Improving my focus by giving up my big monitor

I switched to Niri (https://github.com/niri-wm/niri) about six months ago and I find it does wonders for focus.

Set the default window width to 1/4 or 1/3 of the screen width (depending on the screen size) and it's easy to keep just the right context visible.

Hmmm, I have been thinking about this too. 10 years ago I was more productive when all I had was a bottom of the barrel 21 inch Benq monitor instead of the 3 big monitors I use now. Maybe I was younger. Or maybe I should just switch back to my old screen for a few days, and see what happens...

I've used a cheap 50" TV as monitor for almost a decade now and I can't complain. Sight is 20/20 at 60yo, no eye strain, no headaches, nothing. I only use it for coding (sublime) and browsing (brave), so I don't care about resolution/retina/pixels/colors/curvature/etc.

My productivity skyrocketed when I reduced my monitor count from 3 to 1.

I tried the big chonkers, but the humble 27" 1440p is unbeatable for me. I'm not being paid enough money to worry about that many pixels.

Went from ultrawide back to my 27 inch monitor and definitely feel more focused. Having everything open "just in case" was killing my output. Nothing alt+tab can't fix.

Being able to de-focus is actually quite useful.

Imagine sitting through those lengthy team calls and having to concentrate on BS for 1-2 hours.

Nah, I’d rather focus on getting things done in the meantime.

Maybe this is why I feel like unplugging the laptop from monitor, to use it on the bed.

Going to try not plugging the monitor at all, it might save my sleep.

I love alt+tab way too much to ever go back to multi screen.

A different angle: multiple screens can cause neck problems if you’re tilting your head in a weird direction for too long

ALT-TAB is much faster than moving my head

I feel the same way. In general, I prefer working on a couch with my laptop. My eyes aren't great and I end up ruining my posture at a desk, invariably.

Is he blaming displays for his lack of concentration discipline?

went from 27" Mint to 13" Mac Book Neo. I'm extreme astonished how this has changed my workflow. Smaller screen realy works better for me. The change from Mint to MacOS was not hard and most programs are the same.

this looks like a recipe for eye strain and poor posture. waiting for the follow up post in a month.

Oooooh, 30. Getting up there, old man! Wait till you hit your 40s and your vision starts going... you're gonna want a big-ass monitor then!

I will never give up my 5k2k LG 32 inch lcd. Single is best I do agree.

Nope. I have 3 screens in an H layout, and I am deliriously happy with them;

The middle screen is BenQ RD280U; the 3:2 ratio is amazing after so many widescreen ones. Never going back to coding on a widescreen.

One Dell UQ2720Q on each side, vertically.

reading the title I thought it's a relationship advice...

I became complete garbage at video games the moment I bought a 27 inch monitor.

I also can't ever focus on doing tasks like programming and such since I got my big monitor.

Although I definitely can't give up my 3 27 inch monitors...

Stop ignoring obesity.

Pull up the BMI chart, do the calculation. Get to normal at 1kg drop a week. Done. It works. Back pain solved.

Working without 3 monitors or maybe a good tiled ultrawide feels just like digging a hole with a spoon. But I'm the type of developer that needs videos or music on the side that the work is not just boring enough to stop it. Has nothing todo with the work itself that I do. When it gets difficult I can press the pause button.

The answer to half the problems in this thread is a tiling window manager

Horses for courses.

I use one 24 inch monitor with my laptops, and keep all the interruptions like Messages/Signal and Mail on the smaller screen. Nothing else generates notifications.

It's a matter of discipline,that's all.

Same here.

For years, I resisted even using an external monitor, preferring to work on my laptop's monitor instead. I finally switched to using a monitor when poor posture started getting uncomfortable.

I almost always have just one window on the screen, maximized. I'm also using virtual desktops to switch between the browser/app and the IDE. This kind of setup really helps me with the focus, but at the same time it's not too annoying.

I used to just use the macOS virtual desktops, but with the Apple Silicon transition, they also added annoyingly slow animation for desktop switching. That can not be turned off (seriously, wtf, Apple?). I jumped to FlashSpace the second I found about it.

I'm super productive on a 28" with yt constantly open slightly hidden behind the terminal window. EDM, chess videos, speedrun videos, having them in the background actually reduces boredom and lets me achieve more. Laptop is on the side with slack in case there is an alert or an important message.

That said, shout out to the well being app that comes with the latest gnome version! I allow it to force me to get up and walk around for five minutes at awkward times. I do light exercises like push ups and australian pull ups or get coffee while I wait. Being forced off the computer while I'm trying to focus actually makes the day more interesting.

I went the other direction. I bought a Dell 40" for productivity and I feel like the increased real estate only clutters and distracts.

I used to have 3 4K monitors. At some point this has become highly irritating messy. Now all my desktop PCs have single 32" 4K monitor and no scaling. This is "small" enough to keep my focus and yet large enough to arrange windows in a manner I like. Main being development IDE vertically on the right and the UI I debug / test vertically on the left be it browser or pure desktop app.

> On a 34" ultrawide monitor, it was too easy to put YouTube running on the left side

This has zero to do with an ultra-wide monitor and all to do with a lack of self-discipline.

I bought one of the first 38" ultra-wide monitor that came out from LG and, ten years later, I'm still rocking on it every day.

You know what? My main computer doesn't even have sound. You read that correctly. No sound. So no Youtube vids. No games. Not that I'd be tempted: but because I've got actually zero need for sound on that machine.

And I'm no luddite: I've got two servers at home, more in datacenters, countless Pi's, NUCs, and laptops. But on my work machine: it is no sound and a 38" ultra-wide.

If you need to use a monitor the size of a stamp to make sure you can't run youtube vids at the same time you're working, the issue is you, not the monitor.

[dead]

[dead]

[dead]