Please help computer buffs

[socialparasite]

Hey this might not belong here but i need some serious help. My computer is running fine but sometimes my screen will get all these rainbow colors on it (lines ) were i cant see anything. I have to resart everytime it happens. I can go a day without it happening then it will happen several times :confuse: I may be wrong but is this my video card or monitor or neither? The moniter is a little old but i dont think that is the case since it runs fine and all the color is normal. Is it the video card? Your help would be appreciated. I have tried to troubleshoot online but i have not found anything yet. Sorry mods for putting this here but its not a normal computer question music related.

[The_Joker]

I wish i could help ya but im not exactly a computer whiz, sounds like what magnets do to ur screen exept if it were magnets it owuldent be a matter of turnign off your pc it would be more serious.

[FadedCayenne]

^ it's not magnets.

are you on a laptop? mine used to do that b/c of lose wires. if not, i'm not so great w/ desktops. still might be wiring. is everything well pluged in w/ the mass of cords under your desk?

[pagodas_fiesta]

I'm assuming it's a CRT monitor, yes? I think it actually would be a magnetism problem. I'm not an expert on CRTs but my friend is always "de-magnetizing" his screen by pressing some button. The screen gets all twisted and rainbow-y and then returns to normal. I could be wrong if I'm not picturing the same thing that youre describing though.

[BASSMAN]

I will leave it up here in open mic for a time. I would suggest sending a PM to Keith. He is really knowledgable about computors.

[BASSMAN]

I'm assuming it's a CRT monitor, yes? I think it actually would be a magnetism problem. I'm not an expert on CRTs but my friend is always "de-magnetizing" his screen by pressing some button. The screen gets all twisted and rainbow-y and then returns to normal. I could be wrong if I'm not picturing the same thing that youre describing though.

Magnets will cause that sort of problem. I had a set of speakers on top of my entertainment center and they did that to my televison screen.

[CyberCobre]

Degauss your monitor, number one.

Do NOT have any speakers around your monitor, 2

Check the connections, first and foremost. Most computer problems are a loose connection.

Find your drivers (both monitor and vid - one at a time (do vid first)), place them in the recycle bin but DO NOT FLUSH. Then, replace those drivers with a fresh set from your OS disc or your hardware disc. That will PROBABLY DO THE TRICK. Drivers get corrupted.

Not UNTIL YOU ARE SURE that the new drivers are working absolutely do you flush your recycle bin. (Personally, I always save an extra copy of all my drivers, stashing them on a slave drive. If you don't have a slave drive storage or..., simply rename them.

Check that no mice, etc., have compromised the cords. A nice sonic mouse repeller plugged into a wall socket in your computer room (Get 'em at Ace Hardware or....) is a must. No more mice in the house. (IF YOU HAVE RODENTS AS PETS, DO NOT USE THESE)

Pop the cover on your box and reset your video card. They do get jostled for no apparent reason sometimes (a truck driving by is enough vibration sometimes.)


My fast two cents worth.

[gavb]

It could be your graphics card, mine started doing that when I overclocked it, just get colored lines accross the screen and I would have to reboot allthough this tends to force your PC to restart somtimes on its own, so it might not be that.

[Keith]

This sounds like a Vid card issue. One thing to check, is when it happens again, restart just the monitor.
If it's still the same, and you have to reboot the computer to resolve it, then it's a hardware problem. As CC mentioned, check cables and update drivers for the vid card.
I think it may be overheating. Take the case off, disconnect the power cord, touch the casing to ground yourself, and have a look at the card. Make sure it's seated and not loose.Clean any fans using air( you can buy a can of pressurised air from Radio Shack).
In fact, clean everything.

[stratman50th]

I agree with Keith. It sounds like hardware more than software, (drivers). I'll say the same as above. Take a systematic approach in your diags: Monitor First, Turn it on then off. If it's still there, check the monitor's connection to the video card. Sometimes the cable will work loose. Remove the cable connection completely from the card (back connection) and re-seat. If you still have a problem, turn of the PC and remove, then re-seat your video card. Sometimes they'll creep out of their bus slot. Worst case is I think a bad video card.
Degaussing the monitor (that's the button your friend pushes just realigns the guns. This will clear a problem from a magnetic field, but that doesn't sound like your problem. Do these things one at a time and test. If you do everything at once you won't be able to diagnose the real problem.

