Alternating grey, red, green and blue screens

[Mothanne]

http://images.thetechguide.com/forum/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/rolleyes.gif\' class=\'bbc_emoticon\' alt=\':rolleyes:\' /> I'm glad to have found a forum. I hope someone can help me - I'm failrly computer illerate when it comes to hardware, programming and the like.

I was typing on a message board yesterday when sudden the screen just went black and the computer turned itself off. It was kind of strange and mildly shocking even. When I turned the computer back on there was a bright grey screen first and then it disappeared and was followed by a red one, then a green screen and then back to the gray one. This is all that happens - a slide show of four alternating colored screens. Completely weird.

Did I get some kind of cyber virus blast? Or did something fry? Help is appreciated. It's a Dell XPS, not the latest version and it was pin-modded always a little on the hot side. No money to fix since it is no longer under warranty (due to pin-modding). I don't know anything about pin-modding, it was like that when I got it.

Thanks!

[quick69gto]

The following link explains pin-modding:
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?...article=pin+mod

I suggest you, or someone that knows how, remove the pin-mod so the PC can reset itself back to factory speed.
The reason I am saying this is because you will need the warranty for this problem or pay for the fix yourself.

I'm pretty sure the over-clocking (pin-mod) fried the video (integrated or card).
At least that's where I would start.

Good luck!

[Mothanne]

[quote name=\'quick69gto\' post=\'391210\' date=\'Sep 24 2007, 02:03 PM\']The following link explains pin-modding:
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?...article=pin+mod

I suggest you, or someone that knows how, remove the pin-mod so the PC can reset itself back to factory speed.
The reason I am saying this is because you will need the warranty for this problem or pay for the fix yourself.

I'm pretty sure the over-clocking (pin-mod) fried the video (integrated or card).
At least that's where I would start.

Good luck![/quote]


Thanks much.  I know some tech people who can remove the pin-mid.  Unfortunately no warranty on the computer - that's why I'm trying to diagnose the problem so I can just order the part and have it fixed.  So you think I fried my video card?  Bummer.  I should have know better.  If the video card was fried, would it still be able to display those colors on the screen, the alternating blank screens of grey, red, green and blue?

Thanks so much for caring enough to respond.

[quick69gto]

I've seen video cards do weird stuff over the 10 years I've repaired PCs.
Part of the video card could be damaged causing the rest of the electronics on the card to be out of spec.
It will work but not like it's suppose to.
Borrow someones compatible video card, install it in your machine, and see if it corrects the problem.
If it does, then you know what to buy.

One thing you might want to try first is to hook up a monitor to the RGB output on the back of the laptop.
If it continues to alternate colors on the external monitor, then I would say swap out the video card.
If it works fine with a external monitor, then I would look at everything after the video card (LCD?).

It takes time and a process of elimination to figure out a malfunctioning PC.
Laptops are even more difficult. That's why most PC repair people have extra parts to find the malfunctioning one.

Good luck!

[Mothanne]

[quote name=\'quick69gto\' post=\'391382\' date=\'Sep 25 2007, 12:50 PM\']I've seen video cards do weird stuff over the 10 years I've repaired PCs.
Part of the video card could be damaged causing the rest of the electronics on the card to be out of spec.
It will work but not like it's suppose to.
Borrow someones compatible video card, install it in your machine, and see if it corrects the problem.
If it does, then you know what to buy.

One thing you might want to try first is to hook up a monitor to the RGB output on the back of the laptop.
If it continues to alternate colors on the external monitor, then I would say swap out the video card.
If it works fine with a external monitor, then I would look at everything after the video card (LCD?).

It takes time and a process of elimination to figure out a malfunctioning PC.
Laptops are even more difficult. That's why most PC repair people have extra parts to find the malfunctioning one.

Good luck![/quote]

Excellent idea to hook up an external monitor as a first test.  Thanks much.  I'll do that with my desktop.  http://images.thetechguide.com/forum/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/rolleyes.gif\' class=\'bbc_emoticon\' alt=\':rolleyes:\' />