Sorry to be back so soon but is anyone else having problems with their monitor on Gameboomers.Com? I keep getting flashes. The screen goes black for just a split second, my post disappears, then it,s ok. Also the other day it kept signing me out, but that's not happening now.
Thanks,
Terri

Oops, it's not letting me post this. I'll keep trying.

No problems here at all, Terri.

The problem might be due to the extra graphics load from the Christmas decorations. If it's not happening at other sites, it's not your monitor that's the problem.

Got an update on my monitor situation. The other day when I connected my XP pc to this monitor (to check to see if it was my XP pc or it's monitor) my little helper inadvertently hooked up my Vista monitor to the CRT input on the back of the computer when we were finished checking out the XP problems. Exactly what problems is that going to cause my Vista pc and it's monitor? Hope this all makes sense.
Thanks,
Terri

You don't have a Vista monitor or a CRT input. You have a PC with the Vista operating system on it. You probably have a VGA interface on the back of your computer which is what the older CRT monitors had. My Veiw Sonic monitor has both a VGA input and the newer DVI input. DVI is digital and VGA is analog.

I don't know what brand your monitor is, but it doesn't matter whether you hook up the computer and the monitor with a VGA or a DVI cable. I have my Windows 7 computer connected with a DVI cable (which is the interface on the back of my video card on my computer) and my XP computer connected to the same monitor with a VGA cable (the video chip on the back of my XP computer has both a VGA and a DVI output connection).

I equally hope all THIS makes sense!

Hi Draclvr. I realize that I don't have a Vista monitor or computer. I thought that might be the easiest way to explain what was going on. I suppose I need to be very exact when posting. (we call our pc's the Vista or the XP)
Now, on the back of the computer we have DVI, HDMI and CRT. The monitor, which is a Hp, around two years old, was plugged into what I think was the CRT, it's yellow with many small holes in it and screws on both sides. That is not where it belonged. Oh, if VGA is on the back of the computer, I didn't see it.
Can hooking up the monitor improperly cause a problem or could it be from hooking up my Compaq PC to my HP monitor? My thought is this......perhaps the Compaq PC was the problem all along and it wasn't it's monitor at all.
Nothing technical makes sense to me. At least nothing about computers.
Thanks,
Terri

It is good to use the same terms to avoid confusion - which is not a long trip for me sometimes! There is such thing as a CRT interface.

This is a picture of a VGA and a DVI cable end with the VGA on the left. They are either male or female. This picture is of adapters, so there is one of each. The DVI can have more pins in it, but the shape is the same. VGA and DVI

If the video chip or card in the computer can run the resolutions supported by the monitor, it does not matter which interface you use.

If the monitor was the problem and did not work on your computer using the DVI connection, it would also not work on a computer using the VGA connection. If the monitor doesn't work, it won't work. There is the chance that the ports are the problem, but the issue would remain the same - something on the monitor is broken.

Hello again. Apparently I am not getting my thought across or asking the correct questions. So, I will just sit back and see what happens with my monitor or computer. I appreciate you trying to help me.
Thank you much,
Terri

I definitely get what you're asking! You are saying there is a connection on your computer that is called CRT. But there is no such thing - if you could plug a CRT monitor into it, it is a VGA connection. It's all about what those connections on the back of your computer are connected to inside - either your video card or the video chip on your motherboard. Just look at the shapes and compare to the picture I linked to. The VGA connection is a trapezoid and the DVI is more of a rectangle.

For instance, on my XP computer, I have a motherboard with a video chip which has both a VGA and a DVI connection. It does not matter whether I plug in an old CRT monitor with a VGA cable or a brand new monitor with a VGA cable - it will work.

Another point is that you cannot plug the wrong cable into the wrong connection on the back of your computer. They are different shapes and it is physically impossible.

Let me ponder this a while. However the cord running from my monitor, with a blue plug was plugged into the yellow trapazoid shape on the back of the computer. She showed me which one she first plugged it into and then screwed it down to tighten it. The monitor did not receive a signal at all, so it went to sleep. Actually now when the pc is turned on, many times there is a message on the monitor that something isn't getting a signal. Also sometimes when the pc is turned on it just basically sits there, lights on but the yellow light is not flashing on startup. Hopefully my daughter will be by today and can make sense of what we've done.

The colors aren't important - only the matching interfaces. Hopefully your daughter can figure it all out for you. I know she has been a great IT tech for you before. That's what my 88 year-old mom tells me, that she has her own personal IT department!

It will do that if the computer is off.


If the computer has connections for both a VGA and a DVI monitor, you might check your computer's Display Properties to make sure it's using the type of connection you're using as the default (which seems to be the VGA connection). The monitor may also be set to use Input 1 before Input 2. Monitors usually switch to the connection that has a signal automatically, but I've seen one where you had to press the button to switch to Input 2.

My View Sonic monitor has that feature - it's how I switch between my two computers when they're both on. It switches between the VGA and DVI inputs. But they both have to be one for that to come into play. If just one computer is on, that's the input that will be active.

Make sure that you are not connecting the monitor to 2 computers at the same time. To connect a monitor to 2 computers you need to use KVM Switch. A KVM Switch allows you to connect 2 computers to 1 keyboard and mouse and 1 monitor and select with the KVM switch and sometimes the keyboard the computer you want to use. Here is an example of a KVM switch.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3749674&Sku=A225-1286

With my old monitor, I had to use a KVM switch, but with my "new" (3 years old) View Sonic, I don't have to, Donald. As Jenny says, the monitor has a switch that allows me to switch between the VGA and the DVI interfaces. With both my computers on, all I have to do is press the button on the bottom of the monitor to switch between computers.