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Anti-Radiation Screen
These screens reduce the amount of E-field electro-magnetic ELF (Extremely Low Frequency) and VLF (Very Low Frequency) radiation that is emitted from the monitor. This radiation may be a potential health risk that can lead to miscarriages, birth defects, and leukemia. All screens must meet international standards that regulate electromagnetic emissions from monitors.
Aperature Grille
A series of thin verticle wire phosphor stripes used to isolate the pixels horizontally on a display.
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Bandwidth
The number of dots that can be displayed in a line per second measured in MHz. Assuming the picture tube quality doesn't limit the display performance, the greater the bandwidth the better the monitor.
Brightness
Light output measured at the faceplate of the CRT; typically measured in foot-lamberts (FI). A minimum brightness level of 20 FI when viewing at full page size is considered acceptable.
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CRT (Cathode-Ray Tube)
This is the picture tube used in a monitor or TV. It consists of a beam of electrons that scan across the screen and stimulate the emission of light from phosphor-coated pixels therefore building up images.
Color Balance
The ability of a monitor to show and maintain the same color while changing the intensity of the screen.
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Diagonal Linear Measurement
This is the measurement taken from one corner of the monitor casing diagonally across the face of the monitor to the other corner. Some typical sizes are 14", 15", 17", 20", and 21".
Dot Pitch
The distance (in millimeters) between on phosphor dot to the nearest phosphor dot of the same color in the line above or below. As the dots get closer together, the dot pitch decreases making the images sharper and clearer.
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Flicker
Flickering occurs when the phosphor's illumination begins to fade prior to being refreshed. As the refresh rate increases flicker decreases. The standard refresh rate for eliminating flicker is 75 Hz or above.
Frequency
The number of events occuring during a specified time period.
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Hertz (Hz)
The number of cycles occuring during a second.
Horizantal Scanning
The movement of an electron beam across a horizantal line of phosphor dots on a CRT.
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I/O Port
The way in which data is transferred between an input or output device and the microprocessor. It is used by the CPU (central processing unit) to send and receive data.
Interlaced Scanning
A technique used to scan an image to the screen by skipping every other line on the first pass and filling in the other lines on the second pass. This usually causes flickering.
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LCD (Liquid Crystal Display)
Traditionally used in laptop computers but becoming more popular in desktop systems. These monitors are flat screens in which a current passes through liquid crystals that a placed between two sheets of polarized material. Characters on the screen are produced when the crystals are arranged so that light can not shine through.
Low Emission
These screens reduce the amount of E-field electro-magnetic ELF (Extremely Low Frequency) and VLF (Very Low Frequency) radiation that is emitted from the monitor. This radiation may be a potential health risk that can lead to miscarriages, birth defects, and leukemia. All screens must meet international standards that regulate electromagnetic emissions from monitors.
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Monitor
The device on which images created by the computer are displayed.
Monochrome
A monitor that displays images only in ranges of intensity of one color (often green or amber).
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Non-Interlaced
A technique used to scan an image to the screen by refreshing all the lines during each pass. This usually reduces flickering.
Non-Static
A monitor characteristic that prevents build-up of static electricity on the monitor surface.
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Phosphor
Chemical compund that emits light when excited by electrons.
Pixel
Abbreviation for picture element. This is the smallest element of a picture that can be displayed on the screen. Each pixel contains one red, one blue, and one green phosphor.
Plasma Monitor
These monitors are thin flat screens that use a lightweight surface covered with a matrix of tiny glass bubbles. Each bubbles contains a gas-like substance, plasma, and has a phosphor coating. A digitally controlled electric circuit sends current to the appropriate bubbles causing them to give off UV light which causes the phosphor coating to glow.
Plug-and-Play
This was designed to simplify the installation of hardware. Plug and Play devices can communicate their requirements and functions with the operating system. Then, once the device has been recognized by the system, it will configure as part of the system. For monitors, it enables the user to change the display resolutions and refresh rates without needing to reboot the computer.
Purity
The ability of the electron beam to hit the correct color phosphor dot. An impurity (hitting the wrong dot) can occur if the screen has become magnetized. Degaussing may fix the problem.
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Refresh Rate
The number of time the screen can be redrawn in a second. A higher refresh rate means less flickering of the display. This can reduce eyestrain and fatigue.
Resolution
The number of pixels that can be displayed on a screen. This is shown by the number of pixels in a line multiplied by the number of horizantal lines. As the resolution increases the clarity of the images improves.
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Scan
This is the process by which an image is developed. The electron beam excites the phosphor on the monitor screen dot by dot and line by line. As the scanning rate increases the image becomes more stable.
Strip Pitch
The distance between one stripe and the next one of the same color in millimeters.
SVGA (Super Video Graphics Array)
Resolution of 800 X 600 pixels.
Swim
The measure of how much an on-screen image wavers over a given time period.
SXGA (Super Extended Graphics Array)
Resolution of 1280 X 1024 pixels.
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Tilt
The angle of the CRT with respect to the horizantal mounting bracket of the chassis. This can vary depending on the monitor's orientation to the earth's magnetic poles. Manufacturer's orient and align their products in the eastern direction. When the monitor is facing a north/south direction their may be a slight rotation of the image.
Triad
One red, one blue, and one green court in a triangular fashion. Each of the three electron guns is dedicated to one color. As the gun scans the screen, each activated triad produces a single color which depends on the combination of the excited colors and how active each is.
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Uniformity
Comparison of one area's phosphor color and brightness to the adjacent area. A general specification is that this should not vary by more than 30%.
USB (Universal Serial Bus)
This is an external bus that supports data transfer rates of 12 Mbps (million bits per second). A single USB port can be used to connect up to 127 peripheral devices such as mice, modems, and keyboards. It also supports Plug-and-Play devices.
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Vertical Scanning
The movement of an electron beam across a vertical line of phosphor dots on a CRT.
VGA (Video Graphics Array)
Resolution of 640 X 480 pixels for graphics and 720 X 400 pixels for test and a color palette of 256 colors. It can also duplicate all modes of EGA and CGA.
Viewable Image Area
The actual maximum area of the monitor where text and images can be seen.
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XGA (Extended Graphics Array)
Resolution of 1024 X 768 pixels. Can display more than 16 million colors.
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