LKBEN10755: DPI scaling in Windows XP and Vista


Symptom

Optimize size of fonts and icons with increasing resolution

Cause

The larger the display resolution (good!), the smaller are icons, buttons and fonts (bad!)

Solution

With Windows XP and Vista the default setting for display resolution of 96dpi can be changed to "large" (120dpi or 125%) or to a custom setting from 20% to 500% (or 480dpi).

WARNING!!! Don't mess with settings larger than 192dpi (200%) - you might not find your <ok> button to return to normal setting...

However, if you already did so, set your advanced display setting back to "normal" (96dpi) and just hit the enter-key. If asked to reboot, do so and all will be fine.

How to get there?

Windows XP:
right click on Desktop - "Properties" - Tab "Settings" and choose button "advanced"

Windows Vista:
right click on Desktop - "Personalize" - then choose "Adjust font size (DPI)" in the left frame

Disclaimer:

The information provided in this document is intended for your information only. Lubby makes no claims to the validity of this information. Use of this information is at own risk!

About the Author

Author: Wim Peeters - Keskon GmbH & Co. KG

Wim Peeters is electronics engineer with an additional master in IT and over 30 years of experience, including time spent in support, development, consulting, training and database administration. Wim has worked with SQL Server since version 6.5. He has developed in C/C++, Java and C# on Windows and Linux. He writes knowledge base articles to solve IT problems and publishes them on the Lubby Knowledge Platform.