Multiple Monitors

[Paul Meiklejohn]

Although I’ve used multiple monitors for many years, I’ve tended to keep Accordance limited to the one workspace on the middle screen.  Recently I’ve been playing with the idea of having multiple Accordance workspaces on different screens.  

 

Just enquiring if other users use Accordance with multiple monitors and how do you get the best use out of your set up?

[Fabian]

You have it!!!

 

Open a new Workspace and slide it to the second monitor. One user wrote in the forums that after 6 workspaces Accordance has problems, but not all has 6 monitors in the office:-)

 

In the preferences you have the choice where you can set if you make a "research" it does it display every time in the first monitor or you can make independent "research's" on every workspace. 

 

With El Capitan it will come a great feature if you go with the cursor to another monitor to find him faster. Or there is a tool which automatic set the cursor in the middle of the new screen, so you will find it faster. 

 

Greetings

 

Fabian

[Timothy Jenney]

I've also known some people who detach Instant Details and move it to an external monitor. It makes it very easy to read the entire text of an article or comment on a verse. 

[Chuck Schneider]

I use three monitors so that I can have as many commentaries and study Bibles open as possible while I work my way through the Bible each year.

 

Because it's not possible to tie OT and NT commentaries together in zones, I have created two sets of three workspaces. One workspace per monitor for OT and one workspace per monitor for NT (six workspaces in all).

 

This approach to Accordance is a little different than that used by the scholarly types, and I can tell from the responses that I get from the developers (whenever I have problems) that I'm kind of working outside of the standard use cases. But this approach is really, really useful to my daily devotional. It means that I don't have to go fishing for the various commentaries that may answer my questions or expand my thinking on some topic: everything is right there, every day.

 

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The middle monitor workspace receives the main focus. The text is in the very middle of the workspace (German, Greek, Englisch) and two zones on each side of the text have the commentaries that I respect or like the most. Originally, I tried to go with a zone each for technical, pastoral, devotional and background, but it doesn't work out so simply, since some are a mixture.

 

The left-hand monitor is a collection of study Bibles and cross references plus the detached instant details and highlighter windows.

 

The right-hand monitor contains some overviews and a collection of commentaries that I am less sure about. These commentaries tend to stretch my thinking and represent a kind of second opinion.

 

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Before begin a new book, I check the overviews on the right-hand monitor. Then, as I read through the text, something gets my attention and I work my way through the four neighboring zones in the middle monitor. I frequently look left to get input from the various study Bibles and cross references. Then, depending on the topic addressed, I look to the right for contrast or balance.

 

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This approach has evolved over the six years that I have used Accordance (6th anniversary this week!). It started with a 10-minute per day commitment to read the Bible on a single workspace on my notebook.

 

Accordance has made my daily reading of the Bible such an enjoyable and enriching experience that my 10 minutes often last more than an hour and I begin to regret having to go to work in the morning.

[Paul Meiklejohn]

Thank you all for your replies.

 

Fabian, it'll be interesting to see how El Capitan improves on screen use.

 

Sorry Dr. J.  I tried the instant details to the side, I just couldn't get used to it being off-centre.  I can only conclude that the good Lord intended it to be at the bottom of the screen ;-)

 

Chuck extremely detailed and helpful.  Without troubling you too much.  I'd love it if you could post a few screen shots. 

I really appreciate the time you put into your answer.

 

Thank you.

Edited September 11, 2015 by Paul Meiklejohn

[Bret Hicks]

Paul,

 

I do not know if this will help, but I use two monitors all the time.  I have set up a saved session that loads a number of workspaces, each of which has a number of tabs.  This allows me to do original language research, look at lexicons for word studies, and consult commentaries and other resources to round out the study.

 

Normally I have three workspaces on my two screens.  On my Macbook monitor I have a workspace I call OT and NT independent.  This allows me to look at OT verses and NT verses to compare the wording, look at allusions etc.  On the larger external monitor I have my two main workspaces.  On the left I have one with my main bible resources.  In the main tab it has six versions (original languages and English), with tabs for further language research and searches.  The search tabs recycle so my search results always show up in those tabs.  In the other workspace (on the right) I have the text under consideration with the Info pane and my notes file opened up.  I then use command+click to open the resources in another zone.  You can see this set up in the screen shots I have attached.

 

I also have a couple of other workspaces that open up.  On my MacBook I have a general workspace that is not linked to anything else - just so I can jump around the text without everything else moving.  On the main monitor I have workspaces for Greek and Hebrew lexical research.  These are linked and recycled so that whenever I triple click on a Greek or Hebrew word it automatically brings this workspace forward and I can do the necessary research.  I then simply return to my normal workspaces to continue my study.  I hope this is clear.

 

I am attaching some thumbnails so you can see how I use the real estate.  I only have two monitors - I wish I had more.  I would use them all!  As it is, I can not see everything at once, but I can see what I need, and then bring other things forward as necessary.

 

(And I did not mention it, but when I edit or add notes, I have them open on the MacBook screen, so all of my texts and resources are still visible on the external monitor.)

 

Hope this helps.

 

 

In Christ,

 

 

Bret Hicks

[Chuck Schneider]

Chuck extremely detailed and helpful.  Without troubling you too much.  I'd love it if you could post a few screen shots. 

I really appreciate the time you put into your answer.

 

Hi Paul, I tried to upload the images, but each time I try, the web page locks up. One of the images is 4mb, and, even though the forum claims to accept up to 80+mb, it may be that a single file can't be larger than a couple.

 

In any case, if you PM me with your e-mail address, I'll send them to you. The total is about 6 mb (it's the iMac retina that makes the file so big). I suppose that I could reduce the pixel size of the offending file and try again after work today.

 

Sorry for taking so long to get back to you: whenever my Agency gets into the news, I get really busy.

[Timothy Jenney]

I recently purchased a 5k iMac.

 

Accordance flies on it! I can also construct enormous workspaces—or multiple workspaces, which I can arrange so I can see them all at once. In addition to the built-in display, it will also support two Apple Thunderbolt Cinema displays.

 

Alas, such setups will never make the podcasts. The text would be too small to read on the HD videos (1080p).

[Bret Hicks]

Dr. J,

 

Maybe a couple of screen shots - or are you afraid you would lead us into violating the 10th commandment?

 

 

In Christ,

 

Bret

[Timothy Jenney]

Let's see if I can upload something this big! (Sorry, I don't own the two external Thunderbolt displays—though I would accept donations! ;-))

 

Edit: It would not upload at full size. Here it is at half size.