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First Aid for Your LCD

LCDs are easier to maintain than CRTs, but they still break on occasion. Here are two common problems related to LCDs, and how to fix them.

Blank screen: If the Power On light is illuminated but there's no picture, check the connection between the device and your PC to make sure it's receiving a video signal. If the cable is snug at both ends, connect a different monitor to your PC to ensure that both the cable and the PC's graphics card are good. If the second monitor shows an image, the backlight in your LCD may be dead (this is the most common cause of failure). A local computer shop can replace your backlight--or, if you're savvy, you can replace it yourself, although finding the right backlight and doing the actual replacement can be difficult. Before you go this route, research prices to determine whether buying a new display wouldn't be more cost effective.

Permanently pesky pixels: Most LCD manufacturers expect some bad pixels in their products and require a certain number of bad pixels--typically between three and ten--before they even consider the display defective. Check your LCD for bad pixels immediately after you connect the display for the first time. If you don't like what you see, try to exchange the monitor for a new one--in some cases, though, you may not be able to do so. Read about LCD vendors' dead-pixel return policy in Eric Dahl's "20 Things They Don't Want You to Know" feature from last October.

Send your tips and questions to kirk_steers@pcworld.com. We pay $50 for published items. Kirk Steers is a PC World contributing editor and the author of PC Upgrading and Troubleshooting QuickSteps from McGraw-Hill/Osborne Press.