Low resolution? Try this.

X60/X61 series specific matters only.
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mikemex
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Joined: Mon Oct 04, 2010 8:54 pm
Location: Coyoacan, Mexico

Low resolution? Try this.

#1 Post by mikemex » Thu Jan 06, 2011 12:18 am

I did this quite a long time ago but I didn't realize it could be a nice idea to share. I don't know about you but I spend 95% of my computer time web browsing this days. Given the low resolution on the X6x, I spent some time looking for a "solution" (for a problem that doesn't exist?).

I use SeaMonkey but it probably works with FireFox as well. Well I installed the following plug-ins:

1) Compact Menu.
2) No Squint.

The idea is simple: if you simply zoom out, everything gets smaller and the low resolution of the text makes it unreadable. So, instead of doing what common sense says, you do the opposite, you make text larger and then you zoom out. Everything important (such as page structure, tables, images and the like) gets smaller, including text, but text is still readable because it is shrunk from a bigger size. My settings are:

Minimum Font Size: 14
Zoom Level (default): 70%

I get about the same level of "performance" as my other high resolution screens, it almost feels like nothing is tweaked at all. Just to make things roomier, I hide the menu bar and use Compact Menu to brig it up.

Other programs can use similar tricks. I stopped using Microsoft's Office long time ago and use Open Office instead. While not as convenient as the web browser, you can still make the UI smaller in the options.

You can also adjust the DPI to around 85-90% in the graphics card control settings in Windows XP.
Main: i5 3550, 16GB, Z68 Pro3 M, 64GB SLC, 320GB HD, GTX 650Ti, 21.5 FHD LED
T420: i5-2520m, 8GB, SSD: 64GB SLC (boot) | 128GB MLC (storage), HD3000, HD (1366x768), 6 Cell, BT, WebCam
X220: i5-2520m, 4GB, SSD: 64GB SLC (boot) | 128GB MLC (storage), HD3000, HD (1366x768), 6 Cell, BT, WebCam, FP

IvanAndreevich
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Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada

Re: Low resolution? Try this.

#2 Post by IvanAndreevich » Thu Jan 06, 2011 2:43 am

The trouble that for me it's not websites. Most sites are ok with XGA anyway.
Owned Thinkpads: X300 X201T X200,T X61,s,T,T+ X60,s,T,T+ X41 X40 X31 T510 T500 T410 T400 T400s T61,p T60,p T43 T42 T41,p T40 W500 W700 - favorites in bold :)
To do list: X301 X220 X220T X201 X201s X200s X201i T420s T410s T420 T520 W510 W701 and future models :)

Utwig
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Re: Low resolution? Try this.

#3 Post by Utwig » Fri Jan 07, 2011 1:00 pm

Firefox 4 (in beta but completely stable) really managed to reduce size of interface while keeping everything needed easy to reach. Plus it's a lot faster than 3.6
T540p, T420s (soon to be T420ps :) ), X61t, T60p, T42p, A21p

Woodenspoon
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Joined: Sat Oct 30, 2010 1:07 am
Location: San Jose, Calif. USA

Re: Low resolution? Try this.

#4 Post by Woodenspoon » Fri Jan 21, 2011 5:15 am

win7's aero gui works better for the small screen than xp, things like aero peek are useful.

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