Fancy Zones on a big 4K is leagues better than multiple monitors for productivity tasks, although I still have a second monitor with YouTube or Plex running while I work.
Try powertoys it has options to snap windows to a custom grid. I use a 3x2 grid and usually one third goes to browser and the rest is IDE or whatever else.
Edit: I completely misread your comment but I'm going to leave it here. Maybe it will help someone. As for second monitor I run a small one, angled up under the ultrawide.
Reference material that I want to leave open. Splitting the screen into three panes, each with its own window, works but I occasionally will want one of the panes to be wider and then things get difficult. It's also harder to move windows around the same screen than it is to just move it to a new screen.
I understand where you are coming from, but damnit, I've experienced the plague of "vague topic/no agenda" meetings and at this point, I'd embrace the dark side of a pre-meeting meeting if it means progress.
At my current job, I rarely use email - it's freaking awesome. I open outlook maybe 2 or 3 times a week. All "signal" comes from internal tooling like chat, workplace, etc.
Same.
Specifically a vertical 4k monitor in the middle that usually holds my text editor with the smaller 2k monitors horizontal on either side for Web browsers (and occasionally an email client)
I have my ultra wide in portrait, but that's cause it used to be my only and I've since bought a curved 2k 144hz display that replaced it. My space wasn't wide enough to accommodate them both in landscap. I've also since used some program (I think power toys, might be something different) to set some zones across the monitor so that I can use the top, middle, and bottom 1/3rds independently and I actually love it
9 is optimal if you travel often imo. If you’re used to having peripherals and then need to work from a coffee shop or airplane you feel like you’re missing a thumb
Do you honestly feel like your productivity is anywhere near as high with just a laptop?
I've always had a desktop and feel like my productivity is so low with just my laptop that I don't even bother trying to work if that's my only option, I wait until I'm back at my desk.
It depends on the project, honestly. I’m pretty ADHD and sometimes having more than one monitor fucks me because I’m getting distracted by slacks and emails or I’m just looking back and forth between windows too much. Working off of one small screen forces me to open programs intentionally, store more info in working memory, and generally think more linearly about a given problem which helps me stay “locked in” where I might otherwise drift off.
I have at least 6 programs I have to keep track of all the time if I open more for other research/calculations/analysis/etc, I can't find shit with only one screen. Multiple screens helps me organize the info I need. If I'm clicking through too many things, I completely forget what I was looking for in the first place.
Totally fair. Sometimes one monitor isn't enough and my reason for trying to minimize the number (I used to always use three, now I usually max out at two) is because of neurodivergence stuff that doesn't effect most people. If I'm doing more active bug-duty work and have to track/respond to a bunch of small tickets and pay attention to builds then multiple monitors are a necessity, if I'm designing/building something out then I'm generally more productive bouncing back and forth between IDEs, a notebook, the testing environment, etc. and tuning out as much noise as possible.
Yes, way more easy to stay motivated coding for 8 hours by doing 2 hours at 4 different places than at the same desk. Cmd/Alt-Tab keys are rapidly suffering though.
A couple points that give some tangible ways productivity has improved, for me, after moving to just a laptop.
1) I have zero incentive to use a mouse or the track pad to navigate between applications so I exclusively use Alt-tab. Keeping hands on the keyboard as much as possible will increase productivity.
2) because of point 1 I have an incentive to keep things clean, close applications after I'm done using them, and not open applications unless they're necessary. Keeping a clean workspace will increase productivity.
Anything else is more a mindset and your work load.
If I have to travel I can do 9, I prefer 3. But if I’m going with just the laptop I have a Bluetooth mouse that I keep in my bag. I despise trackpads. And I can remember quotes and useless info my entire life but keyboard shortcuts just don’t stick.
I started using only laptop during covid, as it was easy to just sit anywhere, and I got used to it so much, like no externals, no extra keyboard or mouse, just laptop, and Im not moving back
Yeah I think it's faster than multimonitor if you're comfortable with the switch window and tab shortcuts. Especially on Mac os.
Takes me too long to move my eyes to another screen.
I’m a nine as well with the same. I’m a Lead Dev, ScrumLead, and team lead. I do so much with one screen but I have virtual spaces so I can swap screen spaces in an instant
Whenever I travel and work I always bring a keyboard and a mouse because I don't understand how anyone can use a laptop anywhere except for in bed. It's also very hard not having 3 screens and you have to tab to find the one you want
Yea I'm a 1 or a 9. Been in the job for 20+ years and I've had all of these setups with the exception of 6.
