purchased larger monitor thinking I could have more windows open....

[QUOTE=dg1261;3385207]Your questions cover several different topics. Let's start by making sure you've got a firm grasp on the relationship between screen size and resolution. I've put together the attached graphic to help show you a relative comparison of five LG monitors. (Zoom in to get a better view.)

WOW you are brilliant...
that really makes the difference clear,
I had read some comments about the wide screen distorting images wide... I can't imagine anyone paying more for them if they did... but then, the large screen sells...

but, comparing features, I was leaning toward the 29WK600

thanks!

[QUOTE=dg1261;3385213]To use two monitors, your hardware must of course support that. If your computer is using a graphics adapter built into your CPU or motherboard, it's likely you only have one video port. If that's the case, you may be able to install another video card. There are also external video adapters that plug into a USB port.


and psychic... I spent some time this am trying to figure out the two monitor potential... a tough fit on the desk, but not impossible...
current... LG 23” view
height 11 1/4” (14”)
length 20” (22”)
the 29WK600 says 17.10" x 24.90"

does that translate into only 3" wider?


you said there are external ports for adding a monitor?
when I turn the computer off I will look inside and see what the potential is... actually, I will take a picture and ask someone ;-)
I've installed RAM and a dvd drive... that is about the extent of my skills


thanks for all the help!

I don't know where you got the 24.90" figure from; both the microcenter website and the LG spec sheet say the 29WK600 is 27.5" wide with bezels.

Dusting off my old high school trigonometry, a 23" 16:9 screen should be 20.0x11.3 inches and a 29" 21:9 screen should be 26.7x11.4 inches. Those are viewable areas, so bezels will add a bit to those figures.

You don't need to open up the computer (unless you're installing an add-in video card). Just look on the back panel of the chassis. As shown in post #10, you're looking to see how many video ports you have available to plug into. Keep in mind there are different types of port connectors. VGA (the two blue ports in post #10), DVD (the white port in post #10), HDMI (not shown), and DisplayPort (not shown) are the most common.

If you're lucky, you might already have more than one video port, so might not need additional hardware. Otherwise, you'll need to either add an add-in video graphics adapter (of course, you'll need to open the computer case to do that) or else use an external graphics adapter that plugs into a USB port.

In the lower photo of post #10, I used an external USB graphics adapter that was a single device supporting two external monitors.

Caveat: beware that the USB-type adapters often don't support ultra-high resolution monitors the way internal cards do. They'll support the W2353, but some may not support the 29KW600. If your internal video subsystem will support the 29KW600, though, you could put that on the computer's built-in port and use a USB device for the W2353.

dg1261 said:

I don't know where you got the 24.90" figure from; both the microcenter website and the LG spec sheet say the 29WK600 is 27.5" wide with bezels.

****yes, I must have confused the screen shot of specs with another.... subtracting an inch for the bezels, would be 25.5" viewing area? *****

Dusting off my old high school trigonometry, a 23" 16:9 screen should be 20.0x11.3 inches and a 29" 21:9 screen should be 26.7x11.4 inches. Those are viewable areas, so bezels will add a bit to those figures.

***measures 11.25" high,20" wide....******

You don't need to open up the computer (unless you're installing an add-in video card). Just look on the back panel of the chassis. As shown in post #10, you're looking to see how many video ports you have available to plug into. Keep in mind there are
**** pic attached, will go read my homework... one blue (15 pins) one 9 pins *****
different types of port connectors. VGA (the two blue ports in post #10), DVD (the white port in post #10), HDMI (not shown), and DisplayPort (not shown) are the most common.

If you're lucky, you might already have more than one video port, so might not need additional hardware.

*** window shows "1" display... means potential for another? ******

Otherwise, you'll need to either add an add-in video graphics adapter (of course, you'll need to open the computer case to do that) or else use an external graphics adapter that plugs into a USB port.

In the lower photo of post #10, I used an external USB graphics adapter that was a single device supporting two external monitors.

Caveat: beware that the USB-type adapters often don't support ultra-high resolution monitors the way internal cards do. They'll support the W2353, but some may not support the 29KW600. If your internal video subsystem will support the 29KW600, though, you could put that on the computer's built-in port and use a USB device for the W2353.

