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  1. #1
    Accessed is offline Advanced Beginner
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    A Curious Case of Resolution Trauma

    So reaching the midpoint of my first major Access DB build. Make a nice launch screen and I'm pretty happy:



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    Then think - better check this on a different computer with a smaller monitor to make sure it's usable.

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    Now - before you start yelling at me about resolution, I will tell you that both computers are set identically (1920 x 1080).

    But how can that be you say - you checked it on a smaller monitor, right?

    And therein lies the peculiar issue. Seems that on my ASUS notebook, the recommended resolution is 1920 x 1080, but that setting makes everything so tiny that there's a magnification setting set to 150% (the "recommended" setting and no doubt default). If I turn off magnification and reboot, the boot screen is fine (i.e. looks just like the top image). My wife also has an ASUS, and the problem is even worse on her computer. Her resolution is set to 3200 x 1800 with 250% magnification! I should further point out that there are no alternative resolution options that are "native" and fit the screen.

    Is this a known issue with a known fix, or am I an idiot, or maybe a little of both? I worked pretty hard on this, and it will be rather embarrassing to have notebook computer users who see the bottom version rather than the top. I will also mention that this problem is affecting other forms as well, and I have been tinkering with many settings to fit the form to the screen - so perhaps I changed something I shouldn't have? If you tell me what might be critical, I can report on the current settings.

  2. #2
    Accessed is offline Advanced Beginner
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    As an afterthought, I realized that these laptops have high-resolution displays. No doubt packing so many pixels into a tiny screen must create problems with viewing objects at the "native" resolution - hence the magnification. This magnification doesn't seem to hinder other applications, so it's kind of surprising that I see it with my database. I think I'll take a look at some of Microsoft's templates to see if there's a similar problem. If not, then it has to be a setting somewhere.

  3. #3
    Accessed is offline Advanced Beginner
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    So it seems the core of the problem is automatic scaling, which from everything I've read, MS Access does not support. Curious though that at least one of their "Tradewinds" templates seems to have accomplished just that, where the forms I examined were properly scaled on two different computers. I couldn't find anything in the settings for the forms or the database (in options), so I'm guessing that whatever they have done exists as code. Since mine don't scale properly, I don't think it can be hard coded into Access, so presumably lurks somewhere in the Tradewinds database code.

  4. #4
    Micron is offline Virtually Inert Person
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    I'm no IT guy, so I don't see the sense in setting resolution so high that you need to magnify it to see anything. Why not use a lower setting with no magnification?
    Anyway, your issue is a common one, and the usual response is to design at the highest common resolution and expect others to conform. Works for a corporate environment where stubborn users are still using 800x600 because they won't get glasses, but may not be so helpful if you are designing apps for sale. Simply resizing the form often isn't satisfactory as this does not resize control, button, label (etc.) dimensions, nor does it resize the font or reposition controls to adjust for increased/decreased spacing. Apparently there is a commercial solution (with which I have no experience) you can investigate. I suppose an alternate solution is to either have multiple db versions each offering an appropriate scale, or forms repeated with multiple versions. The decision to load which form can be based on a function that returns the user's resolution.
    The more we hear silence, the more we begin to think about our value in this universe.
    Paraphrase of Professor Brian Cox.

  5. #5
    Accessed is offline Advanced Beginner
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    Feedback appreciated. This is however something outside the normal realm of resolution, which I was thinking of from the outset and was the reason why I tested on the laptop.

    First, the subject of resolution. I too am no IT guy, but in thinking about the problem and noticing set resolutions, it's starting to make sense. Many notebook computers now come with high resolution screens. The higher the resolution, the higher the pixel count (i.e. 3200 x 1800). This makes sense somehow to me. If you want to have a crystal clear picture, you need to cram as many pixels into a square inch as possible. But this means that many things that we take for granted, like our application icons, are incredibly small at this high resolution. So to counter this there is now a magnification applied - at least in W10. This can be as high as 250% on my wife's 3200 x 1800 monitor. It is this magnification, not the resolution per se, that is the root of the problem.

    Finally, Microsoft knows something about this because the issue does not impact any of their Access templates that I have explored (you can check this yourself with any high resolution notebook - the magnification factor is in the display settings). In every case, the magnification has no impact on their forms. I have no idea how they accomplish this! I've looked for every conceivable setting and nothing I have changed has replicated what they can achieve. I've looked in global and database settings, macros, modules, everywhere I can access. I do think it's worth asking them since I do think they know. You now also know that this is a problem of the future to be prepared for. More and more monitors will be high resolution and will somehow need to account for legacy software that assumes a much lower working resolution.

    Or I may still be an idiot - in which case you are also now informed and will know to ignore my future posts ;-)

  6. #6
    orange's Avatar
    orange is online now Moderator
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    Hi Dave,

    I am not an interface designer nor graphics person.
    Here is a link to an interesting database re form size and maximizing use of real estate.

    I don't know the individual behind it, nor have I spoken/communicated with him. I found the link while investigating Class modules.
    My guess is that the company/tech people might have some ideas/samples for you. I know they work with Sharepoint (at least they say they do) so I'd indicate that up front. It isn't much but might be a good start.

    There are other people who are active on several forums who build "products/applications" and they may have ore focused responses/options for you. There is also a Sharepoint group on this site.

    There is a User Interface group at UA
    You might want to read through the posts there, and join for free for ideas/questions.

    As always, good luck.

    agent

  7. #7
    Bulzie is offline VIP
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    Resize everything to the lower resolution is your answer

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