Why can't I set my monitor to a higher resolution?

Monitor resolution, in desperate need of help please?

• My monitor just died so decided to go buy a new, bought the Samsung SA350 23 inch. Connected it with the blue cable( not sure what this cable is called) that came with it. My previous one was a 1920x1200 resolution monitor, this one maxes out at 1920x1080 but when I set it on that resolution I lose the left side where the start icon is and some of my desktop icons. So I bring it down to 1680x1050 which still ok but I see wavy lines going up and down when I have a white or bright page opened which I found annoying. So I went down another to 1600x1200 and its pretty much the same as the 1680 but a little less clear/sharp. I just plugged it in and did the settings right after the pc turned on. Why cant I have max resolution which is a little smaller than my previous one. How do I check my video card. Do I need to install some drivers or anything. Please help

• Answer:

  the blue cable is a vga cable it is not very good for HD connections. try use a different cable like the white one (dvi). it may be that your video card is not good enough.