Palette well problems

[Michael Brett]

It is very difficult to grab anything from the palette well as the title bars seem to move out of the way when you try to select them. I find I have to drag everything out of the well untill I get to the one I want.
Any suggestions?

[Beth Haney]

Do you use all of the one you have in there on a regular basis? If not, remove the ones you don't access very often. I usually only keep Layers and one or two others in the well. If I'm working on a project that requires something else, I trade. Increasing the resolution of your monitor will also increase the space available for all of those little tabs. Of course, it'll also increase your need for new glasses, too. :)

[Richard Coencas]

Michael,

What is your screen res? At 800x600 the palette well is pretty useless.

Rich

[Michael Brett]

My screen res is 800 x 600. Tried increasing it but end up with a very difficult to read screen.
Mike

[Susan S.]

I had to increase resolution and buy new glasses - you do get used to the smaller size after a while - now 800 x 600 looks really clunky if i have to switch to it for any reason.
Susan S.

[Jodi Frye]

My mil keeps hers low cause she can't see well and i'm here to say that our challenge images look kind of 'yuck' on her screen. Then again, alot of stuff looks 'yuck' on her screen 'cause it's not calibrated. Although, we have to assume that most people's screens look like my mil's which is a real bummer for people like trying to sell my talents.

[Vicky Bilaniuk]

Susan S. wrote:

> I had to increase resolution and buy new glasses - you do get used to the smaller size after a while - now 800 x 600 looks really clunky if i have to switch to it for any reason.

Tee hee, I used to hate high resolutions. :-) Always used 640x480.
Everyone thought I was nuts. Started using higher resolutions when I
got sick of only seeing, like, one button on a screen. Even though I
need glasses, I have gotten so used to higher resolutions that I now run
my screen at 1280x854, and I don't use my specs. (would love to get a
second screen. yum, more space)

I find that the screen quality really makes a difference, though. What
works for me is a high quality LCD panel. Much better than a CRT. Less
eye fatigue, for some reason. (although with this powerbook, I had to
actually change the calibration so that everything is darker - maybe
that's gamma, not sure, all I know is that the apple default was burning
my retinae. Luckily, apple has a bunch of presets that you can choose
from so that even if you make the screen darker, colour balance will
still come out right)

[Vicky Bilaniuk]

Jodi, I've noticed that older monitors are like that. A lot of newer
ones that I've seen are pretty good. Even when not calibrated, they
still display graphics fairly well (you just have to get used to the
difference, and sometimes, the difference brings out something in the
image you didn't see before). So, as long as your future customers are
using reasonably new equipment, your stuff will probably still look
great. :-)

[Beth Haney]

Mike, as long as you're using the low res, your only option will be paring down the number of items in the palette well. Hopefully a revision of Elements will allow people to change the amount of space available for those palettes.

[Jodi Frye]

Vicky, geeze her computer isn't even a year old...DELL. Flat screen LCD. Thanks for the compliment though. ;)

[Vicky Bilaniuk]

Jodi, wow, really? It's an LCD? I'm surprised. Although, i *have*
seen some that don't look quite right. They are usually the smaller and
cheaper ones, though, at least so I've noticed. Maybe Dell cut corners
on her. I know that Apple does that with their cheaper notebooks,
unfortunately.

You're welcome for the compliment. I enjoy looking at *everyone's*
stuff around here. Everyone here is so good and produces such
interesting work. I love it. Makes me scared to participate in the
challenge, though. :-(

[Nancy S]

Vicky,

Ah go on...just jump in on the Challenge, it is not a competition which is graded. Variety is what makes it such fun and your participation would great.

[Jane Carter]

This is something I have been wondering for a while;
I dislike my old powerbook's screen, I love my old View Sonic 17'' with my G4, my brother's eMac, 17" flat panel CRT is really nice.

So shouldn't I like the new iMac's 17" LCD better than the others? I can't really tell the difference! And I wonder why, yes, I do have old eyes.
I will be purchasing a new Mac sometime this fall, and I have to pay attention to this monitor choice. The eMac looks darn good. If I like the CRT, then it is by far the best 'value'.
That is why I am very interested in watching what you people have to say on this subject. Also I will have to spend a bit of time at my Mac store on this decision.
Thanks, Jane

[Beth Haney]

Jane, you're the only one who can make that final decision, but notice that many people who have LCD screens do have to become rather creative in achieving the color matches they are after for digital imaging. LCDs are said to be much easier on the eyes, but CRTs are able to be calibrated using free utilities. I don't happen to advocate one way or the other. I continue to use a CRT and will for a while, but since you're in the decision making stage, it is one more thing to keep in mind. In a perfect world, you'd have a computer with two video ports so you could have the images on one monitor and all the tools on another. Now THAT'S the way to travel!

[Jane Carter]

Thankyou and good morning!
I think that I shall go to both our local Mac retailers and just spend time looking at all the choices. Sunny days, cloudy days, and evenings.
I just haven't seen a monitor yet that equals my old ViewSonic. That also could be the way I have it set in my room, with the lighting exactly OK.
I know that once I actually buy the new Mac, that I will love it and OS X, but I have to push myself into change. I'm not that young,,,,,,,
thanks again for the encouragement,
Jane

[Barbara Brundage]

Yes really, Jane, we can discuss the logic of what to get till the cows come home, but if you are like most people you will find that you prefer one machine to another based more on some kind of visceral reaction.

For the average mac buyer, there's just one particular model that 'feels" right to them, no matter what whether their heads tell them otherwise.

[Jane Carter]

That is sure the truth! Maybe that is why I really don't want to get anything new, I love my old G4 and all its goodies. Just like I love our old vehicles, don't see the need for a new fancy truck.
Jane

[Jodi Frye]

Jane i agree but those new little nissans could change my mind ;) vrooooom !

[Beth Haney]

Jane, would you please e-mail me? I seem to have misplaced your address. :( [email]bhaney@speakeasy.net[/email]

[Jodi Frye]

SONY Trinitron flat CRT !! 22 or 24 inch ...holy smokes ! Where did ya play with that ? Is it new ? Sounds prrrty cool.