Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.hardware (
More info?)
Ok, I'm actually having fun trying to figure this out, so don't worry
about venting at me
I just realized that it was my video card that
came with the DVI-VGA convertor and you probably did not get one. My
Dell 2001FP did not come with one either (I checked the box).
As for the CMOS and how to clear it. The simplest way is going to be
this. Open the case and look for a little battery. It will be a round
battery about the size of a quarter. Remove this battery for about 15
seconds and then plug it back in. Now try booting up and see if it
works. The CMOS stores information about what hardware is connected and
what to send signals to. Once you clear it, it "reinstalls" this
information. You do not lost any data on your computer and do not need
to reconfigure anything in Windows. Clearing the CMOS will reset all of
the settings in the BIOS.
The BIOS is a place where all of your hardware options are kept along
with your CPU Speed, Memory Amount and Speed, Power Configuration, and
Boot Sequence (as well as your system date and time which will need to
be set again after you clear the CMOS because it will reset it). You
should be able to reset all of the options in the BIOS to default
(usually F5, but look for that option). The only other thing you will
need to do is set the time in the BIOS as loading the default settings
will not be able to do this for you.
To get into the BIOS, you will press either the DEL key or F1 or F2.
When the Dell logo starts up, press escape and look for something that
says "Press XXX to enter Setup" or something similar to that (or after
you clear the CMOS, it may do that automatically).
As for the BIOS update, you are correct. There should be no need to
update as it was working before. I also doubt that there would be any
updates available as they are not released very often. They generally
add compatibility and fix problems with conflicting hardware. It was
just a thought
As for computer knowledge, I taught myself everything I know by reading
around in the Microsoft Knowledge Base (http://support.microsoft.com)
and mainly from reading Software/Hardware books or online articles. It
doesn't take very long and you are on your way when you start asking
questions
Hopefully we can figure this out, but I really think that
the BIOS is not signaling to the video card to start and this is the
cause of the whole problem. Either that, or one of your peices of
hardware's settings (such as CPU Speed, Memory Speed, etc.) was changed
and the computer can't handle that.
Nathan McNulty
Mark Tangard wrote:
> Hi Nathan,
>
> Thanks for sticking with this. I'm afraid it's still all frowns here.
>
> I was home only briefly (I travel), so all I had time for was to try
> connecting it with the DVI-VGA convertor. One problem: It didn't come
> with such a thing. (I kept everything; there are some unused cables &
> such, but not that.)
>
> About your other 2 suggestions:
>
> CMOS: I don't know what this is, how to "clear" it, or what, if
> anything, I might have to backup, rebuild, or un-lose if I did it. Can
> you elaborate or point me somewhere with instructions for the layperson?
>
> BIOS update: This term's almost equally greek to me, but even
> disregarding that, why would the PC or the monitor suddenly need an
> 'update' to handle this problem. The monitor worked one evening and
> didn't work the next morning, and nothing about either had been changed
> in any way for months. That said, if there's still a reason to mess
> with these things ("things" is all I know to call them), where do I begin?
>
> By way of explanation, I'm trying to avoid contacting Dell, because I've
> already had to speak with them twice on other issues, and both times the
> individual responding was far more ignorant than I, and clearly only
> there to serve as a void to speak into, not to assist. I don't mean to
> be venting at you, just explaining why I want to exhaust all other less
> demoralizing avenues first.
>
> Thanks for your continued help.
>
> Mark Tangard
>
>
> Nathan McNulty wrote:
>
>> Hmm, that's a good question. Can you try the DVI-VGA convertor that
>> came with the monitor to see if the monitor works in the VGA jack?
>> You may need to check on a BIOS update or contact Dell about this
>> issue. Also, did you get a chance to clear the CMOS? That was really
>> important. Hope everything works out, keep us posted and I'll keep
>> trying to help.
