Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved monitor for programming?

Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by matt_the_bass on Monday December 18, 2017 @07:20AM (#15951130)

I have been using a Dell 34" for about a year. I LOVE it.

I use Grid Move v1.19.62 to manage window positions via key bindings. I think this is critical.

My window layout is:

- full height, left 25%

- full height, center 50%

- full height, right 25%

- full height, right 75%

The left window is used for active references, and slack

The center is active composition or reading (code, web browser, email, reading PDFs etc)

Left 25 is for secondary references

Left 75 is for large code windows. I can get 4 nice columns in VIM if needed. But I usually try to limit to 3 columns.

I used to use a lot more window positions in my grid template, but that got ils quick.

I really like that my main focus can be directly ahead unlike using 2 large monitors.

It’s also nice if I need to blow up a large dwg or exlitronics schematic.

My one wish would be to have another 300-400 pixels vertical.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by yarinr on Monday December 18, 2017 @08:53AM (#15951570)

First time hearing of apps that manage windows position, and it makes me reconsider a single large monitor. I always thought about making the switch from 2 monitors for the widescreen asthestics, but windows' default window management (either 50% 50% or manual positioning) lead me to think it just doesn't worth it.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by matt_the_bass on Monday December 18, 2017 @11:36AM (#15952859)

If you already use key bindings for VIM/EMACS then keybinding for window management is a no brainer and you’ll love it

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by childintime on Monday December 18, 2017 @09:09AM (#15951659)

I have Samsung 4k 40" curved TV as a monitor. It has 600px extra vertical, it's overwhelming initially :)

Screen area must be managed as Matt says. With 2 monitors the all important center area can't be used for display, so the neck works overtime.

Never going back to multiple monitors, they are basically a hack.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by mayoff on Monday December 18, 2017 @11:13AM (#15952624)

With two monitors, you needn’t arrange the monitors symmetrically on your desk. I use two 5k (hi-dpi/Retina) monitors. One is in front of me, slightly right of centered. I mostly keep my main working file on the left half of this monitor, directly in front of me. My second monitor is to the left. The split between monitors falls where I’d naturally have window edges if it were a single monitor with a centered editor window.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by matt_the_bass on Monday December 18, 2017 @11:34AM (#15952843)

I’ve tried similar but still found that awkward. Maybe because I don’t require so much real estate off to the side.

I don’t think there is a one size fits all solution. So hearing these different ideas is probably of value to the OP

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by matt_the_bass on Monday December 18, 2017 @05:54PM (#15956237)

Wow. Great idea. I’ll look into that

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by bawigga on Tuesday December 19, 2017 @11:37AM (#15961399)

Which Samsung model do you have?

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by vasili111 on Monday December 18, 2017 @08:03AM (#15951309)

So is your Dell 34" curved?

You can also try bug.n ( https://github.com/fuhsjr00/bug.n ). It is also written with AutoHotkey.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by matt_the_bass on Monday December 18, 2017 @08:32AM (#15951456)

Yes

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by ktpsns on Monday December 18, 2017 @09:41AM (#15951881)

Anybody using a big curved monitor without a tiling window manager? Working half-time in the creative area, I would not be happy with a tiling window manager.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by Analemma_ on Monday December 18, 2017 @12:40PM (#15953476)

John Siracusa (the guy who used to do those OS X reviews) advocates for not using a TWM. He famously tried, and failed, to convince his podcasting co-hosts of the efficacy of his system in “The Windows of Siracusa County”: http://atp.fm/episodes/96. I get the sense that his system is mostly a collection of habits, tricks and muscle memory he has built up over the years, which I guess it would have to be.

Personally I don’t get it and I don’t see how one can survive beyond a certain screen size without a TWM, but it works for him.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by matt_the_bass on Monday December 18, 2017 @11:37AM (#15952867)

Why do you say that? A manger let’s you decide exactly where you want to place the window (size and position).

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by emmatoday on Monday December 18, 2017 @08:00AM (#15951295)

Is there anything like this for MacOS?

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by rahilb on Monday December 18, 2017 @08:01AM (#15951302)

I use https://www.spectacleapp.com/ for keyboard based window management.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by jaaames on Monday December 18, 2017 @09:35AM (#15951835)

+1 for spectacle, keyboard shortcuts are now muscle memory, can't live without developing on a single 28" 4k monitor.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by sleepybrett on Monday December 18, 2017 @10:53AM (#15952424)

I use https://github.com/kasper/phoenix It's mostly just a javascript driven utility for managing windows, but it's really easy to bash together some nice tiling. I've got it set up for os-alt-ctl-numpad (5 is fullscreen, the ordinals are half screen, and 7,9,1,3 are quarters.) and os-alt-ctl-shift- numpad for a 3x3 grid... along with a bunch of other things i've defined.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by marcusarmstrong on Monday December 18, 2017 @09:01AM (#15951614)

I use Amethyst (https://github.com/ianyh/Amethyst) and cannot give it a stronger recommendation.

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Re:Ask HN: What are your impressions for using 1 big curved ... by CodeWriter23 on Monday December 18, 2017 @12:00PM (#15953076)

Divvy

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