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Is my monitor going bad?


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#1
sw619

sw619

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Hey guys. Recently (as in, as of an hour ago) my monitor has been acting strangely. It's hard to describe. The color on the screen would get messed up, as in it would get somewhat pixelated. I'd be able to browse and know what I'm looking at, though. Yet there would be pixelation on the text. I'd be able to read it, but parts of the letters would be missing.

To remedy this, I've tried resocketing my video card and unplugging and replugging in my monitor cable. When this didn't work, I tried resocketing it again, and it's working for now, but I wouldn't be too surprised if the screen gets messed up again.

I'm asking this question as more of a precaution, if my monitor does give this pixelation again. Is this one of the signs that I may need a new monitor. Is there an alternate explanation? Are there other signs I may need to look out for?

Thanks for reading.
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#2
Neil Jones

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This may be a sign of a video card on the way out. Monitors tend to last for years and years and years if looked after properly, video cards, again if looked after well can have a life of many years, however due to normal usage and heat from other components an average life-span is 3-5yrs.
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#3
sw619

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Thanks for the reply. Something else developed that I think is worth mentioning.

So when I turned on my computer this morning, it had the same problem. Parts of the screen were pixelated. So I tried turning off my monitor, waiting a few seconds, and then turning it back on. It was still a little pixelated, so I tried turning it off and back on again, and it's fine now (UPDATE: No it's not. It was fine for about fifteen minutes, and it started getting pixelated again. I've tried turning it off and turning it back on, but it hasn't been working as well.) Given this, it seems more like a monitor-based problem. Or can it still be the video card? (UPDATE #2: I've taken a screenshot of my desktop to show you what it looks like. From what I can tell, it seems like the pixelation is captured in the screenshot [or maybe it's only on my screen], so perhaps it is the video card after all. Because when you screenshot, doesn't it look to the video card for the image and not the monitor? Anyway, here it is: http://img207.images...9/screenqf0.jpg )

Edited by sw619, 26 August 2007 - 02:47 PM.

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#4
Neil Jones

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If that pixellation was captured when you pressed PRINT SCREEN, then its definitely a video card problem.
When you do Print Screen, it takes a copy of what is on the screen at the time from Windows' point of view - that is, what it is putting out to your monitor. Therefore the problem exists before it gets to your monitor so its a graphics card problem.
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#5
sw619

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Thanks for the help! Yeah, apparently it was the video card. Luckily, I managed to find a spare lying around, so I switched it out, and it works fine now.

Thanks again. :whistling:
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