[SLUG] Monitor reliability vs. videocard reliability
Hi, One of the kids got enthusiastic and thumped the table our PC is on. Now, every month or so, the video fails. Eventually it comes back on (could be next day). Meanwhile, everything else keeps working AFAIK. It's a BenQ monitor connected by DVI but by the time you replace the DVI cable with VGA it works again. Machine and monitor are both about 18 months old. Because of the location, swapping cards, monitors or anything else would be a nuisance. My feeling is that the intermittent fault is more likely to be in the monitor. Comments, please? Jim Donovan -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
Re: [SLUG] Monitor reliability vs. videocard reliability
Jim Donovan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > One of the kids got enthusiastic and thumped the table our PC is on. > Now, every month or so, the video fails. Eventually it comes back on > (could be next day). Meanwhile, everything else keeps working AFAIK. > > It's a BenQ monitor connected by DVI but by the time you replace the > DVI cable with VGA it works again. > > Machine and monitor are both about 18 months old. > > Because of the location, swapping cards, monitors or anything else > would be a nuisance. Get ready to suffer ... > My feeling is that the intermittent fault is more likely to be in the > monitor. ... because it is more likely to be a loose card or cable connection than a fault in the monitor. More importantly, /you/ can fix a loose connection, but not a broken monitor. So, bite the bullet, pull the hardware out, and then carefully disconnect, clean[1] and reconnect or reseat all the components from the video card through to the monitor. Then, if the problem persists you can go and buy a new monitor, possibly with the proceeds of selling the child in question on the black market. ;) Regards, Daniel Footnotes: [1] If, you know, there is dust or whatever to move on. -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
Re: [SLUG] Monitor reliability vs. videocard reliability
I vote for loose cable above everything else. The DVI cables are big and heavy and unless screwed in tight will come dislodged relatively easily. I recommend shutting down the PC before securing things. Modern cases with their easy mount brackets make it very easy to dislodge expansion cards when adjusting the cables that are connected to them. Not something you want to do with a running PC. Ben On Wed, Oct 1, 2008 at 3:25 PM, Jim Donovan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Hi, > > One of the kids got enthusiastic and thumped the table our PC is on. > Now, every month or so, the video fails. Eventually it comes back on (could > be next day). Meanwhile, everything else keeps working AFAIK. > > It's a BenQ monitor connected by DVI but by the time you replace the DVI > cable with VGA it works again. > > Machine and monitor are both about 18 months old. > > Because of the location, swapping cards, monitors or anything else would be > a nuisance. > > My feeling is that the intermittent fault is more likely to be in the > monitor. > > Comments, please? > > Jim Donovan > -- > SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ > Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html > -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
