If you review construction documents on two or three monitors, the layout you want is obvious: the drawing set on one screen, the specification or a consultant's set on the other, so you can read one against the other without flipping back and forth. The frustrating part is that in most PDF tools this is not the default. Documents open stacked as tabs in a single window, and getting one drawing per monitor is a setting you have to go find first. This page is about doing that review across two monitors with each document in its own window, on a two-monitor Windows 11 workstation or on an Apple Silicon Mac.

Why one window per document is a workaround in most PDF tools

In Adobe Acrobat, documents open as tabs inside one window by default, so putting two drawings on two monitors means unticking the open-as-tabs preference, or using Window then New Window and dragging the copy across. Foxit PDF Editor keeps documents in a single window unless you allow multiple instances. Bluebeam Revu is tab-based on Windows, so you detach a tab into its own window before you can move it to a second screen. Each of these works once you know the setting, but it is a setting you have to discover, and you rediscover it every time an update or a new machine resets your preferences. On a workflow you run all day, that friction adds up.

How Ncored handles two monitors

In Ncored, every document opens in its own window (separate windows, not a tabbed interface), so two documents on two monitors is simply how the app works, with no preference to find. Open the drawing set and the specification and each lands in its own window, then drag one to each monitor. Ncored is multi-monitor aware and remembers each window's size and position along with your recent files, so the layout you set up comes back the next time you open those documents. It works with the window snapping already built into your operating system: Win+Left and Win+Right to snap a window to half the screen on Windows, or window tiling on macOS. Each window is a full viewer in its own right, with a thumbnail sidebar, keyboard page navigation, a full-screen presentation mode and dark mode, plus the full markup toolset: freehand pen, rectangle, ellipse, revision cloud, highlight, text, comments and your own image stamp. Heavy 50-200 MB+ project sets exported from AutoCAD, Revit, and ArchiCAD stay smooth on scroll, zoom, pinch and pan in each window. Native on Windows 10 and 11 and on Apple Silicon Mac, with the file kept on your local drive and no cloud upload required.

Every document in its own window
Separate windows, not tabs. Open the drawing set and the spec and each gets its own window to place on its own monitor.
Multi-monitor aware, layout remembered
Ncored remembers each window's size and position and your recent files, so your two-screen layout comes back next session.
Works with OS window snapping
Snap a window to half a screen with Win+Left or Win+Right on Windows, or use window tiling on macOS.
A full viewer and full markup in every window
Thumbnail sidebar, keyboard page navigation, presentation mode and dark mode, plus pen, shapes, revision cloud, highlight, text, comments and your own image stamp.
Heavy CAD sets stay smooth
50-200 MB+ project sets from AutoCAD, Revit, and ArchiCAD stay smooth on scroll, zoom, pinch and pan in each window.

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Ncored compared to Acrobat, Foxit and Bluebeam on two monitors

Adobe Acrobat is native on Windows and Mac but opens documents as tabs in one window by default, so two drawings on two monitors means changing the open-as-tabs preference or opening a new window and dragging it across, and it slows on heavy files, taking 8 to 12 seconds to open a 50-200 MB+ set before you scroll. Foxit PDF Editor keeps documents in a single window unless you allow multiple instances. Bluebeam Revu is Windows-only and tab-based, so you detach a tab into its own window first. Bluebeam also has a Synchronize Views mode that locks two panes to scroll and zoom together; Ncored does not do synchronized pan and zoom across windows, so this page is about placing separate documents on separate monitors, not linked scrolling between them. Where Ncored differs is the default: one window per document from the start, no preference to hunt for, multi-monitor aware, and built so a heavy set stays smooth once it is open. Individual experiences may vary depending on hardware, monitor setup and file structure.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I put the drawing set on one monitor and the specification on the other?
Yes. Each document opens in its own window, so open the drawing set and the specification, then drag one window to each monitor. You can snap each to half a screen with Win+Left and Win+Right on Windows, or with window tiling on macOS. The same applies to reviewing an architectural set against a structural set: open both files and put one on each screen.
Does Ncored remember my two-screen layout?
Yes. Ncored is multi-monitor aware and remembers each window's size and position along with your recent files, so when you reopen those documents they come back on the monitors and at the sizes you left them.
Can Ncored compare two revisions of a sheet or overlay them to find changes?
Not automatically today. Ncored does not have a side-by-side comparison or overlay-difference tool yet; automated document and revision comparison is on the roadmap based on customer requests. What you can do now is open each revision in its own window, place them on two monitors, and page through them yourself to eyeball the differences. If you need machine-detected change highlighting, that is not something Ncored does at this time.
Does Ncored synchronize scrolling and zoom between the two windows?
No. Each window scrolls, zooms and pans on its own. There is no linked or synchronized view mode, so moving one window does not move the other. This page is about reviewing different documents next to each other, one per monitor, not locking two views together.
Do I need to change a setting to get separate windows?
No. Separate windows are the default in Ncored, not a preference you have to enable, so opening a second document already gives you a second window to move to a second monitor. It works the same on a two-monitor Windows 11 workstation and on an Apple Silicon Mac, and heavy 50-200 MB+ CAD sets stay smooth in each window.