Window mode Vs Full screen

now that an LCD screen is a normal thing to have in every house
new issues start to appear, the main issue is with high resolutions
that are requiering powerful and expancive video cards.
So if one to play Necrovision on 1680x1050 (or higher) with all set to high
he really needs quiet an expancive video card.

the solution in some of the cases is to play in a window mode
problem is that some developes completly ignored this fact
and they could of easly reduce minimal requierment by just offering a window mode in the games options.
That is when some solution started to pop up all over the internet
from costom configurations (*.cfg/*.ini) to 3d party software

problem is that because the games are not designed to be played in a window mode
we all see a sharp image quality drop, espacially when it comes to far objects, like snipers
that are practicly impossible to see unless they shot and you see the spark.

I noticed it during a game play in COD:World at War
I am forced to play in a window mode because only then i can enjoy at least 40 FPS with my HD3650 512MB
while on full screen i get a majot FPS drop to 20-25 avarage and 10 when im looking at smoke
I also noticed that reducing the quality to minimal effects the FPS just slightly, unlike the resolution...

So maybe the say about CRT screens beein the best screens for gamers is actually true?
CRT screens are supporting all resolutions (to a limit obviously), they are projecting true color (especially black)
and obviously the 100% support for HD (unlike many LCD screens)

Needs another option: I got a $300 video card that can handle the High Resolutions

Needs another option: I got a $300 video card that can handle the High Resolutions

weirjf

it was a little joke actually =)
I know there are good cards out there which are not too expancive
but still not everyone can afford them (like me...)

A GTX 275 or HD 4890 can trample over most of the games maxed at 1680 x 1050, and both are under 250 $ / 200 €.

No problems running games at full 1680x1050 on my GeForce 9800GTX+, which really didn't cost much.

In any case, I'd rather play a game in full screen at a non-native resolution than play in windowed mode.

You can get a 4770 for $100 or an hd4850 for $130, just save up some money fam!

No problems running games at full 1680x1050 on my GeForce 9800GTX+, which really didn't cost much.

In any case, I'd rather play a game in full screen at a non-native resolution than play in windowed mode.

broken_bass_bin

its cost 150$

which is a bit less then the avarage income in my country (east europe)
so for some us its the same as 1000$ video card i.e unaccessble

can't you just turn the resolution down? anyway if your graphics card can't handle a high resolution, you could also have gotten a smaller monitor with a lower native resolution. mine only goes up to 1440 x 900.

So maybe the say about CRT screens beein the best screens for gamers is actually true?
CRT screens are supporting all resolutions (to a limit obviously), they are projecting true color (especially black)
and obviously the 100% support for HD (unlike many LCD screens)

Andrewz24

It is true. My screen supports everything from 320x200 to 2048x1536 - if I have problems with high resolution, I just choose a lower one. :D

Though, generally I run all new games either on 1280x960 or 1600x1200, and older games at 1920x1440 (or if they're really old, on whatever resolution is the highest they support.)

It doesn't take much to have full screen. I got a PSU and GPU combo under $300 US.

[QUOTE="broken_bass_bin"]

No problems running games at full 1680x1050 on my GeForce 9800GTX+, which really didn't cost much.

In any case, I'd rather play a game in full screen at a non-native resolution than play in windowed mode.

Andrewz24

its cost 150$

which is a bit less then the avarage income in my country (east europe)
so for some us its the same as 1000$ video card i.e unaccessble

Here is one for $99 (after MIR)..and in actuality there are other cheaper cards that shouldn't have a problem playing games at 1680X1050 (although without all the bells and whistles).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814133246

[QUOTE="broken_bass_bin"]

No problems running games at full 1680x1050 on my GeForce 9800GTX+, which really didn't cost much.

In any case, I'd rather play a game in full screen at a non-native resolution than play in windowed mode.

Andrewz24

its cost 150$

which is a bit less then the avarage income in my country (east europe)
so for some us its the same as 1000$ video card i.e unaccessble

Even so you can get something in the lines of ATi 4670 or nvidia 9600gt ( they cost about $70) and those cards can run vast majority of games up to 1440x900 ( a typical 19" monitor res ) with all or mostly high settings and still maintain playable fps ( near or above 30fps). Vga prices the last 2 years really went downhill in the point that a $60-70 card like aforementioned cards can play even the latest games with almost all the bells and whistles

Needs another option: I got a $300 video card that can handle the High Resolutions

weirjf

Agreed. I've got a GTX260 that's working great so far at 1920x1200.

