When I'm coding, I generally have code on one, and the other has a browser with documentation, notes, issue tracker, or just used for searches etc. Usually that

When I'm coding, I generally have code on one, and the other has a browser with documentation, notes, issue tracker, or just used for searches etc. Usually that monitor is split and also has chat visible. When I'm testing/debugging, one monitor might be the web app I'm working on, the other is the code I'm stepping through. Or I'll be tailing a log file or watching something in a database while using the app. I do lots of client/server stuff, so sometimes I have a monitor showing the server-side (web UI and/or logs) and the other showing client-side (cli, logs, and/or local UI). The key useful thing is seeing the client do an action and send something to the server, and seeing the server instantly react: that's not possible when you can't see everything. In some cases, I'm debugging remotely, and a monitor will be partly or completely dedicated to ssh/rdp/vnc to the remote system(s), with the other used for browser or cli app I'm testing. Usually chat, documentation, source, issue tracker is mixed in there too. There's a couple things I work on that have long running builds (10+ minutes) or integration tests that takes a bit over 30 mins. Both are long enough that I'll do something else while waiting and suddenly 2 hours pass before I remember, so I like keeping the build status page visible somewhere to avoid that. Even for non-work/coding sometimes I just have YouTube or Netflix open (either 1/4 window or full-screen) while I'm browsing the web on another. To me, working on my laptop is doable, but feels like having one hand tied behind my back when compared to working with multiple monitors and a proper keyboard and mouse.