After prolonged periods in front of the computer screen do you ever get a headaches or find yourself suffering from eye strain? Most of the time this problem occurs with CRT monitors that are set to a low refresh rate. LCD displays generally aren’t affected, because they operate differently. If you’re using a CRT monitor and get headaches from the screen, there is a rather easy fix that 9 times out of 10, solves the problem.

In WinXP click on the “Windows/Start” button, go to “Settings” and then “Control Panel” and click on “Display“. From there click the “Settings” tab and then the “Advanced” button. Go to the “Adapter” tab and you should see the “Monitor Settings“. Under that should be a number followed by the “Hertz“. The sweet spot is 75 Hz or above. In general you want to get that number as high as possible. In Windows Vista, right click on the desktop, select “Personalize” then “Display Settings“. Choose “Advanced Settings” > Monitor, and adjust the screen refresh rate accordingly.

When you press the “Apply” or “OK” button the CRT monitor will blink for a moment and then you’ll be all set!

Now you can stay in front of your computer for long periods of time without the problems caused by a CRT screen that flickers at a low 60Hz.