Dell UltraSharp U3011 30" Just Arrived

Is there anything I need to know before hooking this thing up?

I figured since I have all these high-powered video cards I should get a monitor to match.

I don't know which cards to try 1st. A pair of Vanilla EVGA GTX 680's or the EVGA GTX 690.

I even bought the Crysis pack during the Steam Summer sale so I can see how everything plays together.

Don't I have to use a DVI-D cable for the max resolution? The Manual is quite skimpy on details like this.

Is there a KVM switch good enough to use with this monitor and 3 computers?

Or just hook all three computers to the monitor at once and use the KVM just for the keyboard and mouse?

Charter's been advertising 30GB lately so I guess that'll be my next big adventure.

Thanks. I have a pair of dual DVI cables so I should be set. Now to hook this thing up and make sure it isn't defective. After all, it's still a Dell.

I've been playing games and benchmarks all day and night. I can't find anything wrong with it, not that I expected to after I examined the shipping packaging.

I've never seen a monitor so safely, and strangely packaged. I don't even know how to describe it.

Not a dead pixel in sight. The slow refresh rate is more than a little noticeable in Fallout 3 GotY, as expected. I'll get used to it I hope. I even found a sealed cistern I've never seen before in over 1500 hours playing this game.

More modern games appear just fine with just a trace of the slower refresh rate.

I guess I'll be watching the "Avatar" dvd that came with one of my cards later today. And the complete "Babylon 5" dvd series and movie collection I have.

I just can't find a wallpaper I like that shows off this new monitor. All of the wallpapers that came with Win 7 PRO look really grainy. They're completely unworthy to use on this excellent monitor. Plus, Desktop Nexus can't detect the correct resolution so I have to reset every picture I want to try. I'm a member of the Nexus and I can't find the custom settings that can be preset automatically everytime I sign in.

I still have to finish the new ASUS Maximus V Formula and have finally decided it has to be watercooled. Just the cpu, though. The EVGA GTX 690 still doesn't need to be watercooled but could definitely use the backplate and high flow bracket promised by EVGA around the end of July. I don't know about using the waterpipe on the mobo. I don't really want to have to use 2 different sizes of hoses Hopefully somebody will come out with a new mobo block I can use my 1/2" fittings on. ASUS shouldn't have made the pipe 1/4". I'm still glad I bought the Formula instead of waiting for the Extreme. The Extreme has far too many things on it I'd never use.

I can't use the USB cable that came with this monitor since it's so short and the fitting is on the far back left of the monitor and just about as far away from the computer as they could've placed it.

I just wish that this monitor had a remote control like my ASUS monitor. Even the VESA plate/mount fits both monitors. I've lost the top shelf of my computer desk again.

This Dell also has the best and easiest to use OSD I've ever worked with. As far as I've seen so far, the presets are all I really need. The Gamma setting puts my ASUS to shame. Now I know what "black" is really supposed to look like.

I ordered this monitor from Amazon early Sunday morning, paid the extra $3.99 for one-day shipping, and now the price has gone up over $100 since then. If I hesitated a few hours I would really have screwed myself over. I believe I'm gonna go ahead and buy the extra 4 year replacement warranty from Amazon.

Gonna take a while on the Bluray. I guess I should get a movie and a player 1st, huh?

http://wallbase.cc/toplist is a very good wallpaper site. It looks so familiar I must've used it before but somehow lost track of it.

I usually just use the NASA Photo Gallery but their resolutions are all over the place.

I decided on one of my favorite pics of the Sombrero Galaxy.

Dark enough to not be too intrusive in my dark room, yet bright enough I can read by it.

I wish I'd bought this monitor when it first came out. I never knew what I was missing.

I watched my "Avatar" dvd and the movie took a little getting used to.

Every cgi effect really stood out and became distracting until I finally relaxed and ignored the effect. At times it had almost a 3D quality to it but, of course, it wasn't.

3D would've given me an instant migraine. I can't imagine ever going back to another monitor that didn't have an IPS panel.

I've also become accustomed to the 7ms (GTG) Response Time while gaming. I found that when I was setting up "Hard Reset" to play that Steam had added some DLC I never knew about.

I have no idea when they downloaded it. It's a slightly more difficult level that looks fantastic with my new monitor! All of my games look appreciably better using this monitor.

Especially with this new EVGA GTX 690 Signature.