***** if I buy the wider, not planning to run two.... if the wide screen gives enough area, no need for two... ***

Ranger4 said:

You should not have to look inside the computer. Monitor ports are accessible from outside. This YouTube video might help you locate them & tell you if have 2 monitor ports.

How to Connect Dual Monitors in Windows 7 - YouTube

one 15 pin port only, looking inside to see if there is a place for the graphics card that would support two monitors, want to be able to move windows from monitor/monitor...

thanks for the link!

[QUOTE=dg1261;3385358]I don't know where you got the 24.90" figure from; both the microcenter website and the LG spec sheet say the 29WK600 is 27.5" wide with bezels.

Dusting off my old high school trigonometry, a 23" 16:9 screen should be 20.0x11.3 inches and a 29" 21:9 screen should be 26.7x11.4 inches. Those are viewable areas, so bezels will add a bit to those figures.

I've looked at so many... I'm confusing them.....

so... the 600, the bezels are thinner on the lower edge than my 23"

looks like it will be, 3" higher and 5" wider than my 23"?
actually, the bezels are very thin on this monitor...


23" is....height 14.25 “ screen area 11.25” width 22” screen area 20”

LG 29WK600
height 16.2“ screen area 14” ?
width 27.5” screen area 25.5” ?


and you've shown the picture quality, as clear as my 23"....

dg1261 said:

a 23" 16:9 screen should be 20.0x11.3 inches and a 29" 21:9 screen should be 26.7x11.4 inches. Those are viewable areas, so bezels will add a bit to those figures.

pleiades357 said:

LG 29WK600
height 16.2“ screen area 14” ?
width 27.5” screen area 25.5” ?

According to the LG spec sheet, the 29WK600 is 27.5x12.5 without the stand, and 16.2" tall when the stand is added.

27.5x12.5 is with the bezels. As I calculated, the display area should be 26.7x11.4 inches.

The Intel Windows driver (lower photo in your post #15) has nothing to do with how many monitors you might be able to have, it only shows how many monitors are actually connected and detected. If you plug in multiple monitors, it should change to show more than one.

Note the lower photo in my post #10, for example. The lower left monitor is displaying Win8.1's multiple display configuration window, where I've arranged the four monitors into a 2x2 grid. Win7 is similar, whereby you can tell Windows how the monitors are oriented in relation to each other--above, below, to the left, to the right...

And, yes, once you open a program in a window, you can use your mouse to drag that window across to another screen.

The middle photo in your post #15 shows the motherboard has four SATA ports (the light orange ports), so it's not exactly ancient, but the top photo of the back panel indicates it is nevertheless relatively old. That's evidenced by the parallel printer port, the 9-pin serial port, and the PS2-style keyboard and mouse ports. Those haven't been included on computers for many years now.

The age of your computer leaves open the question as to whether the built-in graphics subsystem will support the 29KW600's resolution--specifically, the 2560 horizontal resolution. You may need to check the computer's full specs if you want to determine that.

OTOH, the 29KW600 has only HDMI and DVI inputs, while your computer has only a 15-pin VGA output, so that's an obstacle you'll need to deal with. There are adapters that will deal with the mismatch, but that will only be a viable option if your graphics subsystem will support the 29KW's resolution. If it doesn't, don't bother trying to get the 29KW connected to the motherboard graphics. Use an add-in card instead.

An add-in card will bypass the above problems. Take a look at the specs on this graphics card, for example. It has VGA, HDMI and DVI output ports, and will support monitors on all three at the same time. It supports resolutions up to 3840x2160 on the HDMI or DVI port, and up to 2048x1536 on the VGA port.

You'll need to plug the add-in card into the motherboard's PCI-E connector (the dark orange slot in the middle photo of post #15). Given the age of your computer, though, you'll need to check the specs to see which PCI-E version that slot supports. (The add-in card example in the previous paragraph is a PCI-E 2.0 card.)

If you decide to go with an add-in card (which I think is a good idea), you may want to start a new thread to attract opinions from other forum members. The add-in card I mentioned above is only an example, not necessarily the best option. Other people may have additional feedback you may want to consider.