When it comes to the modern day computing, the visual experience is everything provided by your computer monitor. So it really does beg the question, What makes an excellent monitor ?

This article is a guide of sorts to elaborate about the various different aspects that make a good monitor.

What builds a monitor ?

A computer monitor has a display, ports for connectivity and a power supply.

Each part of the monitor serves an important purpose, let's take a look at them closely and see what matters.

Display:

The monitor's display is the main element of the monitor (quite obviously), As it's pretty much what you are looking at when you want to work with a computer. A good monitor needs to have good display characteristic.

Some of these characteristics in general are things like the display brightness, color -representation qualities, refresh rate, etc.

Here is a look into some of the more technical aspects of the monitor.

Brightness

Brightness, quantified in nits, plays a pivotal role in determining the vibrancy of displayed content. This attribute becomes especially significant in well-lit environments and when dealing with HDR (High Dynamic Range) content, as it contributes to a visually impactful experience.

For optimal visual clarity, a good monitor should have the capacity to emit approximately 250 – 450 nits of brightness, striking the right balance for various scenarios.

Color Accuracy and Gamut

The accuracy of colors holds paramount importance, particularly in tasks involving precise content creation. The color gamut, elaborated through metrics like sRGB, Adobe RGB, or DCI-P3 coverage, signifies the expansive spectrum of colors a display can realistically reproduce.

For the average user seeking a commendable display, a panel featuring good sRGB coverage, ranging from above 60% to 100%, should suffice and align with budget constraints. However, those delving into professional studio work might seek the exemplary color fidelity of the DCI-P3 standard, often considered the gold standard for color reproduction.

Display resolution

In the realm of computer monitors, resolution and pixel density are pivotal factors shaping visual quality.

They come across in various ranges such as 1080p, 1440p, and 4K etc.

FHD/1080p (Full High Definition) strikes a balance between image quality and performance, with widespread compatibility and smoother gaming.

QHD/1440p (Quad HD or 2K) steps up clarity for detailed tasks, enhancing productivity while offering an approachable upgrade.

UHD/4K (Ultra HD) sets a new standard in clarity, ideal for design and content creation, though demanding more from hardware.

This comes at a cost, as display resolution compatibility also matters; higher resolutions may require scaling adjustments for optimal usage and may require a faster computer.

Aspect Ratio

The aspect ratio of a display is also a key worthy feature of a monitor.

The aspect ratio is essentially the ratio between the number of pixels on the horizontal and vertical of the monitor. This gives importance to productivity and how you can space your windows and tabs of content on-screen.

16:9 is a typical monitor ratio, whereas 4:3 would be considered a tall monitor. There also exists ultra-wide monitors with aspect ratios like 21:9.

Pixel density

Pixel density impacts text clarity and visual edges, enhancing productivity and gaming, but necessitates proper scaling settings. The pixel density is a ratio between the monitor's size in inches and the resolution.

The higher the pixel density, the crisper and cleaner things like images and text look on a display.

Refresh Rates and Response Times

The refresh rate, measured in Hz (Hertz), dictates the seamless transition of images by quantifying how frequently the screen updates within a single second. The standard refresh rate of around 60 Hz is commonplace, yet there are monitors with capabilities of 90, 120, 144, or even 240 Hz. Higher refresh rates contribute substantively to rendering smoother motion on the screen, effectively conferring a fluid appearance to visual content.

Simultaneously, response times wield their influence on how promptly pixels transition between colors, playing a pivotal role in mitigating ghosting effects – the lingering blurring that occurs during rapid image changes. The response times in milliseconds are intrinsically linked to the monitor's refresh rate, making it an attribute that changes accordingly.

Ghosting and Motion Blur

Ghosting materializes when pixels lag behind during swift changes, leading to perceptible blurring. Reduced response times are instrumental in addressing this concern, enhancing the overall clarity of dynamic visuals and ensuring crisp portrayal.

A robust display, worthy of acclaim, ought to seamlessly surmount such issues, elevating the immersive experience for the user.

HDR (High Dynamic Range)

HDR technology represents a noteworthy advancement by augmenting the contrast and brightness levels of displayed content, culminating in a better visual engagement.

