So, to set the scene. I'm currently away on a break. I was out walking in the local town when I saw a cake/coffee shop with a sign outside saying "Somerset Cream Tea, Cream or Jam First?"

Now, this is a debated questions in many parts of the UK, and for those that don't know this is to do with what comes first on your scone when having a cream tea.

So, what is a scone?

For those that have never heard of a scone you maybe asking, what is a scone? Well, you could check the link there as they are hard to describe - they are a scone. If someone was to ask me, then I would say something ridiculous like, image a slice of bread and cake had a baby...

Anyhow, a scone is a kind of desert item you would have with something like a cup of tea, though I prefer mine any time.

So, back to the question, jam or cream first?

So, I saw this sign when I was out walking and thought to myself... what is the answer. I then realised the following - after a millisecond thought.

So, firstly you have to cut the scone in half to put either on. Once in half you place cream on the one half and jam on the other.

If you then placed the jam (or the cream) part on top of the other, cream (or jam if revered) half. You would then look at it and say it cream first, as this is on the both. However, if you then flipped the scone over the jam would be on the bottom, so it would be jam first.

So, in reality it can be cream or jam first. Inface you could go one further and put half cream and half jam on each part. Then it would be both jam and cream first at the same time.

So, what is the point of this post?

Now, it may seem like I've put too much thought into this question but I wanted to just use it as an example of perspective. In this case, depending on how I look at the scone it can be either of the cream or jam first. However, its the same for most questions in life.

Depending on how you look at a problem it can change. You just need to change the perspective of your thoughts on how you look at the problem (or item) you are looking at. So, simply try and change the perspective of the problem when you feel you are stuck - even if that perspective means you have to backtrack.

I've thrown away days of code and work in the past to go back and change perspective and find a compete working solution to a problem. It may seem daunting. It may seem wasteful. But it is only these if you spend more time looking at a problem solution that will never work.

Ok, ramble over. Hope you enjoyed my perspective. If so, why not check my other posts.

Featured image Photo by Sarah Kilian on Unsplash

Over the 20 something years I've been a software developer, I have used numerous monitor and monitor setups.

It all started with CRT (Cathode-ray tube) monitors. They were big and bulky - I remember it taking 2 of use to move a 21" monitor to my desk and the worry it may break the desk.

At home I used to have 17" monitors and I remember the first time I bought a flat screen CRT.

Moved to TFT

The next move was to a TFT-LCD monitor. These were the first of the thinner monitors we use today. The originals being LCD, which now we find LED.

This revolutionised my workflow. I could have a bigger monitor and take up so much less space on my desk. Soon this meant I could have 2 monitors. Those 2 x 19" monitors turned into 2 x 22" and 24".

For my home setup I soon moved up to a 27" and 24" monitor. I was happy. 2 monitors meant I could have code on the 1 and examples or research on the other.

However, 2 monitors means 2 spaces taken up on my desktop, 2 ports used in my graphics card and 2 x the electricity. I found myself more often only using 1 monitor. So, I started to think of the next logical change - at least for my setup.

I bought an ultrawide

About 1-2 years ago I started looking at Ultrawide monitors. I liked the idea but they were still not mature enough for me to buy. I did keep my eye on them with some in my Amazon wishlist.

This year we all started to do more work from home. I found myself in my home little office and spending more time coding. I wanted more desktop space so I started to look at both Ultrawide and 4K monitors.

It was almost a toss up between them as I had chosen a particular 4K 16:9 monitor. However, I found that Dell had released a new Ultrawide Monitor - the P3421W. It had everything I was looking for. Was IPS screen. 10Bit (I believe from the colour depth they listed). 99% sRGB coverage.

All that I wanted and needed. So, about a week ago I took the plunge.

I bought it, and to be honest in the week that I have owned it now - it has been excellent. The extra size has proven to be excellent for my work flow:

I have now done away with the 2 monitor setup and I can fit all I need on one monitor. It also works great for productivity where I may have large timelines in video edits or long lines of code with other tools pulled out in Intellij (Project list, Code and Maven for example).

Not for everyone

Now, I would say that an Ultrawide is not going to be for everyone. There are some downsides - such as black bars on either side of a video that doesn't fit the form factor of 21:9. However, this doesn't bother me.

If you're looking for more real-estate on your desktop then I would certainly say check them out. If you prefer 16:9 then they are not for you and I would say go 2 monitor setup.