4 ms·

The issue is with lossy scaling. I also have a 4k monitor but you can clearly see a difference in clarity if you select anything other than 3840x2160 (1x, every

by ciex 5y ago

The issue is with lossy scaling. I also have a 4k monitor but you can clearly see a difference in clarity if you select anything other than 3840x2160 (1x, everything is tiny) or 1920x1080 (2x, everything is huge).

SigmundA 5y ago
How does Windows solve that? Anything other than 2x multiples is lossy I thought.
- kevin_thibedeau 5y ago
  Windows has had support for variable DPI since win95. They've had to hide or rework it over the years because it hasn't always held up to problematic dev practices like fixed pixel dimensioning but the fundamental graphics subsystem has supported it.
- wlesieutre 5y ago
  Windows UIs can draw natively at non-integer scales. This put them a good decade behind macOS for software support because 3rd party products all needed tons of work to support it, and would all get drawn at 1x with pixelated upscaling in the meantime. But now that it's more widely supported, it's really the more efficient and more precise solution. I had a Surface Pro 3 with a default 150% scale and the experience in 2014 was great as long as you lived in OneNote.
  - jen20 5y ago
    Some* Windows UIs can draw natively at non-integer scales. Many first party programs even still look _awful_ at best, and are non-functional at worst as a result.
    - wlesieutre 5y ago
      What I mean is Windows UIs can draw natively at non-integer scales, not that they all actually do it. But it's certainly more than it used to be, especially consumer-focused stuff. In contrast to Mac where your UI draws at 2x and then gets downscaled to fit on screen, unless the user has picked the one resolution option where it's actually native 2x mode, which I never see anyone do because it's not enough space. I imagine any niche business targeted software on Windows still doesn't do scaling right, but that's the nature of the Windows ecosystem. You can run your software that hasn't had meaningful updates since 1995, and someone will happily keep selling you their software that hasn't had meaningful updates since 1995.

by ciex 5y ago

SigmundA 5y ago

How does Windows solve that? Anything other than 2x multiples is lossy I thought.

kevin_thibedeau 5y ago
Windows has had support for variable DPI since win95. They've had to hide or rework it over the years because it hasn't always held up to problematic dev practices like fixed pixel dimensioning but the fundamental graphics subsystem has supported it.
wlesieutre 5y ago
Windows UIs can draw natively at non-integer scales. This put them a good decade behind macOS for software support because 3rd party products all needed tons of work to support it, and would all get drawn at 1x with pixelated upscaling in the meantime. But now that it's more widely supported, it's really the more efficient and more precise solution. I had a Surface Pro 3 with a default 150% scale and the experience in 2014 was great as long as you lived in OneNote.
- jen20 5y ago
  Some* Windows UIs can draw natively at non-integer scales. Many first party programs even still look _awful_ at best, and are non-functional at worst as a result.
  - wlesieutre 5y ago
    What I mean is Windows UIs can draw natively at non-integer scales, not that they all actually do it. But it's certainly more than it used to be, especially consumer-focused stuff. In contrast to Mac where your UI draws at 2x and then gets downscaled to fit on screen, unless the user has picked the one resolution option where it's actually native 2x mode, which I never see anyone do because it's not enough space. I imagine any niche business targeted software on Windows still doesn't do scaling right, but that's the nature of the Windows ecosystem. You can run your software that hasn't had meaningful updates since 1995, and someone will happily keep selling you their software that hasn't had meaningful updates since 1995.