Foremost formats such as HDR10 and Dolby Vision spearhead this evolution, providing expanded color palettes and luminance ranges that translate into captivating visuals.

While the inclusion of HDR support is anticipated in a high-quality monitor, it's worth noting that this enhancement can lead to a higher budgetary consideration due to the premium experience it affords.

Contrast Ratio

The contrast ratio, a fundamental determinant, gauges the monitor's capacity to distinctly differentiate between white and other colors against a black backdrop. This metric evaluates the visual dynamics, as a higher contrast ratio invariably contributes to the enhanced vibrancy and realism of on-screen colors.

Viewing Angles

The concept of viewing angles is in relation to the range within which a display maintains its color accuracy and brightness consistency.

In simple terms, when you're looking at a screen, distortions in colors and brightness should ideally not crop up whether you're sitting directly in front of the display or even when you're peering at it from slightly off-center angles, like when you tilt your head.

This convenient feature essentially removes the need to constantly align your line of sight perfectly with the monitor's center to enjoy a sharp and clear view of everything displayed on it.

Comparing Displays

Two giants stand at the forefront: LCDs and OLEDs. Each has its unique strengths and characteristics that define the visual experience they offer. Additionally, emerging technologies like microLED and QLED are pushing the boundaries further.

LCDs (Liquid Crystal Displays)

LCDs have long been the workhorse of the monitor world. These displays rely on liquid crystal molecules that twist and untwist to regulate light passing through them. The three primary types of LCD panels are TN (Twisted Nematic), VA (Vertical Alignment), and IPS (In-Plane Switching).

The most commonly preferred type of LCD panel is IPS due to its highly favored characteristics, as it appears to balance all the various aspects of a good display.

OLEDs (Organic Light Emitting Diodes)

OLED technology is quite unique. Each pixel makes its very own light, which gives you incredibly deep black colors and really bright colors too. These displays are super thin and flexible because they don't need a big light behind them.

OLED displays excel in every field of the display criteria, Ultra bright, Extremely color accurate, Super fast refresh and sub millisecond response rates with infinite contrast.

But unfortunately, OLED displays can become the victim of burn-ins where certain parts of the display can become dim over time, which can ruin the display in local areas or the entire OLED in general.

Mini-LED Displays

Mini-LED displays are a bit of an innovation to LCDs, imagine an LCD with a contrast ratio similar to ones like OLED displays.

These displays use LCDs with a distributed backlight that uses small LEDs to achieve localized dimming, hence providing much more contrast to the picture, thus greatly improving quality.

Connectivity:

Let's delve a bit into the various connectivity options monitors offer, ranging from the classic technologies to the latest cutting-edge:

VGA (Video Graphics Array)

VGA is among the oldest methods of monitor connections, dating back to the early days of computing. It uses a 15-pin connector and is known for its analog signal transmission. While it can still be found on some older devices, VGA's limitations in terms of image quality and resolution have led to its gradual decline in favor of newer options.

HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface)

HDMI has become the de facto standard for connecting monitors to various devices. It supports both audio and video transmission in a single cable. HDMI offers robust support for high-definition resolutions, making it perfect for TVs, gaming consoles, and modern computers.

It's widely compatible and comes in different versions to accommodate evolving technological standards. Make sure your computer is capable of providing an HDMI version equal to or greater than the monitor to make the most use of its capabilities.

DisplayPort

DisplayPort is another powerful contender, often seen on high-performance monitors and computers. It boasts high data transfer rates and supports higher resolutions and refresh rates than HDMI.

DisplayPort is also more adaptable for multi-monitor setups and offers daisy-chaining capabilities. It has gained popularity among professionals and enthusiasts who require superior performance.

USB-C and Thunderbolt

USB-C, known for its versatility, has taken the connectivity world by storm. It's not just for data and charging; it can also carry display signals. With a compatible port, you can use USB-C to connect your monitor, transmit data, and charge your device all at once.

Thunderbolt, often found in Apple devices, takes USB-C a step further by offering even faster data transfer and more display bandwidth.

DP over USB-C

DisplayPort over USB-C is the fusion of two great technologies. It's like getting the best of both worlds – the high-performance capabilities of DisplayPort and the convenience and versatility of USB-C.

