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The fact that computer displays need to be adjusted at all is an oddity.
  technofile
Al Fasoldt's reviews and commentaries, continuously available online since 1983

T e c h n o f i l e
Image is everything, Part 2: Get your monitor to show you what's really there


Jan. 12, 2003


By Al Fasoldt
Copyright © 2003, Al Fasoldt
Copyright © 2003, The Post-Standard

   Computers are getting cheaper and better year by year. But one thing hasn't changed. Most PCs can't do justice to a good color photo.
   Most desktop computers have screens that have never been adjusted properly. Their color is wacko, the brightess has been turned up so high it needs a pilot's license and nobody has ever paid attention to the contrast control.
   Getting your computer's monitor adjusted right is too important to be left to chance. It doesn't take long, and your digital photos and scans will appreciate it so much they'll jump out and kiss you.
   The fact that computer displays need to be adjusted at all is an oddity. Part of the problem, at least for Windows users, is the fact that most manufacturers have little control over which monitors will be connected to their computers. Apple has a lot more say over the monitors that Macs use, and in fact it sells two desktop models, the iMac and eMac, that come with their own pre-adjusted monitors attached to the computer.
   Another difficulty is a nearly universal misunderstanding of what constitutes "proper" adjustment. Most people probably turn the brightness control up too far, washing out the colors and dashing any hope that their computers will ever show them an image containing true black.
   Bad idea. Let me explain how to do it the right way. I'll also tell you where to get software to fine-tune your display after you've done the basic adjustment.
   Pick a quiet time during the evening when sunlight is not washing out your monitor's display.
   Make sure your display mode is set to True Color, called "Millions of Colors" on a Mac. On Windows, right click on the desktop, click Properties, then click Settings. Under "Color Palette," click "True Color." It might be called "24-bit Color" or "32-bit Color" on some computers. If that setting is not available, a barely acceptable substitute is "High Color" or "16-bit Color." It might also be called "65,536 Colors." (Don't you wish we had a real color standard for Windows PCs? There are far too many variations in what things are called.)
   Mac users will find their choices in System Preferences on modern Macs or in the Control Panels on older Macs.
   I have two simple calibration images. Don't open either of them until after you've read how to use them.
   The first link opens a completely black page. You won't see anything else on that page, so be prepared to click your "Back" button. (In some browsers, including Internet Explorer, you can press the Backspace key to go back to the previopus page.) Make your browser window as large as possible to create a large black background. (Windows users who have Internet Explorer can press F11 to make the window full-screen. Get it back to normal by pressing F11 again.)
   Turn the brightness control down all the way. The screen should look completely dark. Turn it up slowly until you can just barely tell that the black background has started to turn gray. Then back off a tiny amount so that the background is black again. Tape the control in place if possible so it can't be knocked off its setting.
   Close that page and -- after reading the instructions -- open the second calibration image. Turn the contrast control down all the way, then turn it up until the white section of the image looks pure white. It's hard to do this wrong as long as you set it to a high enough level. Most people intuitively figure the contrast control should be set in the middle of its range, but it actually needs to be set in the upper third of its range, and sometimes even higher.
   This usually takes care of most misadjusted color displays. But you can make even finer adjustments using good software. Windows users can download two free programs. The first is the excellent Nokia monitor test program from freepctech.com/rode/004.shtml or from www.construnet.hu/nokia/monitors.htm. (Both sites seem slow at times, so you might need to try both.) The other is Monitor Test Screens from www.programming.de/. Navigate to the downloads area to find the test program.
   Mac OS X users have an outstanding adjustment program called SuperCal. It's $19, but you can try it as long as you want without paying. (If you use it more than once, pay up.) Get it from www.bergdesign.com/supercal/.
   Mac OS X and Mac OS users have simplified monitor calibration programs in the System Preferences (Mac OS X) or Control Panels (Mac OS).