I remember 1024x768 @ 85Hz being pretty common.

My Chuntex VL700 monitor was made in 1997. It is specced for 69KHz hsync, which includes 1024x768x85Hz or 1280x1024x60Hz. I was able to push it to 1280x960x70Hz with nVidia drivers. 1152x864 was good too. This is on a screen with 16" viewable area.

My very pedestrian LG Flatron FB775C-EA 17 has a build date of Dec 2000, and specs 1280 x 1024 / 60Hz.

I think this is about when 17 became mainstream. I'm remembering 98 as when 15" was a typical nice new display. 14" is solidly associated with early W95 and back.

It's a pretty crummy display and a great reminder of how things had actually looked for most of us.

EDIT

Say in 1998, what would have been a good resolution/refresh rate? It seems fairly difficult to distinguish what was good and when!

You can dig through archives of magazines like PC Mag online. The advertising by Dell, Gateway, etc will show you what's being pushed for what segments that quarter. And you can look at what's on offer from Apple in any given year - "good" PCs of that time will have similar displays.

I have an old packing slip here I am looking at for an Optiquest 17" V75 I purchased on October 7, 1998. I also have a packing slip for a Viewsonic 17" E773 I purchased on Decemebr 1, 1999.

Thanks all. Interesting to note. I've got to be honest before a certain time period I'm sort of lost when it comes to PC CRTs. TVs seems to have a much more defined history. I have a crt in the loft, I think called Axiom, and I couldn't find anything about it information-wise.

in 1998 (december) my father bought me 720$ pc with 15' LG Studioworks 57M - it can handle 640x480x120hz, 800x600x100hz (110 indeed), 1024x768x85hz, 1280x1024x60hz (and 87hz interlaced). In my neighbourhood it was one of the best monitors, other guys had 14'. this monitor still works, but after repair it became worth - and now size of image is dependant on overall picture brightness which is the sign of shitty monitor. Better monitors was also available for people who don't count money at all. A friend of mine had sony trinitron g420 or so, which people usally couldn't afford.