This technology is particularly handy for laptops and devices with limited connectivity options, offering a single cable solution for power, data, and display.

Power supplies:

Probably not talked about much, but still sure is important to consider is efficiency ratings.

Opting for monitors with Energy Star ratings translates to minimized energy consumption and reduced electricity bills. So it is worth checking out the monitor's power rating if you plan to use it in power constrained systems.

What is the recommended monitor ?

There are a lot of various monitors that cater to user specific needs. For example high refresh monitors for gamers, high color precision for designers and engineers, Different aspect ratio monitors for programmers etc.

Software is also very catered to the kind of monitor you view your content on, if you plan on using your monitor for entertainment, you might want to look into a 16:9 aspect ratio monitor.

This is because movies and other content are curated to be viewable in that standard aspect ratio, Also making sure that its HDR capable for the rich colors.

If you need to conduct business activities, consider a monitor that's taller like a 4:3 aspect ratio. This will help you fit more content in a tall space all in one view.

If you want to have multiple moniors along a line, why not consider a ultrawide monitor ?
You'll be able to fit all your content together in a wide immersive view.

Any other monitor related tips ?

Make sure you are looking to make the most out of the setup of your monitors with mounting accessories.

Usually monitors come with a very simple mount but are compatible with VESA mounting options.

So it might be a good investment in purchasing a desktop clamp type or swivel mount monitor stand, depending on the number of monitors you might purchase.

Conclusion

If you are looking to purchase a monitor, It's worth noting all the various points and aspects before consideration of what kind of monitor you want to buy. The more the extravagant features, the more it will cost for a good monitor implementing those features.

Avoid buying cheaper monitors as they do tend to become faulty after a while and have random lines and artifacts in their screens after a period of usage wear.

IPS monitors with a decent resolution for your needs is probably the way to go if you are looking for a good ratio of budget and features, but if you are willing to splurge on a monitor, getting an OLED monitor isn't a bad idea.

In the rapidly evolving world of technology, Language Model-based Learning (LLMs) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools have become effective partners for programmers of all skill levels. In the rapidly changing world of programming, These tools have completely transformed how code is written, optimized, and debugged. They build upon earlier innovations like IntelliSense. This article covers the possibilities of LLMs and AI tools like ChatGPT and Github Copilot. And also possibly their effects on coding, and the moral issues with automatic code generation.

IDE tools are a thing of the past.

Before the advent of AI-driven code writing tools, programmers relied on traditional Integrated Development Environments (IDEs) and code-completion features like Intellisense to aid them in the coding process. These tools significantly improved developers' productivity and code quality, laying the foundation for the advancements that AI would later bring.

However, these tools were limited by their ability to perform only static code analysis. Static code analysis involved scanning the codebase for potential issues, such as syntax errors, unused variables, or possible runtime errors, and providing suggestions for improvement.

While valuable, static analysis lacked the capacity to grasp the subtleties of natural language and complex programming scenarios, as it focused on rule-based patterns rather than understanding the context.

This brings us to the advent of modern AI progressing on the capabilities of previous generation tools.

What is an LLM by the way ?

Large Language Models (LLMs) process and comprehend human language using neural networks. They have mastered the ability to predict the likelihood of a word or series of words given the context after pre-training on massive datasets of text from the internet, books, journals, and code repositories. This enables them to provide replies that are appropriate for the context.

Some of the well known LLMs include the OpenAI GPT models used in applications like ChatGPT.

Other LLM based applications include Google Bard, Github Copilot, etc.

How have these tools helped ?

LLMs and AI tools actively enhance the efficiency and productivity of programmers by offering dynamic support throughout the coding process. Leveraging natural language understanding, these tools actively assist with various aspects of coding, making it more intuitive and seamless for developers.

They go beyond regular code completion. These tools actively offer comprehensive help in generating, changing, arranging, identifying errors, and predicting performance in code.

LLMs, unlike Intellisense, can comprehend natural language and generate code based on human-like prompts, pushing us to a new era of AI-driven code writing.

What AI-Tools are currently in usage ?