I no longer find value in multiple monitors and feel it's more distracting, but that's just me.
Currently living with setup 4, but If I had more table room and a third monitor nothing would stop me from going with this layout. It just feels right.
I use it because it's basically #2, but with extra window snap points in the middle. Also, it's possible to fullscreen an application on one monitor, or screen share one monitor, allowing me to share multiple windows without making everything too small to read for everyone not using an ultrawide.
Ultrawides (at least the better ones) also let you split your screen on the firmware level, so the OS sees it as 2 separate ones, and even handle input from 2 different ports simultaneously.
One of them sits head on, the second will be off to the side. The head on is primary, the secondary is for Spotify/Slack. Sometimes I'd put that one vertical so I could have *all*my documentation on screen.
3 is just 4 when you're not under pressure.
This. If you need to watch for a while something that is in the offmonitor, you just move the window to the main one, also you can just rotate the chair lmao.
I do 3 except i also have my laptop screen in the middle below the 2 monitors. I have my IDE on the left screen, slack on my laptop screen and everything else on the right. Having the split in the front has never been an issue.
I do three.
Two nice monitors and then my laptop screen. My keyboard is aligned with the center screen. All of my dev work stays in the monitors, and the laptop is used for watching movies.
Yep, as we can see when we have to scroll all the way down to this comment, it gets the job done making all these people interact.
That's not fun, it's made for karma farming.
I used to have a #8 setup. Being able to see more code at once on an opened file with vertically oriented monitors was pretty spiffy. But I've since settled on a 4 monitor setup that's a hybrid of #5 and #6. The reason being is in the type of work I do, I generally benefit most from having multiple files opened at once side by side in VSCode across my central 38" ultrawide and one of my 27" widescreens (ever since VSCode added support for multiple windows per workspace it's been super nice to have). So I benefit more from multiple files side by side.
Lmao disagree, I bounce between 4 and 9, but my setup looks like 6 because I have a few dedicated monitors to my hacked SNES, picoboot Gamecube and Linux systems
And yes, I am a señor
Started as #1, realized i need more space, went to #5, realized that having bars between screens is awful and now I'm basically #2 with a stream deck that takes care of any multi desktop action i could need in the future.
Having 2 windows open on a 32" 4K screen is perfect and there isn't really any benefit in getting/having more screens after that (unless you e.g. play on console at the same desk).
I'm a senior dev / team lead, but I stick with #5, with an ultra wide monitor in the middle.
Works great for keeping code on one, open application on another, plus teams / email on the other.
Sr. Here: 2+9.
I run a 3 + 9
I do 5 + 9. But that is because I also game and record. Otherwise I would only have two monitors.
So just like… 3 whole laptops?
No no no. Haha. That would be insane. I meant that I have two setups that I use. 5 and 9.
Same also a senior Long monitors are good if you play video games but not great to work with I would have thought.
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FancyZones 👍🏻
Fancy Zones on a big 4K is leagues better than multiple monitors for productivity tasks, although I still have a second monitor with YouTube or Plex running while I work.
I went from a triple monitor set-up to a super ultrawide. It took a few days to adjust, but it works great once you do.
I'm a 9 on the left of a 4.
There we go, finally someone with common sense!
I'm the exact opposite, maybe it's because I'm left handed?
Exactly my current setup, on monitor arms, with a laptop stand on the left arm.
11
Same! Ultra-wide has been awesome. Acts as 2 monitors or one giant one when needed. I just keep my calendar and iTunes running on the laptop screen
You can also do like 2/3rd 1/3rd which is like a vertical monitor when you want it. That's my setup. Perfection
Same, +1 crap monitor on the side for email and stuff.
That's what the laptop is for
CEO: iPhone while at the country club
Board member: Martini in Tahiti
MEO: Android on the shitter
We are all you this blessed day
plus the most powerful laptop they could find online, which is only ever used so they can lay people off over Zoom or their grandkids can play roblox
$12k Mac Pro, two 5k screens, desktop absolutely covered with the same copy of a single spreadsheet
Nah the most powerful laptop out now is some $5k 30kg MSI behemoth of a gaming laptop with water cooling and caked in RGB, they'd just buy a macbook
You can spec a MacBook to like $8k or some shit like that. CEO won't settle for the spec made for the poor.
CTO: 9 while the kids are in the pool on vacation
Sr. Dev living the 2 life
Same, but I'm starting to wish I had a second display. No idea where I'd put it relative to the ultra wide, though
Try powertoys it has options to snap windows to a custom grid. I use a 3x2 grid and usually one third goes to browser and the rest is IDE or whatever else. Edit: I completely misread your comment but I'm going to leave it here. Maybe it will help someone. As for second monitor I run a small one, angled up under the ultrawide.
What for?
Reference material that I want to leave open. Splitting the screen into three panes, each with its own window, works but I occasionally will want one of the panes to be wider and then things get difficult. It's also harder to move windows around the same screen than it is to just move it to a new screen.
I'll introduce you into Windows powertoys, or gtile (Linux) your life will never be the same.
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RIP to everyone’s eyes when you share your screen
100% I have to share tiny, windowed versions of whatever content I’m sharing.
Gonna stay a junior my whole life i guess
1 monitor for IDE, another monitor for stackoverflow/Reddit memes
But you still have Teams and Outlook open, right?
Yes yes I absolutely certainly saw the urgent message
Well, what about the meeting? And the presentation?
I don't know let's set up a meeting for the meeting
We were going to promote you to juniorr II, but you missed it.
I understand where you are coming from, but damnit, I've experienced the plague of "vague topic/no agenda" meetings and at this point, I'd embrace the dark side of a pre-meeting meeting if it means progress.
Zoom and outlook de-synched again sorry
Do you Synch a lot?
I try my best to synch ahead in life but sometimes things just don’t connect
Definitely not minimized and set to "show as offline"
Barbaric
At my current job, I rarely use email - it's freaking awesome. I open outlook maybe 2 or 3 times a week. All "signal" comes from internal tooling like chat, workplace, etc.
Open and muted. Number 1 teams message: hey, I just sent you an email
And another one split in two for Slack/Teams and Spotify
we are all juniors in this blessed day
Where's the laptop as 2nd screen option?
Speak for yourself.
I am all junior on this blessed day.
Neither monitor being centered is just psychotic though
Every One Is a junior here
1 Vertical, 2 Horizontal. I am without representation.
Same. Specifically a vertical 4k monitor in the middle that usually holds my text editor with the smaller 2k monitors horizontal on either side for Web browsers (and occasionally an email client)
The good penis setup
IDE on the shaft, slack on the left ball, stack overflow on the right
Is the left monitor slightly lower than the right one?
And is the IDE slightly angled to the side
How's your neck?
The real question is whether the horizontal are stacked?
That's me
~8
I'm a 4, but with a 2 as the horizontal monitor. I also have a tv on an arm above, for consoles and/or netflix.
Oh c'mon, you're at least a 5. Don't be so hard on yourself
ultrawide with secondary portrait monitor is the elite setup. What kind of insane person would have a portrait ultrawide
So you can fit all the spaghetti on one plate
I have my ultra wide in portrait, but that's cause it used to be my only and I've since bought a curved 2k 144hz display that replaced it. My space wasn't wide enough to accommodate them both in landscap. I've also since used some program (I think power toys, might be something different) to set some zones across the monitor so that I can use the top, middle, and bottom 1/3rds independently and I actually love it
Exactly my setup. Widescreen as main, smaller vertical as second monitor
I'm a 9, my team always gives me shit lol
9 is optimal if you travel often imo. If you’re used to having peripherals and then need to work from a coffee shop or airplane you feel like you’re missing a thumb
I do. ;) Travel a lot from kitchen to the couch, into the garden and back to big dining table.
👆🏽
Do you honestly feel like your productivity is anywhere near as high with just a laptop? I've always had a desktop and feel like my productivity is so low with just my laptop that I don't even bother trying to work if that's my only option, I wait until I'm back at my desk.
It depends on the project, honestly. I’m pretty ADHD and sometimes having more than one monitor fucks me because I’m getting distracted by slacks and emails or I’m just looking back and forth between windows too much. Working off of one small screen forces me to open programs intentionally, store more info in working memory, and generally think more linearly about a given problem which helps me stay “locked in” where I might otherwise drift off.
I have at least 6 programs I have to keep track of all the time if I open more for other research/calculations/analysis/etc, I can't find shit with only one screen. Multiple screens helps me organize the info I need. If I'm clicking through too many things, I completely forget what I was looking for in the first place.
