# Monitor shows Vertical lines..help!!



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

hey guys.. i recieved my dell E521 just 2 days ago , i have a 19in monitor my problem is that.. if my dont t ouch my computer and leave it on for like.. 4-5 hours, the screen turns black and there are like stripes of colorful vertical lines.. i dont know what the problem is?? i called dell.. and they didnt know what the problem was .. -_- please help!


----------



## Keith22 (Apr 18, 2007)

Have you made sure that your display drivers are fully updated? Im not 100% sure that somthing like out-dated drivers could cause such a thing, ive never heard about it before but its worth a shot.


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

could it really be outdated drivers?? ijust got the computer


----------



## Keith22 (Apr 18, 2007)

alot of the time you will get hardware and the drivers that come with it are completely out of date. It happend with my ATI video card and i had major problems with it untill i got newer more stable drivers. Im not sure how Dell works there updating system but i would DEFINATELY check and see if there up to date! Do you need directions on how to do this?


----------



## Flags (Sep 9, 2001)

When you get that striped screen, what do you do to bring the PC back to life?


----------



## Bob Cerelli (Nov 3, 2002)

To figure out if it is the video card or monitor, can you swap with a known working monitor.


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

yes i need directions on how to do it keith!.. and i 2nd Flags question.. how do u bring the Pc back to life when its showing the striped screen? most of the time i jus press the power button to turn off my comp with everything running and i think its hurting my comp.


----------



## Bob Cerelli (Nov 3, 2002)

Another easy way to see if the drivers are the problem is boot to safe mode. Then is uses the generic VGA drivers instead. If the problem remains, it isn't the drivers.


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

ithink i know why it does that... i tried to set it on lowest resolution, and when i did that.. everything isfine! this only happens when i set my comp on highest resolution..1280x1024


----------



## Flags (Sep 9, 2001)

Noob: Do you know what the native resolution of your 19" Monitor is? 
Perhaps setting it to 1280x1024 is out of normal parameters.
Your users manual should tell you the native resolution. Hell, Dell should have told you this when you takled to them.
Another thing, next time it messes up, instead of just powering down, try Ctrl+Alt+Delete to see if it brings up TaskMaster and shut down from there. If you cant get the TM, you have no other choice but to Power down.


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

blah, i guess the 1280x1024 really wasnt the problem.. cuz it just happened again wen i got home from school.. this is makin me mad!! also the ctrl,alt,delete doesnt bringanything up  i have the ATI radeon x1300 pro btw..


----------



## Bob Cerelli (Nov 3, 2002)

So what were the results of either booting to safe mode or switching with a known working monitor. If you do switch, make sure the new monitor is capable of handling whatever screen size is selected.


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

the prob is i dont have another monitor rite now


----------



## Bob Cerelli (Nov 3, 2002)

And what about the other suggestion?


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

i will deff. do that later cuz it takes bout a few hours for it to happen.. but how do i update my drivers anyway??


----------



## Bob Cerelli (Nov 3, 2002)

It was to boot to safe mode. Then you don't use the drivers.

Actually the drivers are the least likely of the source of the problem. They don't cause a monitor to start to fail like that after 4-5 hours. There would be problems right away.

A more common source of the problem is either a defective monitor or video card. That's why I wanted you to try swapping with a known working monitor first. It's generally a quick way to determine the source. 

Even booting to safe mode isn't likely to tell all that much. But then you can at least get the driver issue resolved.


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

I did the safe mode thing.. and the Lines didnt show up.. but the screensaver didnt work and it was showing this "Screensaver could not run because it requires a newer video card or one compatible with direct3D...please!! someone help!!


----------



## Bob Cerelli (Nov 3, 2002)

Did you wait the 4-5 hours?


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

well i guess i kinda exaggerated a bit earlier.. it takes only about 3-4 hours for it to happen.. and i did wait the 3 hrs... i even called dell and they dont know what to do!


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

bump??


----------



## Bob Cerelli (Nov 3, 2002)

So have you tried any of the previous suggestions:

1. Upgrading drivers.
2. Swapping with a known working monitor

Another one would be to swap with a known working video card


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

yea i dont have another monitor... but i DID do the upgrades.. and no luck..i have windows Windows Vista btw..


----------



## Bob Cerelli (Nov 3, 2002)

Well if you have the latest video drivers and they aren't working then there aren't too many other options left.

Suppose you could just try and double check lowering the resolution to something like 1024x768 and with a moderate refresh rate of 75 hz. But if that doesn't work it again appears to be hardware related.

You can also take it to a computer repair shop to see what they can determine if you don't have another monitor to test with.


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

ok.. i think i kinda fixed the prob.. but i kinda didnt lol. I went to the ATI website.. and downloaded the driver from there.. for ATI,Radeon,Windows Vista.. after i downloaded and went to Display Settings, it says Dell E197FP on Radeon X1300/x1550 Series..but there are no more vertical lines anymore ... the thing IS, i bought the comp with a Radeon X1300 Pro..


----------



## Bob Cerelli (Nov 3, 2002)

So now you did download newer drivers and it is working? Have you waited the 4-5 hours to be certain. There have been a couple of false alarms along the way.


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

yeah . Now.. instead of Vertical lines comin up.. the monitor just goes in its standby mode ( go black) and wen i move the mouse, it goes bak to my desktop screen.. but the thing is, the display seetings is on Dell E197FP on Radeon X1300/x1550 Series ... wen my video card is radeon x1300 PRO.. is this alright?


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

anyoneee??


----------



## ForumNoob (Apr 10, 2007)

since i already have this topic.. and i dont wana s tart a new thread.. Can someone tell me why when i watch videos online.. for example Youtube.. the videos SKIP?? and dont play smoothly..


----------