There are a currently lot of tools on the market for programmers to use to aid them in programming.

1. ChatGPT:

ChatGPT is a general purpose LLM that uses OpenAI's GPT model for advanced text generation based on simple human-like prompts.

The model can understand and generate human-like text based on the given context. It learns from a wide range of text sources like the internet, books, and articles, which helps it grasp language patterns and relationships.

However, it is very limited in its capabilities in things like code generation as it is much more general purpose.

2. Github Copilot

GitHub Copilot is an AI-powered code completion tool developed by OpenAI and GitHub. It uses the GPT-3.5 language model to assist developers in writing code faster.

As programmers type, Copilot analyzes the context and suggests complete lines or blocks of code, speeding up the development process. The tool has trained on a vast dataset of code repositories, enabling it to offer accurate and relevant code suggestions in different programming languages.

3. Deepcode

DeepCode is an AI-powered tool designed to assist with coding, actively analyzing code repositories for potential improvements. It works by using machine learning to detect bugs, errors, and security vulnerabilities in code.

The tool's active learning capabilities continuously improve its accuracy by learning from the feedback and code reviews provided by users. DeepCode aims to make coding easier and more secure by leveraging the power of AI to identify and prevent potential issues in the codebase.

What are the downsides ?

AI-generated code may not always be of good quality or dependable. The AI models learn from existing code, but they might still produce code with mistakes or inefficiencies. Depending solely on AI-generated code without checking it carefully could lead to problems in the software.

They don't actually know what they are writing ...

AI models lack real understanding and learning abilities. They generate code based on patterns they have seen, but they don't truly grasp the problems they are solving. This can make them less effective in handling new or complex coding challenges.

Plagiarism and Legal hurdles

AI models learn from code created by various developers, which means the generated code could resemble existing proprietary code. This raises concerns about copying code and violating intellectual property rights, which can lead to ethical and legal issues.

Essentially, who actually wrote the code, the model or the developer ?

AI itself isn't very great at programming by itself

AI models might not be good at all programming languages or specialized tasks. Some languages or specific programming challenges might not have enough data for the AI to work well, resulting in less accurate or relevant code suggestions.

It's really easy to write malicious code

The same capabilities that make AI valuable for legitimate development also present risks in the wrong hands.

Unethical people can use AI-generated code to craft malware, launch cyberattacks, or bypass security measures. It might also be used to automate unethical practices, such as scraping content, spamming, or creating fake accounts. To address these concerns, responsible use, strong ethical guidelines, and security measures are essential.

So, how do we solve any of these issues ?

A first step in the right direction would be to address the challenges of bias in AI models and how it might affect the code generated. Exploring strategies and best practices to mitigate bias and ensure fair and inclusive code suggestions.

Tailoring AI models to the domain

Creating domain-specific AI models for code writing in specialized areas and fine-tuning them on the much more specific data sets will have much more knowledge in terminologies and coding patterns, leading to more accurate and contextually relevant code suggestions.

Enforcing stricter security filters

To ensure responsible AI usage, we must establish strict ethical guidelines and governance.

The AI community, security experts, and policymakers can collaborate to develop advanced security measures that prevent AI-generated code from being used for unethical activities.

Solving the legal barriers associated

To resolve legal issues caused by AI-generated code, we must define rights and responsibilities for developers and AI model creators. Adding watermarks or identifiers to AI-generated code can attribute ownership and prevent plagiarism. Regular audits and assessments of AI tools ensure legal compliance and prevent unintended legal problems.

Why does any of this matters to you ?

AI-driven code writing is not just transforming the way professional programmers work. It also holds significant advantages for common people with an interest in programming. By making coding more accessible and inclusive, AI tools are simplifying the world of software development.

AI-powered code writing tools act as mentors for individuals new to coding or casual programmers. These tools are trained on vast amounts of prior knowledge, and they provide real-time suggestions and generate functional code based on natural language prompts, thus reducing the learning curve

Combining the creativity and expertise of human developers with the assistance of AI-driven tools can unlock the full potential of code generation, resulting in more efficient and reliable software solutions.

A good home network ensures all the computers in your home can seamlessly communicate together and with the internet without any caveats whatsoever.