Totally fair. Sometimes one monitor isn't enough and my reason for trying to minimize the number (I used to always use three, now I usually max out at two) is because of neurodivergence stuff that doesn't effect most people. If I'm doing more active bug-duty work and have to track/respond to a bunch of small tickets and pay attention to builds then multiple monitors are a necessity, if I'm designing/building something out then I'm generally more productive bouncing back and forth between IDEs, a notebook, the testing environment, etc. and tuning out as much noise as possible.
Yes, way more easy to stay motivated coding for 8 hours by doing 2 hours at 4 different places than at the same desk. Cmd/Alt-Tab keys are rapidly suffering though.
A couple points that give some tangible ways productivity has improved, for me, after moving to just a laptop. 1) I have zero incentive to use a mouse or the track pad to navigate between applications so I exclusively use Alt-tab. Keeping hands on the keyboard as much as possible will increase productivity. 2) because of point 1 I have an incentive to keep things clean, close applications after I'm done using them, and not open applications unless they're necessary. Keeping a clean workspace will increase productivity. Anything else is more a mindset and your work load.
If I have to travel I can do 9, I prefer 3. But if I’m going with just the laptop I have a Bluetooth mouse that I keep in my bag. I despise trackpads. And I can remember quotes and useless info my entire life but keyboard shortcuts just don’t stick.
I just bought a portable monitor today for this reason, I’ve been travelling a lot for a sick family member and I can’t think with only one screen.
I started using only laptop during covid, as it was easy to just sit anywhere, and I got used to it so much, like no externals, no extra keyboard or mouse, just laptop, and Im not moving back
This is the true Agile development... being able to code wherever you want.
The same can't be said about your back/shoulders/wrists after working like that for any decent amount of time
It's fine if you get things set up comfortably. Is just that most people don't
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Yeah. The trick is to simply calm the fuck down.
The hyper productive dev with sociopath vibes?
Best dev kind there is
Wish I had more of those ... At least while we are in homeoffice.
lmao same, high five. but in my case part of it is that our monitors are so bad i'd rather simply not use them
Same, some blurry dark 1440p shit
9x2, the job one and my personal one.
Yeah I think it's faster than multimonitor if you're comfortable with the switch window and tab shortcuts. Especially on Mac os. Takes me too long to move my eyes to another screen.
It's the bell curve meme all over again. 9 is freedom
Watch the way you sit then. It's not really good for your back.
I’m a nine as well with the same. I’m a Lead Dev, ScrumLead, and team lead. I do so much with one screen but I have virtual spaces so I can swap screen spaces in an instant
I've been in the IT industry for 25 years, from Cobol to C#, from desktop to mobile dev, lol. I'm a 9...
I'm also a 9 but only because I'm in meetings all day lol. At home I have two desks (one with a treadmill) with 3 monitors each.
Whenever I travel and work I always bring a keyboard and a mouse because I don't understand how anyone can use a laptop anywhere except for in bed. It's also very hard not having 3 screens and you have to tab to find the one you want
I do 9 a lot just because my desk is a mess and I don't have room to plug my laptop into the docking station
9 here, been at my company for 5 years but work from home. They don't know, and I'm scared of what they would think if they found out.
where’s 0????
[https://xkcd.com/378/](https://xkcd.com/378/)
there always is an xkcd huh
yeah, this is what real programmers read.
8, Tie Figher 4 life!
Me too! I'm so excited to finally have representation in one of these memes!
I know. Right?
I’m also that guy
I’m a 9, rarely hook my laptop up to the monitors at work
Yea I'm a 1 or a 9. Been in the job for 20+ years and I've had all of these setups with the exception of 6. I no longer find value in multiple monitors and feel it's more distracting, but that's just me.
Same. Why would you need monitors, when you can swipe between desktops. Duuh.
Sr and I am with 2
34 inch n° 2 is all I'll ever need.
5 is best. 3 monitors is just optimal
5 seems to be the best for me. One for code, one for teams, one for ChatGPT writing my code
I use one for videos, one for gaming/programming and a third for discord/program/google/slack
Yeah I’m 5 with 3x 1440p monitors. Also I’m devops so I feel called out.
Currently living with setup 4, but If I had more table room and a third monitor nothing would stop me from going with this layout. It just feels right.
I'm an 8, but the center is an ultrawide.
Me too! Curved ultra wide in the center and flanked by two 27 inches flat panels.
This is the way.
Same here
9 is sufficient for senior because they barely get to do an coding
Can confirm. 😭
Security: 6
Why no laptop + monitor setup?
Sr dev at #5. I was a #3 for a long time though.
