator on it. Bit of a "dancing bear" from what I observed. Illustrator is not exactly optimized for touch interaction. He seemed to think it was great, though.

Jan Schmoeger

In my experience, it was great in InDesign, Illustrator or Photoshop, having one screen for all the palettes and another for the work in progress, but in FS or Glyphs not so much. I was told that Igino Marini/iKern uses a big screen to flash kerning and spacing strings at a distance, would imagine that to be quite useful—no squinting required.

Mark Simonson

Well, if I sit 32" away, my two 27" displays are considered "retina". That's actually about how far away I normally sit.

You can calculate such things here: http://isthisretina.com

I do have a 15" Retina MacBook Pro, but I find that it's not that comfortable to work on.

Since my mid-forties, I've been unable to focus clearly on anything closer than about 24" away without reading glasses. At that distance, the retina display is too small and far away, and the retina sharpness is pretty much wasted on me. If I put on my reading glasses, I can view it clearly right around a foot or so away (and appreciate the sharpness of the screen), but I have to sit hunched over the keyboard, which makes my back sore. Maybe a different reading glasses prescription would help, but it's nice not having to wear glasses when I'm working.

(Did I mention it sucks to get old?)

John Hudson

uses a big screen to flash kerning and spacing strings at a distance, would imagine that to be quite useful

That was my main reason for getting a large monitor (30" Dell), and also for making sure that my desk has a 20' straight walk away from it.

Thomas Phinney

I have identical setup at home office and day job office.

17" 1900x1200 MacBook on an elevated stand
27" 2560x1440 Dell U2711 next to it

The Dell becomes my main display for glyph editing and I can put auxiliary stuff on the MacBook screen. Very nice setup for my needs.

Ray Larabie

I used to use a second monitor but it got in the way of my speakers.

Nick Shinn

I use one screen, with space on either side to put the piles of junk I like to surround myself with, and then a scanner on one side and printer on the other.

Jan Tonellato

A 27" screen to work + a retina iPad to verify design & kerning on a special indesign document

Georg Seifert

I mostly work on my 15" Retina MacBook. Carrying it from the kitchen table to the living room depending where my daughter sleeps. But have a 27'' 2560x1440 HP screen at my working space.

Deleted Account

I guess that makes you a baby monitor.