Setting up a proper network ensures many things, such as enhanced security, content filtering and other data management perks, along with better quality of service for things like streaming and entertainment.

However, you don't need to break the bank to set up a complete home network. Here is a guide on some basic, affordable options to set up a network with extensive connectivity to connect every corner of your home.

What constitutes a basic network?

A minimal foundational home network should consist of

As a prerequisite, make sure your home has the necessary Ethernet cabling and routing done to each of the computers or network devices you wish to connect.

These days, basic home routers have all the aforementioned components combined into a single device. However, there are still certain advantages to a full home network stack with dedicated components to do each job.

But a dedicated network stack provides much more flexibility, each component can be tweaked to cater to personal home requirements.

What are the various options for home network on a budget?

There are many affordable options to look at for buying the bare minimum components for a basic home network. Furthermore, most of these components can be bought from simple online e-commerce websites like amazon, Newegg, microcenter etc.

How to pick the right parts

When choosing the appropriate parts for a home network, there are certain requirements to be met to have the best service experience. Choosing the correct amount of bandwidth, range coverage etc. matter very much.

Routers

Routers are essentially the devices that manage how devices communicate with the internet and act as the traffic controller for network data to go from one place to another.

Most home routers are provisioned by the internet service provider but other times they provide nothing but a direct Ethernet CAT line or Modem if using fiber optic or coaxial line.

The router should be one that can handle high data throughput and have an optimal amount of processing power to be able to handle multiple users at the same time.

All i have is a router right now, how can it do everything?

Again, nowadays, what one considers a router is actually constituted by a router, network switch and WiFi modem. This all-in-one package creates less setup hassle; however, the downside being one router won't necessarily be able to suit everyone's home network needs.

What kind of routers can I get?

There are many kinds of routers, such as basic wired routers, wireless routers that have WiFi capability, and Mesh WiFi routers which form a WiFi mesh network so you can have seamless uninterrupted WiFi connection anywhere in your home.

If your home isn't larger than 1400-1600 Sq. Feet, a mesh network might not be necessary, and A single plain WiFi router should suffice.

The TP-Link AX1800 is an excellent choice for this kind of situation, having an abundance of up-to-date features, enforcing security with VPNs, and a very capable WiFi modem makes it a good choice for small homes.

However, if you are looking towards buying a Mesh Wireless router, consider the TP-Link Deco Mesh. It's an affordable entry into the Mesh WiFi network system, and should provide uninterrupted WiFi Access anywhere in your home.

Switches

As far as home networks go, not much can surpass a solid wired network inside your home.

It's much more capable of sustaining a solid network connection, and being much less of a hassle to set up stationary devices like TVs, PCs, Game Consoles etc.

The downside of wired networks is the necessity of many ports to be able to connect and handle multiple devices. Hence, the necessity for a network switch.

These connectivity devices can be a choke point if you buy one which can't handle much high bandwidth. If your Internet Service plan offers more than 100 Mbit/s (Million bits per second) of speed, you might want to consider picking up a device that handles 1 Gbit/s (Billion bits per second).

But what's the difference between a Hub and Switch?

In computer networks, data is sent to each other in the form of "Packets".

The difference in how hubs and switches work is how the data packets are transmitted from one endpoint to the other. Hubs broadcast packets to all devices and the recipient is the one that can read the packet data; however, a network switch transmits the data directly to and from the recipient, hence being able to much more efficiently handle the bandwidth between the devices.

This can have detrimental effects to how good your network experience is if you have many users and bandwidth needs to be allocated effectively to each user's needs to cut down on latency.

What kind of switch can I buy?

Network switches can be of managed and unmanaged type.

Unmanaged switches are devices that just manage the end-to-end point connections. Managed switches can allocate bandwidth much more intelligently, handle things like VLANs, prioritize Quality of service, control network access etc.

for a home network, however, an unmanaged switch should cater to the primary needs.

Depending on your needs, the TP-Link TL-SG108 and TL-SG116 are excellent choices, offering 8 and 16 Gigabit Ethernet ports each.

What other devices can help improve my home network?

If your home wasn't designed with cable networking in mind, and mostly relies on wireless networks, you should test out the wireless connectivity strength to check if every part of your home is optimally connected.

