Wc3 sized window or full screen ?

[Ardenian]

I just discovered a few hours ago that Warcraft can also be played in window mode, not the full screen and having to use tab to get to the desktop.

This is awesome! Never problems again copying a code form a screenshot or manipulating files while being in a game. Never ever again missing a game start if you are tabbed.

What about you guys, do you use the default full screen or a window ?

Are there any disadvantages ?

 

[Arad MNK]

I still love Full-Screen mode.

No discussion.

 

[Ardenian]

I still love Full-Screen mode.

No discussion.

Ho, why not/ why love you full screen ? Discuss please

 

[Flux]

It's hard to scroll map at window mode. But is is good for testing.

 

[Ardenian]

It's hard to scroll map at window mode. But is is good for testing.

And to make animated GIF for previews and so on.

I mean, using full window, so only the task bar shows, it is hardly a difference to full screen.

I think that using window mode cause lag tho. I experimented a bit and the game seems it is slightly laggier if you are not actively using Warcraft.

 

[Arad MNK]

Full-screen is Cool.
When I play WC 3 In Full-screen, I feel like I'm in the Game.
The Atmosphere is felt well and I have more Concentration on the Game. (Especially when I was doing TCO boss-fights, good days)
Also, there is No Image Stretching, And Screenshots have good Quality.

Although I can't give simple reviews easily and I have to write them down on a piece of Paper.
And I can't fix Problems fast in the Editor when seen (When testing my Map)

But I still love Full-screen WC 3.

Enough discussion right?

 

[Ardenian]

When I play WC 3 In Full-screen, I feel like I'm in the Game.
The Atmosphere is felt well and I have more Concentration on the Game. (Especially when I was doing TCO boss-fights, good days)
Also, there is No Image Stretching, And Screenshots have good Quality.

Well, I myself don't notice a difference when having it at maximum size and only the little task bar is at the bottom.
I guess the opinions are widely spread here.

 

[Shadow Fury]

Full screen rocks!
I had Warcraft for a few weeks with a smaller screen and I definitely did not find that enjoyable while playing the game, imagine if I keep it in a humble window... I enjoy full screen for the same reasons of Arad MNK.

Btw, when I'm about to review a map, I use something called "my memory" > Only when it comes to reviewing campaigns then I need to open microsoft word and comment each map individually after I finish playing it.

Ever heard about something called Alt + Esc? It works well for me...

 

[Wasabee]

Fullscreen is better when playing the game and I have the same reasons with Arad MNK.
Its difficult to move in window mode but it's good for testing.

 

[Shar Dundred]

I used to play with two monitors when I wanted to test something while playing. WC3 showed me that it disliked me clicking on other ptograms with the game still open and running on the other monitor...

 

[Dr Super Good]

Only way to play WC3 is full screen. It does not support borderless windowed last time I tried (which is the only other way to play full screen).

 

[Ardenian]

Only way to play WC3 is full screen. It does not support borderless windowed last time I tried (which is the only other way to play full screen).

I found a site with a short introduction. Basically, you create a new shortcut of the .exe and add '-window' behind it. Then Warcraft is not executed in full screen, but in a changeable window. You can extend it to the maximum, so only the task bar of windows is shown, nothing more.
For me it makes no difference, but it is much better as I can also access other programs while playing.

Or did you mean something else ?

 

[Dr Super Good]

Or did you mean something else ?

Modern applications like Diablo III and various emulators support "borderless windowed" display mode. The graphics are similar to that of full screen (all display area used, native resolution, all clickable area is the game) except there is no exclusive display lock. As such you can context swap (alt+tab) instantly between applications. It also makes it less likely to fail to run if another full screen application is working since it does not need a display lock.

In normal full screen applications what makes the alt+tab unresponsive is the display lock. When minimizing the application the lock has to be acquired by the windows manager which requires forcing the application to give up its display lock. The opposite occurs when resuming a full screen application. This also means a lot of D3D/OpenGL context needs to be re-created. This is why it can take several seconds to change between a full screen application and why many full screen applications break so badly when resuming.

The dis-advantage of borderless window is that the application is now displayed by the windows manager which means that there may be extra feedback latency (a command will appear to take longer to execute because it takes longer for the results to be displayed). There is also an apparent resource overhead associated with this however in modern day operating systems it is very small (trivial).

You cannot game with standard windowed mode unless there is an input lock in place. It becomes just too easy to press outside the display window and lose focus (not something you want when playing).

Normal windowed mode is fine for testing however. You do not need to perform very well when playing if you are testing and the benefits of having it in front with something else behind (eg the editor) is immense.

 

[Ardenian]

Ah, I understand! I noticed that delay you mention, well, I don't go to other tabs if I am in-game I would say.

For testing it is indeed great.

 

[Arad MNK]

For testing it is indeed great.

Yes. The ONLY downside of Fullscreen would be This.

 

[edo494]

There is also a program called borderless gaming, which makes wc3 go borderless.

And yes, big problem for wc3 is that when it loses focus(the game window), it pauses if not in multiplayer, so it kinda fucks you over

 

[Zwiebelchen]

Get two screens you cheapskates!

Tbh, working with only one screen is a serious pain in the ass in almost any application. I hate having to tab through different windows. Plus when you're working with advanced workstation software (audio recording, modelling, photoshop) it's always good to have one screen dedicated to the media and one dedicated to the toolsets.

 

[edo494]

yeah, tell that to laptop users(me), or people with not enough room for their computer to get second screen(again, me).

It doesnt fix the game pause when unfocused either

 

[Dr Super Good]

Get two screens you cheapskates!

Not everyone has space for two screens...

 

[Shar Dundred]

Not everyone has space for two screens...

Not to mention it doesn't help or work for real.

 

[PublishedShadow]

I use Windowed mode for Warcraft III. BNET or testing, I have had no problems panning the camera, moving the mouse, etc.

I used to plug my HDMI port to my TV and used it as my extended desktop and still kept Warcraft III windowed.

 

[Arad MNK]

Windowed WC III had lost terribly to Full-Screen WC III...!

 

[Ardenian]

Yeah, tho it makes absolutely no sense to me. I guess we are all very different.

 

[Dr Super Good]

Yeah, tho it makes absolutely no sense to me.

Better click reliability (no clicking outside window). Better pan reliability (pan breaks outside window). Larger screen area (native resolution instead of a window), etc.

With WC3 it is unfortunately no competition that full screen is better. If they had proper windowed full screen then that is a different matter but sadly it does not.