Fallout 3, HAWX, Warhead, Call of Juarez run very well.

The card is overclocked a little.

That seems weird, as I generally have better FPS with fullscreen. Am I missing something here?zomglolcats

LCDs generally look horrible if you don't use the native resolution. If you have a monitor with high native resolution (let's say 1920x1080) and your PC isn't powerful enough... well, that's not good.

So you're either forced to 1) Play the game with low settings or low FPS. 2) Turn down the resolution, and image quality suffers a lot. 3) Run it windowed using a lower resolution, so the screen isn't stretched.

I don't know which of these is the best solution, so if you're gonna have a monitor with native res make sure your PC is powerful enough.

Then of course it will suck hard if/when an older game doesn't support your native res.

Which is why I prefer CRTs, they have the best compability. Never problems with different resolutions, and still the best picture quality - even though high end LCDs might be close to equal, they still aren't BETTER - especially if you think about the price/value ratio. Quality CRTs can be found for under 10€ if you're lucky. There are even widescreen CRTs available if you gotta have widescreen.

[QUOTE="zomglolcats"]That seems weird, as I generally have better FPS with fullscreen. Am I missing something here?HenriH-42

LCDs generally look horrible if you don't use the native resolution. If you have a monitor with high native resolution (let's say 1920x1080) and your PC isn't powerful enough... well, that's not good.

So you're either forced to 1) Play the game with low settings or low FPS. 2) Turn down the resolution, and image quality suffers a lot. 3) Run it windowed using a lower resolution, so the screen isn't stretched.

I don't know which of these is the best solution, so if you're gonna have a monitor with native res make sure your PC is powerful enough.

Then of course it will suck hard if/when an older game doesn't support your native res.

Which is why I prefer CRTs, they have the best compability. Never problems with different resolutions, and still the best picture quality - even though high end LCDs might be close to equal, they still aren't BETTER - especially if you think about the price/value ratio. Quality CRTs can be found for under 10€ if you're lucky. There are even widescreen CRTs available if you gotta have widescreen.

Agree, LCD screens sucess was due to a commercial hipe (sort of "i got LCD so i am cool"...)
gamers switched to LCDs not because they were better, but because they look better on the desk
while office jobs are obviously switched to it because of the comfort.

Overall, for gamers CRT screens are far better

i should give away my 22' CHIMEI for a nice flat CRT screen

"Window mode - My LCD screen resolution is just too high for my video card"

I don't get this.

I like full screen, but some games I would perfer a sizeable window.

Fullscreen all the way!

I literally just installed a new HD 4890. Cost £130 ($220). I'm hoping it'll eat through games @ 1080.

#3. I'm a CRT guy. :P

Window, but i like to talk to people on MSN at the same time.

Who the hell would play a game windowed?V4LENT1NE

I see no reason to play a game like Civ 4 in full screen.

I am a CRT guy myself, but I haven't used one since my old big one broke... its really a shame they essentially don't make them anymore, I always found the image quality better on CRTs...

With regard to windowed mode, I use a 1440x900 LCD, so I go fullscreen to get the most space out of my monitor.

my screen resolution on my new samsung is 2048 by 1152 is there any card out there that can handle this res really well that is relatively cheap?? i only have 8800 gts right now (i used to have a crt and could max everything out) When i play "world in conflict" i have to turn alot of settings down to low now where as on my CRT i had everything cranked out.

I voted Fullscreenarenamaster89

its depends on the game some are better windowed because you can't tab out without the not working when you go back to it

i got a crt, no issues here :D, native res. is 1920x1200 and i only got a 9600gso

so i gotta play most newer games at 1280x800, still looks crisp and fantastic

i'll use this monitor for as long as i possibly can

Depends on the game. If its an old one like Diablo 2 with bad resolutions, its good to be in windowed mode and same for normal shooters, Counter-Strike etc in windowed mode, but horror games and alike should be experiences in full-screen.

-Orakk

Who the hell would play a game windowed?V4LENT1NE

I play MMO's in window mode, allows me to multi task while my frostfire bolt macro covers me on bossfights.