In any case, you sense a drop in the Wi-Fi signal strength, you could pick up a Wi-Fi repeater.

The TP-Link AC1900 WiFi Extender is a pretty good choice for such a case, should it prevent you from upgrading to a network if you feel that is out of budget and need.

making your own router

Another popular option for custom home network setups is making your own router with a small computer that has multiple network cards, such as a single board computer.

This can be a very affordable option that offers the most flexibility with many choices for hardware platforms, extensible software, etc.

If you are looking for an all-rounded setup, consider picking up an ARM-based Single Board Computer like the NanoPi R6S and installing software like OpenWRT for a highly configurable smart router. Possessing dual 2.5G Ethernet ports makes it suitable for high bandwidth operations as well.

There also exists software like the pi-hole, that gives you the possibility to do things like ad-blocking, your own DNS system for faster website lookups, etc.

Alternatively, you could pick up a x86 based Single Board Computer like the Zima Board, and install a custom OS like PfSense, that offers even more features like firewalls, network filtering etc.

These devices can also be configurable to show a dashboard of network statistics for diagnosing your network status etc.

There is a vast set of guides for setting up custom router setups based on your budget needs and requirements.

Conclusion

Your optimum home network should constitute of a solid foundation of hardware that doesn't bottleneck your experience when utilizing high bandwidth for work or entertainment experiences like streaming, gaming etc., but also be able to provide additional features to enhance your security and prevent snooping and hacking from affecting your routine.

Webserver hosting comes in all sorts of sizes and shapes, depending on your needs you have to choose an optimal webserver that suits your organization.


Here's a list of the various types of Webserver hosting options:

Each one of these has its own variants, upsides and downside which we will list:


Dedicated Webhosting:

Dedicated webservers as described, they are a dedicated server maintained only for individual/personal organizations and nothing else.

They are single handedly the fastest and can handle more for the given resources compared to other offerings.

Dedicated webhosts have variations such as:


Bare Metal webservers

These dedicated webservers are quite simply the most basic webservers that are very lightweight and fast as they have no overhead

It's as simple as a dedicated computer, running a light OS, and hosting the webserver.

Pros:

Cons:


Virtual Host webservers

Virtual Host webservers are just like the aforementioned webservers, the catch being the hosting OS runs on top of a Hypervisor/Virtual Container.

This helps with maintenance of the system and control over the hosting system.

Bare Metal webservers are quite more cumbersome to deal with in maintenance situations.

Pros:

Cons:


Shared Web hosting:

Shared webservers in essence are servers that do shared tasks along with webhosting such as hosting other servers on the same system.

Since multiple tasks run on the same system, The resource usage is dynamically managed.

However if one task is in a state of using heavy resources it will affect other tasks.

Shared hosting can also be bare metal or virtually hosted.

Pros:

Cons:


Virtual Private Server Hosting:

VPS services essentially provides the same kind of experience as a dedicated host but are organized in the same way shared hosts do.

Your webserver will be hosted a on cloud with limited resources, but it has full control for maintenance and is given various protection services like anti-DDoS protection, etc.

VPS services provide peace of mind as it doesn't involve too much of the design process for a proper hosting setup.

Instead, it's a set it and forget it type of service.

For more detailed info about VPS services check here.

Pros:

Cons:

Hostinger is a popular VPS that offers this service.


So which kind of hosting should I prefer ?

Shared and Dedicated webhosts fall into more of a similar category of self-hosted webservers, whereas other services like VPS fall into the cloud-hosted/external hosting services.

If your organization doesn't have a complex need and just needs to host a simple static web page, external hosting might be a cheaper option.

Given the complexity and available resources, self-hosting might seem more reasonable.

If you expect less traffic but want to be able to manage the server on your own, consider self-hosting.

For larger commercial organizations, self-hosting again might seem more reasonable.

If you are a single individual or a smaller commercial business, cloud-hosted/external hosting is just much more feasible, considering network limitations as well.


Wrap-up:

In short, we were able to list down the various options for hosting a webserver for an Individual's needs.

may it be commercial or Individual.

And why should you know how to use one ?

Digital voltmeters (or) Multi-meters, are a essential tool that belongs in every electronic, or electrical engineer's arsenal of tools.

But almost everyone should know how to use one, as their implications have a wide variety of utilities that helps solve basic electrical issues without needing the assistance of a dedicated electrical or electronic engineer on site.

Standard basic multi-meter/voltmeter.

These days multi-meters can do things like measure current, voltage, resistance, continuity, etc.

Let's take a look at what those things are, and how we can use a multi-meter in real world applications.


Index:


Multi-meter parts

Multi-meter anatomy

A multi-meter has a couple simple parts,

Every Multi-meter has a voltage and current rating according to how much it can withstand when measuring.

Polarity is the direction in which electric current flows, from positive to the negative end. The Red color probe is for positive terminal (+), and the Black color probe is for the negative terminal (-).

Probe polarity does not matter for AC current.


Different operational modes

Before we can see how to use the multi-meter we need to know how electric current works in a very simple fashion, let's take a sample analogy:

in a very simple way, to measure the voltage you have to measure the points across the appliance to see how much voltage is being applied to it.

To measure the current, you have to measure in-between the point where current exits the appliance and goes to the ground (-)


Measuring voltage with a multi-meter

Rotate the function dial to choose the appropriate setting, with the probes in the right points:

Voltage measuring mode

turn the function dial to the option shown above according to the appropriate icon,
The icon with the wavy line for AC current, the dotted line for DC current.

Once you have chosen the appropriate function, probe across the appliance you want to measure voltage across like a battery:

measure the battery voltage with the appropriate DC current mode

Measuring current with a multi-meter:

Rotate the function dial to choose the appropriate setting, with the probes in the right points:

Current measuring mode

turn the function dial to the option shown above according to the appropriate icon,
The icon with the wavy line for AC current, the dotted line for DC current.

Once you have chosen the appropriate function, probe in line with the appliance you want to measure current with like in-between a light bulb and a battery.

measure current usage with the appropriate DC current mode

The current measurement is made by letting electricity pass from one probe through the other, technically creating a short, and it's advisable not to directly connect your multi-meter directly to the power supply or inline without any appliance.

This will inevitably cause the multi-meter to short the current from the positive to the negative, blowing the multi-meter fuse, and causing damage to the instrument itself!

Do not probe power supplies directly in current mode, it will short circuit and cause damage

Testing continuity with a multi-meter

Rotate the function dial to choose the appropriate setting, with the probes in the right points:

Continuity testing mode

with this mode selected, you can check if there is a path of conductivity between two points, and if it is conductive, you will hear a shrill sound made by the multi-meter indicating it.

To self-test if this mode is working properly, you can touch the probes together and make sure the sound is made.

Use this to check if wiring in houses have breaks in them for example or if you are testing if connections exist on electronics circuit boards.


Measuring Resistance with a multi-meter

Rotate the function dial to choose the appropriate setting, with the probes in the right points:

Resistance testing mode

With this mode selected, you can measure the resistance across two points in a circuit. This is very important when working with electronics and design testing. But it can also help if you are trying to do wiring jobs with signals like speakers where combined speaker resistance is important.

pretty much anywhere resistance is important, and needs to be measured, this function can be used.


Using a multi-meter in real life

As seen with the different modes, a lot of functionality is available in a single multimeter, but how does one make use of these functions in day-to-day work?

Most likely you will make more use of Voltage, Resistance, and Continuity settings, and only ever use the Current measuring setting.

Some places you might use these functions are:

Voltage measurement:

Resistance measurement:

Continuity testing:


Wrap up

In summary, digital multi-meters are super versatile, offer a lot of useful functionality for electronics problem solving. It shows why it's a staple part of every electronics or electrical engineer's toolkit.

There are a lot more features in some multi-meters, and only the common features have been discussed here.

To learn more about using a multi-meter, check out the manual guide presented by the manufacturer of your multi-meter.

If you are looking to get a new multi-meter, here are some recommendation links for some simple multi-meters.

Fluke multi-meters, very accurate, good quality, should last a lifetime
Basic Multi-meter, good enough if you are a beginner with electronic instruments.
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