Monitor

It is an output device which is a part of the main display system of your computer. The cable from the monitor is attached to the video adapter or video card installed in one of the slots of your computer's motherboard.

The video adapter or the video card receives signals from the computer and converts them in signals that the monitor displays into characters, images and etc.

Monitor consists of a CATHODE RAY TUBE or also known as CTR. It is shaped like a bottle, it is a vacuum tube. The tube tapers near the back where there's a negatively charged cathode, or "electron gun". Electron Gun shoots at the back of the positively charged screen.

The screen is coated with phosphorous chemical. The chemical then starts to glow into individual points or dots called pixels. Pixels are the most important part of the display. It is because that an image is made of millions of tiny pixels. Distance between the pixels is important factor in image quality. If the distance between them is too great then the image will appear fuzzy. The closer together the pixels are, the sharper the image on screen.

There are a couple of electromagnets (yokes) around the collar of the tube that actually bend the beam of electrons. The beam scans (is bent) across the monitor from left to right and top to bottom to create, or draw the image, line by line. The number of times in one second that the electron gun redraws the entire image is called the refresh rate and is measured in Hertz (Hz).

If the scanning beam hits each and every line of pixels, in succession, on each pass, then the monitor is known as a non-interlaced monitor. A non-interlaced monitor is preferred over an interlaced monitor. The electron beam on an interlaced monitor scans the odd numbered lines on one pass, then scans the even lines on the second pass. This results in an almost imperceivable flicker that can cause eye-strain.

This type of eye-strain can result in blurred vision, sore eyes, headaches and even nausea. Don't buy an interlaced monitor, they can be a real pain in the ... ask your optometrist. Interlaced computer monitors are getting harder to find (good!), but they are still out there, so keep that in mind when purchasing a monitor and watch out for that "steal of a deal".

The monitor these days are judge by their Resolution or in other words video technologies. Resolution is defined as the number of pixels used to make an image. If you could count the pixels in one horizontal row across the top of the screen, and the number of pixels in one vertical column down the side, that would properly describe the resolution that the monitor is displaying. It's given as two numbers.

If there were 800 pixels across and 600 pixels down the side, then the resolution would be 800 X 600. Multiply 800 times 600 and you'll get the number of pixels used to draw the image (480,000 pixels in this example). A monitor can display 3 modes of resolutions, 640 X 480, 800 X 600 and 1024 X 768 and higher.

If you have set your monitor resolution to 1024 X 768 and your video adapter is capable of only 640 X 480, then that's all you can get.

Previously there were Monochrome monitors that only displayed one set of color. It was in DOS 80 characters across and 25 down. It was tough in those days as graphics were rough in comparison to today's capability, one had to change manually from text to graphic mode. But now due to the invention of graphic cards they do it for you. But the still flow the same rule.

And then...
There is LCD Monitors...