Widescreen Owners Visual Tweaks and Tips ?

digian · 27th August 2004, 11:29 AM

Im just adapting to my new asus nb with 15.4" widescreen.

A few people warned me, and now I see what they mean about widescreens being finnicky. 3 days into it and im still trying to get it looking right.

Has anyone got some tweaks / themes / skins etc to make widescreen desktops look really good ?

Running @ 1680 x 1050 currently.

First i tried settings fonts large, which was ok, but then i found out dialog boxes and things with permanent text 'stuck' small is annoying. So now im using the larger DPI setting which isnt bad, but it blurrs icons and images.

There must be a better solution .. anyone have some tips

jediguy · 27th August 2004, 12:12 PM

Get some widescreen wallpapers from DeviantArt. It makes my Powerbook look even sexier.

If you want some source images just ask.

stroggos2k · 27th August 2004, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by jediguy
Get some widescreen wallpapers from DeviantArt. It makes my Powerbook look even sexier.

Edit: Is there some way you can specify a resolution when searching Deviant Art? I cant find one?

My dell has the same screen (1680x1050), I turn off XP Themeing because it makes the dialog boxes all borked, and use large fonts. I've been running it like that for the last ~8 months with no worries.

Phoenix Flame · 27th August 2004, 12:38 PM

A great site for widescreen wallpapers is http://macdesktops.com

digian · 27th August 2004, 1:33 PM

Thanks those mac desktops are unbelievable.

Nevac · 29th August 2004, 2:39 PM

If you run a game that does not have widescreen resolutions does it run it in the next best fitting res and leave black spaces on the sides of the screen? Like you said you run 1680 x 1050 would a game drop to say 1280x1024?

Or does it stretch the image to fit the widescreen?

Lukky · 31st August 2004, 3:47 PM

On my Dell 8600, it's got an ATI 9600 Pro in it and in the drivers you can specify wether it stretches the image or resizes while keeping aspect.

Using ATI drivers, go to:

Display Properties > Advanced > Displays

Then click on Panel and in the attributes you should be able to specify expand to full panel size (stretch) or expand while maintaining aspect ratio (black bars)

27th August 2004, 11:29 AM	#1
digian Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 350	Widescreen Owners Visual Tweaks and Tips ? Im just adapting to my new asus nb with 15.4" widescreen. A few people warned me, and now I see what they mean about widescreens being finnicky. 3 days into it and im still trying to get it looking right. Has anyone got some tweaks / themes / skins etc to make widescreen desktops look really good ? Running @ 1680 x 1050 currently. First i tried settings fonts large, which was ok, but then i found out dialog boxes and things with permanent text 'stuck' small is annoying. So now im using the larger DPI setting which isnt bad, but it blurrs icons and images. There must be a better solution .. anyone have some tips

27th August 2004, 12:12 PM	#2
jediguy Putin's alter-ego Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Brisbane, now. Posts: 2,992	Get some widescreen wallpapers from DeviantArt. It makes my Powerbook look even sexier. If you want some source images just ask.

27th August 2004, 12:38 PM	#4
Phoenix Flame Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Sydney Posts: 236	A great site for widescreen wallpapers is http://macdesktops.com

27th August 2004, 1:33 PM	#5
digian Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 350	Thanks those mac desktops are unbelievable.

29th August 2004, 2:39 PM	#6
Nevac Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Brisbane Strathpine Posts: 1,537	If you run a game that does not have widescreen resolutions does it run it in the next best fitting res and leave black spaces on the sides of the screen? Like you said you run 1680 x 1050 would a game drop to say 1280x1024? Or does it stretch the image to fit the widescreen?

31st August 2004, 3:47 PM	#7
Lukky Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Brisbane Posts: 14	On my Dell 8600, it's got an ATI 9600 Pro in it and in the drivers you can specify wether it stretches the image or resizes while keeping aspect. Using ATI drivers, go to: Display Properties > Advanced > Displays Then click on Panel and in the attributes you should be able to specify expand to full panel size (stretch) or expand while maintaining aspect ratio (black bars)