Decaflon

I just started using an external monitor with my MacBook. I still use the main MacBook display primarily.

My set up - easier to show than explain!

Like you I have the PowerBook screen directly in front of me, so you could argue it's my 'primary' screen, with the second screen off to the right. When I'm working, the second screen is invariably taken up with the web browser, with email, vienna, photoshop, the dock etc running on the PowerBook screen.

I'd like to have the bigger second screen as my main focus, but it was one I picked up very, very cheaply and has the most shocking colour fidelity and accuracy imaginable. There's just no way it's suitable for Photoshop or anything else more than surfing the web.

I will admit that the last week or so I've found myself seriously pondering buying a bigger, better screen. If I had a beautiful clear 19" (20", 21"... - why stop there?) screen I'd use that as my primary and relegate the PowerBook to second place. Probably.

I used to have a PC laptop with an external monitor. Then I used the monitor more. Now with the Macbook I've set them so that the notebook is /in front of/ the monitor - I use the notebook's display as the primary and shove stuff up to (back to) the external display when need be. The Macbook's extremely low profile makes this possible.

This is because my external display is kind of pants and the Macbook isn't able to use its native resolution. If I had a big widescreen external, that'd probably be my main display, but even then I'm not sure; I carry the computer around a lot during an office day.

Cas inspired me to take a picture of my setup and add notes. That was fun :)

So here's my setup, I always use my external monitor which is placed higher for a better posture and sight.

At work, my laptop is my primary display and my external LCD is positioned above it. This way I don't hurt my neck looking to the side for things plus it gives me more horizontal real estate in my dinky cubicle.

Anne, it's nice to see someone else uses that setup! I really have yet to see anyone in our company arrange it that way.

At work I have a laptop and 19" monitor. I use the laptop as my main screen, though, because I like the widescreen, which the external monitor isn't.

I did that when my laptop LCD screen broke leaving a perfectly good system without a screen. Then again, 17 inch monitor compared to using a 13 inch LCD screen.

I'm not complaining.

Home: I use a 19" Samsung with my Macbook mostly. If I didn't need to travel with a computer, I probably would have just bought an iMac. But I have to be able to pick up my machine and go, which is why I chose the Macbook. The screen's just too small for design work (at least for me).

Work: I have an IBM laptop and a 19" Dell external flatscreen.

I have a tendency to set my resolution reeeeally high so things are small and I can everything open at once.

Work: Laptop carried around to many places.

Home: Dell desktop with 24" and 19" monitors. MacBook.

I love having huge displays. If I had an office with a 30" monitor connected to a powerful laptop, I'd be a happy guy.

Windows or Mac? That's another discussion...

Sure do; research supports 3 monitors as ideal.
http://flickr.com/photos/iblee/564958592/

http://bibliodox.blogspot.com/2007/06/why-should-you-increase-beyond-one.html