Question So my dad's desktop monitor stopped working the other day and was giving us the "no signal detected" problem. I troubleshooted some basic steps such as checking other monitors to see if they work, changing the cable, and re-seating the video card.
When I changed our dvi cable for a vga cable, the problem changed a bit. We now had a connection, but what we were seeing was bad news. It now partially displays what is normally seen on startup, in between verticle lines that are wavy mixed with blocks of different colored squares that have different symbols on them (arrows or letters). This persists until windows boots up, which at this point the monitor returns to a no signal.
So I tried doing some other troubleshooting tips that were a bit more extreme: I reseated and blew out the air in my power supply as well as my heatsink and fan on my cpu, and I ensured that the thermal paste has not dried up yet. I also re-seated the RAM at this point. Still no change in the problem.
Any ideas? The video card is an nvidia geforce 6600 agp8x and I've re-seated it numerous times to no avail.
The video card is an nvidia geforce 6600
Answer Get some canned air - 2 cans
unplug the monitor and computer.
Use canned air to blow out all the vent holes of the monitor.
Leave it unplugged for about 1 day.
Open the computer case. Use the canned air to blow out the computer. pay special attention to fans and the power supply - actually blow the air through the power supply vents on both sides.
After the day is up plug the monitor back in and use the buttons on the front to enter the monitor menu. Choose to reset or factory settings.
Hook it back up to the computer and boot the computer.
If the problem still occurs try the monitor on another computer or laptop (this way we can isolate if it is the monitor).
If the problem goes away by hooking it up elsewhere - replace the video card.
If the problem is still there after hooking the monitor up elsewhere, seek rpelacement through warranty or purchase a new one. Check newegg.com for best prices.
