LCD dead after Win 98 upgrade

I'm working on a Compaq Presario 1210 laptop(old). The owner upgraded from Win95 to Win98. On the final reboot the lcd screen stayed blank and the system started. The owner insists that this is a Win98 installation issue but I feel that the lcd is dead. I plugged in an external crt monitor and that works fine with the laptop. I checked the display adaptor settings and they seemed to be ok. They are set to use either built in lcd or external monitor. I tried using the hot keys to switch modes. With the external monitor working, I hit the hot keys and the adaptor seemed to switch to the built in lcd but the screen remained blank. I don't know if there is a setting somewhere that I have missed or not. The battery is completely dead so I tried removing that to see if that was causing any problems but that did not make a difference. I didn't really figure it would but I figured it was worth a try. I would appreciate any assistance that you could give me with this. Thank You

 

I haven't tried a different driver but I will. Isn't it true that the adaptor driver does not load until after the Windows 98 splash screen appears. I can see there being a problem after that pint but not during the POST and initialize processes. By this I mean that a basic driver is used from the BIOS maybe until Windows loads the driver that is specifically designed for the adaptor. I'm not exactly sure how this whole process works but I do know that you can boot a computer that has no OS and still see the POST on the screen. I will try a different driver and post back. Thank you for your response.

 

I tried reinstalling the drivers for the monitor and display adapter. No luck. Not sure what else to try.

 

One way to help determine if it is a driver issue or the LCD itself is whether you see anything before the operating system loads.

For example, if you see it counting memory or can boot with a DOS boot disk and see the screen, the likely it is a driver issue. Try booting to safe mode and see what happens.

If you don't see anything before the OS loads, then likely it is the LCD.

 

This might sound like an odd fix...,but it could possibly work and takes little time. Try discharging the capacitors.

1.) Turn the laptop off.
2.) Remove the ac adapter and the battery from the laptop.
3.) Hold the power button in for 30 seconds.
4.) Replace AC power only.

If this works you can try replacing the battery afterward.

Let me know if this was able to help you. Like I said...it sounds off...,but you would not believe how many stranger problems I've seen this fix with laptops.

- David Piccolo
www.covenant-online.com

 

The screen shows absolutely no sign of life. Itried unplugging it and removing the battery, then held the power button for 1 minute. No luck. I think it is dead. Thank You all for your replies. You were very helpful and I will visit this site again.