[Centa]

Almost a month and a half ago, I noticed a vertical red line that ran from top to bottom on my laptop screen. Now I am seeing a vertical blue line in addition to the red vertical line. When I press down on the top of the screen the blue line disappears but comes back seconds later. They are not on the screen during start-up. They appear and stay visible once the desktop begins to load. I have a Compaq Presario C700 Generic PnP Monitor. Can you help me?! Is there some kind of diagnostic test I can do to resolve this problem? If you need more information please feel free to e-mail me.

Additional stuff: I notice that the lines sort of fade when they are on top of a white background. For example, while I'm writing this forum, I can see the red thin vertical line going through the blue and gray site navigation pane up top, but I can not see it inside of this text box (because the text box is white). Sounds weird I know.

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Try a different monitor first. If the problem doesnt exist in the new monitor, your monitor is shot. If it does, your video card is bad.

[diabillic]

Try a different monitor first. If the problem doesnt exist in the new monitor, your monitor is shot. If it does, your video card is bad.

[Centa]

Try a different monitor first. If the problem doesnt exist in the new monitor, your monitor is shot. If it does, your video card is bad.

Wouldn't I need to buy a cable to hook an external monitor? If so, I cant pay for that right now. Is there anything else I can do?

[rshaffer61]

Can you borrow a friends monitor?
Go to a friends house and hook the desktop monitor to your laptop and start the laptop.
If problem still happens then it is most likely the video chip in the laptop. If it does not happen then it is most likely the laptop screen.

[geekman4]

Can you borrow a friends monitor?
Go to a friends house and hook the desktop monitor to your laptop and start the laptop.
If problem still happens then it is most likely the video chip in the laptop. If it does not happen then it is most likely the laptop screen.

hi rshaffer

if laptop screen is bad ..then do I hv to get it repaired ? If yes then how much 'll it cost to me ?

or driver update 'll help me out ?

or

I could connect my laptop output to my monitor and carry on ?

Please suggest...

[rshaffer61]

If the external monitor shows no problems then most likely you have a bad laptop monitor.
In that case the cost can vary depending on the shop you have it worked on.
In some cases the cost would be more then purchasing a new laptop.
If you have a reputable shop in your area it wouldn't hurt to give them a call or drop by and ask them for a ballpark figure.
If the issue still happens on the external monitor then we can look at a driver issue or maybe even a video chip issue.
Driver is something we can try to resolve. A video chip is something that IMO is something you would really need to consider purchasing a new laptop.

[geekman4]

Thanks rshaffer

in short u mean to say that in both the cases its my pocket which is going to have a bigggg hole ...right ?

One more comment from u : Atleast i should use it as such till the screen working fine.

If the external monitor shows no problems then most likely you have a bad laptop monitor.
In that case the cost can vary depending on the shop you have it worked on.
In some cases the cost would be more then purchasing a new laptop.
If you have a reputable shop in your area it wouldn't hurt to give them a call or drop by and ask them for a ballpark figure.
If the issue still happens on the external monitor then we can look at a driver issue or maybe even a video chip issue.
Driver is something we can try to resolve. A video chip is something that IMO is something you would really need to consider purchasing a new laptop.

[rshaffer61]

The only option that won't cost you anything is if the driver itself is the problem. Then we can find the driver or a newer version and try that.
If the laptop monitor is bad the cost could be anywhere from 199 to 400 USD to replace and install a new monitor.
If the video chip itself is damaged then IMO you should look at replacing the whole system.
If you can handle the lines and if you have tried a external monitor and getting the same results then yes I would continue to use it till you could afford a replacement system.
If you have tried a external monitor I would suggest doing so. That may tell us something and we might be able to resolve the problem.

[geekman4]

[quote name='rshaffer61' timestamp='1279543841' post='1872777']
The only option that won't cost you anything is if the driver itself is the problem. Then we can find the driver or a newer version and try that.


How & where to find driver ??

[123Runner]

We have ways to find the driver.
You need to test an external monitor 1st. That will guide us in to assisting you further.

To get the driver is going to be more work and we may not need it.