Resolution describes the degree of detail. In printers, resolution describes the number of points or dots it uses to draw a one inch long line. For printers, this is measured in units of dots per inch or dpi. Monitors, however, are a bit different. Since monitors have different physical dimensions, the resolution measurement for a monitor, is the area of the screen in pixels. The larger the screen resolution, the more you can view on a screen at one time.

The size of a monitor is listed as the measurement of the screen from corner to corner. Desktop monitors commonly range in size from 14 inches to 22 inches. Laptop screens range are likely to be smaller and will be in the range of 12 to 17 inches.

The resolution of a monitor can be varied and is limited to the capabilities of both the monitor and the video card used by the computer. The resolution is listed as Width x Height. The smallest resolution a screen can have is 640 x 480. The most a single screen can have is 1600 x 1200. Any value that is lower or higher than these two values, is very uncommon. The two most common values for screen resolution are 800 x 600 and 1024 x 768.

It is important to know what the resolution is for your screen. To check your resolution right click on the desktop and select Properties. A Display Properties window should appear. When it does, select the Settings tab at the top left of the window. The screen area settings will be listed toward the bottom of the Display Properties window.

A sliding pointer indicates the current setting. You can reduce the screen area by left clicking on the pointer and dragging it to the left until the desired resolution is displayed below the pointer. To increase the screen area click and drag the pointer to the right. Once you have chosen the desired resolution, select Apply (select Cancel if you wish the resolution to remain the same). Once you click Apply, the following window will appear.

Once the Display Properties dialog box appears, click OK. The screen will then be changed to the new settings. If the new settings cause you to not see the screen properly, it will return to the previous setting in 15 seconds. If the new settings work properly, you will see the following window.

This window displays a time that counts down from 15 seconds. If you let the timer count down, your screen will return to its previous setting. Click OK to keep the new settings. If you are satisfied with the resolution, you can then close the main Display Properties window by Clicking OK at the bottom of the window.

It is important to realize that what you see on your monitor is not always what you students will see when they attend a session. This is due to the fact that the screen resolutions can vary between computers. Depending on how your session is developed it may require those with lower screen resolutions scroll from left to right or up and down in order to see what you can see on your monitor.

The graphic to the left shows the difference between the viewable areas in Centra for the more common screen resolutions. The graphic is exactly one quarter the size of the real screen area. Click the image to see it at full size Section 1 is the maximum presentation space viewable on a 640 x 480 display Section 2 is the maximum presentation space viewable on a 800 x 600 display Section 3 is the maximum presentation space viewable on a 1024 x 768 display Section 4 is the maximum presentation space viewable on a 1280 x 1024 display

It is important to take note of these screen sizes when you produce your materials for presentations. To guarantee that your presentation will be viewable, keep the any information you use with in Section 1. Since the two most common values for screen resolution are 800 x 600 and 1024 x 768, it should also be safe to keep your information in Section 2 or Section 3. Be wary of using anything past Section 3. It will only be visible on screens of very high resolution.

It is also an option to put objects in your presentation that will automatically resize themselves to the screen of the user. Please review the Files section to learn which file types resize along with the benefits of using each. Powerpoint, Flash, and HTML files can resize in Centra to be viewed at full screen on any resolution. This means that the file will be stretched out so that it will look similar on any size monitor regardless of the resolution.

Because resized images may shrink to fit a screen, it is still important to develop these files so that the detail is still viewable in the smaller resolutions. With this in mind it is good to develop with the yellow area in mind as a target. Resizing from files developed for 800 x 600 should remain clear.

Markup Tools

When viewing files that are resized, the markup tools will not be available. If you need to use the markup tools you should use files that allow markup (.gif, .jpg) or use alternate methods for markup. Use of Centra and alternate markup tools are explained in more detail in the Files section.