A charge detection mass spectrometer, comprising: a display monitor, an electrostatic linear ion trap, ELIT , or orbitrap, a source of ions configured to supply ions to the ELIT or orbitrap, at least one amplifier (CP) having an input operatively coupled to the ELIT or orbitrap, means configured to control operation of the charge detection mass spectrometer in real time, at least one processor operatively coupled to the ELIT or orbitrap and to an output of the at least one amplifier (CP), and at least one memory having instructions stored therein which, when executed by the at least one processor , cause the at least one processor to (i) control the ELIT or orbitrap as part of an ion trapping event to attempt to trap therein a single ion supplied by the ion source , (ii) record ion measurement information based on output signals produced by the at least one amplifier (CP) over a duration of the ion trapping event, (iii) determine, based on the recorded ion measurement information, whether the control of the ELIT or orbitrap resulted in trapping therein of a single ion, of no ion or of multiple ions, (iv) compute at least one of an ion mass and an ion mass-to-charge ratio based on the recorded ion measurement information only if a single ion was trapped in the ELIT or orbitrap during the trapping event, (v) repeatedly execute (i) - (iv), (vi) construct, in real time, a histogram of the computed ones of the at least one of the ion mass and the ion mass-to-charge ratio for each of a plurality of different ion trapping events following each determination that the control of the ELIT or orbitrap resulted in trapping therein of a single ion and subsequent computation of the one of the at least one of the ion mass and the ion mass-to-charge ratio, and (vii) control the display monitor to display construction of the histogram in real time. a display monitor, an electrostatic linear ion trap, ELIT , or orbitrap, a source of ions configured to supply ions to the ELIT or orbitrap, at least one amplifier (CP) having an input operatively coupled to the ELIT or orbitrap, means configured to control operation of the charge detection mass spectrometer in real time, at least one processor operatively coupled to the ELIT or orbitrap and to an output of the at least one amplifier (CP), and at least one memory having instructions stored therein which, when executed by the at least one processor , cause the at least one processor to (i) control the ELIT or orbitrap as part of an ion trapping event to attempt to trap therein a single ion supplied by the ion source , (ii) record ion measurement information based on output signals produced by the at least one amplifier (CP) over a duration of the ion trapping event, (iii) determine, based on the recorded ion measurement information, whether the control of the ELIT or orbitrap resulted in trapping therein of a single ion, of no ion or of multiple ions, (iv) compute at least one of an ion mass and an ion mass-to-charge ratio based on the recorded ion measurement information only if a single ion was trapped in the ELIT or orbitrap during the trapping event, (v) repeatedly execute (i) - (iv), (vi) construct, in real time, a histogram of the computed ones of the at least one of the ion mass and the ion mass-to-charge ratio for each of a plurality of different ion trapping events following each determination that the control of the ELIT or orbitrap resulted in trapping therein of a single ion and subsequent computation of the one of the at least one of the ion mass and the ion mass-to-charge ratio, and (vii) control the display monitor to display construction of the histogram in real time. <EOS>