>>
>> Nathan McNulty
>>
>> Mark Tangard wrote:
>>
>>> Hi Nathan,
>>>
>>> I'd pretty much assumed it was the card, =except= that my old PC's
>>> analog monitor, plugged into the analog jack on the same card, works.
>>>
>>> I know very little about the mechanics of this. Is it possible for
>>> only *part* of a card to fail?
>>>
>>> TIA,
>>> Mark
>>>
>>> --
>>> Mark Tangard
>>> "Life is nothing if you're not obsessed." --John Waters
>>>
>>> Nathan McNulty wrote:
>>>
>>>> No POST, but the monitor displays the No Signal Detected when you
>>>> unplug it. Sounds like a video card problem. There are two
>>>> possibilities that I can think of. First is that the BIOS needs to
>>>> be reset. There may be some setting that was adjusted or isn't
>>>> working right. You will need to clear the CMOS for this. You may
>>>> have to read your User Manual to find how to clear the CMOS, there
>>>> may be a nice little button that says it right on it, or you can
>>>> remove that little flat battery on the motherboard for about 15
>>>> seconds and then put it back in. Hopefully that fixes the problem.
>>>> It will cause the BIOS to load the default settings. The other
>>>> possibility isn't so nice. It may be that your video card has gone.
>>>> It may be relaying the electricity which is why the monitor still
>>>> gets a signal, but it may not be able to render anything out. If
>>>> you have a spare video card, you can plug it in and see if that
>>>> works. Also, try plugging the monitor into another computer and see
>>>> if it works. Hopefully you have an extra or a friend has one you can
>>>> take it to
>>>>
>>>> Nathan McNulty
>>>>
>>>> Mark Tangard wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Nathan-
>>>>>
>>>>> I don't.
>>>>>
>>>>> Mark
>>>>>
>>>>> Nathan McNulty wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Just curious where you "read" that. Dell has, up until recently,
>>>>>> been only rebadging other companies LCD Displays. I have three
>>>>>> Dell displays and they are all great quality. I even have the LCD
>>>>>> in question here and I have to say it is the best LCD monitor I
>>>>>> have ever owned or seen. This thing's response time is excellent
>>>>>> and nothing looks better than gaming in 1600x1200. What can
>>>>>> happen though is if the refresh rate is set outside of the
>>>>>> monitor's capabilities, you can get a black screen. Also, if the
>>>>>> resolution is set too low.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I do have one question, and this is huge. Do you see the POST
>>>>>> screen (the startup where it shows the Dell logo)?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Nathan McNulty
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Yves Leclerc wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I read somewahere that DELL's LCD flat-panel could have a problem
>>>>>>> where the
>>>>>>> display completely shutdowns down the video display. I believe
>>>>>>> it stated
>>>>>>> that there is a problem with the Plug and Play firmware in the
>>>>>>> panel.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> "Jim Macklin" <p51mustang[threeX12]@xxxhotmail.calm> wrote in
>>>>>>> message
>>>>>>> news:uDCppqOZEHA.3752@TK2MSFTNGP12.phx.gbl...
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Boot to safe mode and reset the video resolution to the
>>>>>>>> default for the LCD, do it with the old monitor if
>>>>>>>> necessary. Check device manager to be sure that all the
>>>>>>>> display settings are "standard" because my guess is that
>>>>>>>> your rugrat was trying to tweak the display to a higher
>>>>>>>> resolution or refresh rate for his new game. It isn't
>>>>>>>> supported and the card fails at boot up.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Send cash. BTW, on a 6 month old Dell, they probably have
>>>>>>>> service at your home/business.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> 128 MB video is plenty for a mission critical business
>>>>>>>> computer, but your 6 year old wants a flat screen 21 inch
>>>>>>>> CRT and a 256 MB of VRAM, for the best 1600x1200 at 120 fps.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> --
>>>>>>>> The people think the Constitution protects their rights;
>>>>>>>> But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> "Mark Tangard" <Mark@RemoveThisToReply_Tangard.com> wrote in
>>>>>>>> message news:ueHSLhOZEHA.1652@TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl...