[Its_Me]

Its a fault in the video memory in your video card. I used to see this a lot when I worked in tech support. Obviously if turning your monitor off and on sorts it then I am wrong but from what your saying I dont think it will.

[socialparasite]

I'm assuming it's a CRT monitor, yes? I think it actually would be a magnetism problem. I'm not an expert on CRTs but my friend is always "de-magnetizing" his screen by pressing some button. The screen gets all twisted and rainbow-y and then returns to normal. I could be wrong if I'm not picturing the same thing that youre describing though.



ITs a desktop and it is a CRT. I wonder how in the world i would de-magnetize if thats the problem. Can you ask your friend and i will give it a shot. I am going to open my case tonight and make sure everything looks connected and clean.

[socialparasite]

Degauss your monitor, number one.

Do NOT have any speakers around your monitor, 2

Check the connections, first and foremost. Most computer problems are a loose connection.

Find your drivers (both monitor and vid - one at a time (do vid first)), place them in the recycle bin but DO NOT FLUSH. Then, replace those drivers with a fresh set from your OS disc or your hardware disc. That will PROBABLY DO THE TRICK. Drivers get corrupted.

Not UNTIL YOU ARE SURE that the new drivers are working absolutely do you flush your recycle bin. (Personally, I always save an extra copy of all my drivers, stashing them on a slave drive. If you don't have a slave drive storage or..., simply rename them.

Check that no mice, etc., have compromised the cords. A nice sonic mouse repeller plugged into a wall socket in your computer room (Get 'em at Ace Hardware or....) is a must. No more mice in the house. (IF YOU HAVE RODENTS AS PETS, DO NOT USE THESE)

Pop the cover on your box and reset your video card. They do get jostled for no apparent reason sometimes (a truck driving by is enough vibration sometimes.)


My fast two cents worth.



Thanks cyber and to everyone else that replied. I just downloaded the new drivers 2 days ago and it has only happened once. I do however have a 5.1 sound system around my computer but it has always been there for the past 3 years. I will move it away and see if that helps as well. Thanks again everyone and keith that was some good insight about testing my monitor when it happens again. :)

[Keith]

I don't believe that the S/S would cause this SP.. You would have a constant "color draw" on your monitor. Meaning the colors would be pulled in the direction of the nearest speaker. And most decent speaker casings are sheilded, so I can't see it doing that. But!! I have been known to be wrong from time to time ;)
I still have a feeling that the card is overheating. Its Me maybe correct as well. If the card overheats, it deteriorates the memchip. Voltage drops and you get all kinds of funky stuff.
I'm also wondering if the PSU might have some bearing on this?.
As I said before, take the case off, and blow out any dust that has built up.
If you can, take the case off with everything running, and have a look to see if the fans are all turning. In some cases, a clogged fan anywhere in the system will overheat the internals.. Ive seen it far too many times in my days of working on other peoples computers.
Do you know what vid card you are running?

[StockLX]

Yeah just do the basics.
make sure no magnetized objects are next to your monitor.
degauss it
try turning it off and on.
check the connections, and also the cable (seen monitor cables go funky lots of times).
Power down , remove the video card and replace it. make sure its in there good (sometimes you really gotta shove it in).
Reinstall your video card drivers and monitor driver.

If none of that works, buy a new video card. (if you have a high performance card, you may want to set the driver back to its default setting as well).

as said earlier, most likely its a memory problem onboard of the video card. but do the basics first and you'll find your problem eventually.

Another thing i have seen happen:
Random access memory for the system develops a bad register , and causes this to happen as well. Alot of low end video cards use a portion of system memory. Make sure nothing is wrong with your systems memory as well.

Get some video card benchmark software and run it, see what happens (this will test most of the functionality of the video card). If it does the same thing again, youve found your problem.

Good luck.

[Rising_diablo]

I think it could either be wiring is messed up inside the moniter, the cord to the moniter from the PC is messed up or you need a new moniter.

If it was magnets it would be constant, not just on and off.

[socialparasite]

Thanks for the help guys it was the video card i replaced it last night now i am back to good :toohappy: