About 2 weeks ago i was playing Warcraft and the screen went black, i was able to hit the windows key and return to the desktop and click on the game and continue. Over the last 2 weeks this has got worse to the point that it would happen whilst on the desktop, if i left it, it would flick back on and then off. Now when i start the computer i can see it loading but then goes black at the point where you would log in. Its not as black as if the monitor was off and there is still power going into it.

Tried so far;
Opening machine and making sure the graphics card (Nvidia 6800GS) is embedded correctly.
Ensured all wires are sucurely in.
Hooking the monitor up to a laptop (Still experienced the same problem)

I can start the machine in Safe mode and get to the desktop that way, and also in VGA mode...in each ive tried to increase the resolution by 1 incriment and when i click apply it goes off. So, it looks like it is struggling to display other than at the bare resolution.

Monitor - Acer AL1916W (18mths old)
Pentium P4 HT
1024mb Ram
XP Home

If i can supply any other information please let me know...any ideas on what is causing this and/or how i can resolve this issue would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Update:

Loading up in safe mode again i decided to hit no and go to system restore. Rolled it back to the 11th Jan, and restarted computer....to my amazement it worked, been able to access internet and i ran a game to see if it can handle the resolution...both worked fine. Like i said this has been a minor issue for the last 2 weeks, just last night it gave up on me.

Im still curious as to what this could be, what could the problem have been that a system restart has resolved? I'll keep checking on this post over the next week or so to see if anyone has an ideas.

Thanks in advance.

System Restore's purpose is to return your system to a workable state without requiring a complete reinstallation and without compromising your data files. The utility runs in the background and automatically creates a restore point when a trigger event occurs. Trigger events include application installations, AutoUpdate installations, Microsoft Backup Utility recoveries, unsigned- driver installations, and manual creations of restore points. The utility also creates restore points once a day by default.

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/l.../bb490854.aspx

Thanks for your response. I understand what th xsystem restore does, it's proved to be quite a useful tool on more than one occasion. But since i've not downloaded any drivers/patches or anything else to my knowledge in the last week then im stumped as to what could have caused my monitor to work only in safe mode on 2 machines, which would suggest it was monitor issue.

Hooking the monitor up to a laptop (Still experienced the same problem)


im stumped as to what could have caused my monitor to work only in safe mode on 2 machines, which would suggest it was monitor issue.

It sure does point to the monitor. You can always try a third computer to verify it fails there too. Or a second monitor on your computer - I suspect it will work fine.

My guess is the inverter is going on that monitor. According Acer, there's a 3-year warranty on that monitor. I suggest you send it in.

For more information, see Laptop Inverter Repair.

Monitor still working fine.

Managed to find invoice so was considering sending it back as its still under warranty (thanks for checking that out), but since its working now im reluctant to lose my monitor for a few weeks unless i have to. Looked into the inverter link and its way over my head, so i'd need to send it away.

Thanks again

Looked into the inverter link and its way over my head, so i'd need to send it away.

No shame in that! Replacing/repairing the inverter is something that should be left to the qualified technicians (and to someone beside you that you can hold accountable for collateral damage! )

Another method to verify this is a backlight issue is next time it goes black, shine a bright light into the monitor and look closely at the display - you should still see the computer's video output, just extremely dim. It could still be the florescent bulb that is powered by the inverter, but the bulbs themselves are typically very long lasting, leaving the inverter as the normal cause.