>>>>>>>> | Hi gang. I eat software for breakfast, but many
>>>>>>>> 6-year-olds grasp
>>>>>>>> | hardware issues (esp. video) better than I ever will, so
>>>>>>>> please bear
>>>>>>>> | with me if what follows sounds uninformed or even
>>>>>>>> hilarious.
>>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>>> | We have have a 6-month-old Dell running WinXP Pro with
>>>>>>>> Dell's 20-inch
>>>>>>>> | 2001FP flat-panel monitor and a 128MB NVidia GeForce 5200
>>>>>>>> graphics card.
>>>>>>>> | No big problems til yesterday morn, when the display
>>>>>>>> showed absolutely
>>>>>>>> | nothing (i.e., black screen) at bootup.
>>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>>> | No funny noises. No games in use. No other unusually
>>>>>>>> video-intensive
>>>>>>>> | apps. The monitor's power light is now amber. Not 100%
>>>>>>>> sure but I
>>>>>>>> | think it was green before yesterday. No programs recently
>>>>>>>> installed or
>>>>>>>> | uninstalled. No mishandling or problematic environmental
>>>>>>>> exposures.
>>>>>>>> | Gobs of HD space and 1GB of RAM. Everything has worked
>>>>>>>> well since
>>>>>>>> | January. Last night's shutdown was proper and uneventful,
>>>>>>>> as are
>>>>>>>> | virtually all here. The system doesn't hang at these
>>>>>>>> bootups (inserted
>>>>>>>> | music CDs play just fine.); you just can't see anything.
>>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>>> | Followed Dell's troubleshooting steps. With the monitor
>>>>>>>> disconnected we
>>>>>>>> | get the expectable floating colored boxes. On
>>>>>>>> reconnecting it, bootups
>>>>>>>> | return to the empty black screens. Connecting an older
>>>>>>>> analog monitor
>>>>>>>> | works fine in all senses (except the claustrophobia, of
>>>>>>>> course) and in
>>>>>>>> | that situation, Device Manager says the card is working
>>>>>>>> properly ... I
>>>>>>>> | guess at least the part of it the older monitor can see
>>>>>>>> is.
>>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>>> | Dell's troubleshooting guide asserts the monitor is fine
>>>>>>>> and says the
>>>>>>>> | problem lies in the controller or (their words) "the
>>>>>>>> computer system."
>>>>>>>> | I just love detailed explanations, duh.
>>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>>> | This is a mission-critical machine and sees a LOT of use.
>>>>>>>> I use it
>>>>>>>> | hours open day, so sending the whole system back to Dell,
>>>>>>>> which I expect
>>>>>>>> | is what they'll want for warranty service, is my last
>>>>>>>> resort and at this
>>>>>>>> | moment has all the appeal of the dry heaves. To my
>>>>>>>> exhausted brain the
>>>>>>>> | next logical choice is resignedly buying a new card.
>>>>>>>> Questions:
>>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>>> | - Can I pretty well assume this is a sick video card?
>>>>>>>> | - Is 128MB "enough" for this whale-sized monitor?
>>>>>>>> | (Occasionally a menu will persist after being
>>>>>>>> dismissed)
>>>>>>>> | - Anyone hear of recurring problems with this card?
>>>>>>>> | - Is the widely sold NVidia 5200 "Ultra" a different
>>>>>>>> (better?) card?
>>>>>>>> | - Is there another NG whose regulars are likely to know
>>>>>>>> what's up?
>>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>>> | Whoever helps fix this deserves a statue. Pls specify
>>>>>>>> stone or bronze.
>>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>>> | --
>>>>>>>> | Mark Tangard
>>>>>>>> | "Life is nothing if you're not obsessed." --John Waters
>>>>>>>> |
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>
>