At my workplace .Net developers get pretty much the same equipment.
- A decent Dell workstation / Desktop, mine is a Dell Precision 390. One dual core 2.40 GHz.
- Eight GB RAM.
- Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit.
- Two Dell 20.1 Monitors.
I'm happy with this. The machine is about 3 years old but still runs with some decent speed. New developers are getting a Dell workstation with dual quad processors.
I just put in a request for myself and three other developers for an upgraded video card and two additional monitors, for a total of four monitors per person. We suggested this card, BTW, mainly for the cost.
The move from one monitor to two was fantastic (one might even say life (or work) changing) and truly did increase productivity. Now what about going from 2 monitors to 4? I'm sure the change is not as dramatic as one to two, but I can't help but to think four monitors is better than two. But if four is better than two, should we have asked for six?!?
Also what about mixing monitor types? Right now my monitors are the older square type vs. wide-screen. It's been rumored that we will be getting monitors out of current stock and they will be 22 inch wide-screens. I understand this, recession and all. 2-20 inch square monitors with 2-22 inch wide-screen monitors...hmmmmm. I'm thinking I'd rather get 2 additional 17 inch square monitors to put on each side of my 20's.
Also, a question was raised about the layout of four monitors. By default, my thought was I'll just put them all on my desk, kinda in a line. I've heard others say they want to stack them in a 2 x 2 square.
BTW, loving multi monitor support in Visual studio 2010!
I’d love some comments on your experience with one, two, four, or however many monitors from a developers perspective.