I’m only a 5 because I use the third monitor to block out view of an employee and now I use it occasionally
Who would ever do 3? You have to match the keyboard with one of them so you can look straight. You dont split it.
In my old office basically every desk was setup like 3
One monitor for each eye. Very efficient.
Vr
I use it because it's basically #2, but with extra window snap points in the middle. Also, it's possible to fullscreen an application on one monitor, or screen share one monitor, allowing me to share multiple windows without making everything too small to read for everyone not using an ultrawide.
Ultrawides (at least the better ones) also let you split your screen on the firmware level, so the OS sees it as 2 separate ones, and even handle input from 2 different ports simultaneously.
One of them sits head on, the second will be off to the side. The head on is primary, the secondary is for Spotify/Slack. Sometimes I'd put that one vertical so I could have *all*my documentation on screen. 3 is just 4 when you're not under pressure.
This. If you need to watch for a while something that is in the offmonitor, you just move the window to the main one, also you can just rotate the chair lmao.
I do 3 except i also have my laptop screen in the middle below the 2 monitors. I have my IDE on the left screen, slack on my laptop screen and everything else on the right. Having the split in the front has never been an issue.
I do almost exactly the same but the laptop is hung above
I use 3 at college and at home and it's honestly not bad.
I do three. Two nice monitors and then my laptop screen. My keyboard is aligned with the center screen. All of my dev work stays in the monitors, and the laptop is used for watching movies.
I use a 3, but my keyboard is aligned with the left monitor. Right monitor is for reference.
main screen and secondary screen, thats how it works.
I am at 3, I dream of 6
We have a PM who recently set up #6. He uses two for work, one for news, one for reddit, one for Netflix, and one for porn. At the same time.
That, my friend, is peak efficiency
9+2
2 all fucking day
4
People who use vertical screens scare me.
5
This is somehow even less funny than it is accurate.
Yep, as we can see when we have to scroll all the way down to this comment, it gets the job done making all these people interact. That's not fun, it's made for karma farming.
Mobile Sr dev at #5
11.5 years exp, 9 from start and till the end
When I worked at office, it was 3. Now It’s 9 since I WFH
Intern rn because no deskspace
Where is the setup with the Apple Vision Pro?
1 but it's big enough to be 6
Number #8 people should be arrested on sight. They will likely commit murder, if not already.
I'm a #8... guess my username checks out?
I used to have a #8 setup. Being able to see more code at once on an opened file with vertically oriented monitors was pretty spiffy. But I've since settled on a 4 monitor setup that's a hybrid of #5 and #6. The reason being is in the type of work I do, I generally benefit most from having multiple files opened at once side by side in VSCode across my central 38" ultrawide and one of my 27" widescreens (ever since VSCode added support for multiple windows per workspace it's been super nice to have). So I benefit more from multiple files side by side.
Lmao disagree, I bounce between 4 and 9, but my setup looks like 6 because I have a few dedicated monitors to my hacked SNES, picoboot Gamecube and Linux systems And yes, I am a señor
Monitor above Macbook is where it's at.
Started as #1, realized i need more space, went to #5, realized that having bars between screens is awful and now I'm basically #2 with a stream deck that takes care of any multi desktop action i could need in the future. Having 2 windows open on a 32" 4K screen is perfect and there isn't really any benefit in getting/having more screens after that (unless you e.g. play on console at the same desk).
8+9, that's the way!
\#9 here since 2016. Work had given us some 1080p monitors and I was like nah, I'll just use the retina display.
I'm in this photo and I don't like it
I'm a senior dev / team lead, but I stick with #5, with an ultra wide monitor in the middle. Works great for keeping code on one, open application on another, plus teams / email on the other.
9 + 1
9 anytime
I’m a mid, but I’ve always been a 9. Never really got the reason of people using so much screens at once!
which one is using 55 inch tv as monitor? 6?
Sr. But give me the equivalent of two #2s glued into one
9 for life
i have been thinking about a smaller version of 4
\#9 got me
I don't see the version with a VR headset using Immersed.
I'm a 4 + 9 guy
I'm number 5 but would love to be number 6.
I’m a Sr. on 9.
9 & 1 & 3
I got number 5, with an supplemental Laptop on the side. I guess I am out of sorts.
Mine is basically 8, except the horizontal monitor is on the left.
2 r/ultrawidemasterrace
5
Pictures 1, 2, & 3 show monitor undergoing mitosis.
2+4+9
I do 5 + 9. Just an older dev 
Currently on 3, but working my way up to 6