Mastering Your Monitor's Behavior
Have you discovered that when you surf the Web, that the horizontal scroll bar appears in nearly every site? Or that the icons on your desktop are unusually large? Perhaps you have great eyesight and would like to extend the real estate on your desktop?

I've got a couple of tips to help you master your monitor resolution to improve your experience on the computer whether you work, surf, or play.

Screen Resolution
To change your resolution under Windows 95/98/NT/2000/Me:
  1. From the Start menu, select Settings, and then choose Control Panel. The Control Panel window will appear.
  2. Double-click the Display icon top open the Display Properties window. The Display Properties window will appear.
  3. Select the Settings tab.
  4. Determine the default resolution within the Screen Area. One of the following resolution settings may appear:
    1. 640 x 480
    2. 800 x 600
    3. 1024 x 768
    4. 1152 x 864
    5. 1280 x 1024
    6. 1600 x 1200 pixels

    FYI: As monitors and drivers advance, most designers take advantage of the increasing resolution available. Hence, the standard for designing Web sites was 640 x 480, but is now 800 x 600 and even inching toward 1024 x 768.

  5. If you are in 800 x 600 or higher resolution, that's fine and you can click Cancel to close the Display Properties box and the Control Panel.

  6. If you'd like to extend your desktop real estate, move the handle to the right of your current setting to increase the pixel resolution. (If you have a relatively recent monitor and drivers, you should be able to select 1024 x 768 or 1152 x 864.) Hopefully you also have the option under Color palette to choose High Color (16bit) or True Color (32bit).

  7. To test your resolution: If it is available, press the Apply button. If the screen appears blank, it will return to normal in 5 to 15 seconds and things will look quite a bit different. It may take a little getting used to at first, if you have always used 800 x 600 or lower. But most people with normal eyesight prefer a higher resolution for the greatly improved graphical representation.

  8. Click OK to close the Display Properties box and the Control Panel.
    NOTE: Your computer may prompt you to restart for the settings to take effect. Windows 95 and beyond do not require a reboot and will prompt you as to whether you wish to save the new settings.

About Type Size
If the typeset is too small you can go back into the Display Properties box and change the font size. You can select either Small fonts or Large fonts or click on the Custom button and pick a size that suits you. Personally, I use 1152 x 864 resolution (but design for 800 x 600 standards) with small fonts and have no problem.
For all other Windows versions:
Please go to Microsoft's support site by choosing the resource link below:
Microsoft Product Support Services

To change your resolution on a Mac:
  1. From the Apple menu, select Control Panels. You will either have the option Monitors & Sound or Monitors.
  2. If the option is Monitors & Sound:
    1. Open the Monitor icon.
    2. From the list of available resolutions, select the resolution you wish to use. Your screen resolution will change instantly.
    3. Close the Monitors and Sound window.
  3. If the option is Monitors:
    1. Ensure that the Show pull-down menu option is set to Recommended.
    2. From the list of available resolutions, select the resolution you wish to use. Your screen resolution will change instantly.
    3. Close the Monitors window.
For all other Mac versions:
Apple