alex wrote:
My dad has a 19" pc monitor (4 years old)(not sure of the brand, or
model). It has started to act very strangely when the computer is
starting up and does the same thing at shut down. When windows is
going through all it's warm up proceedures the monitor is black except
for a vertical band about four inches wide. in this band the monitor
displays the normal (but distorted) warm up items (text, graphics...),
then the desktop is visible and the screen is slightly compressed on
the sides (looks like an hourglass), this goes away after a few
minutes of use. when the monitor/computer is warmed up it acts
normaly. at shut down it goes back to the four inch vertical band. If
the computer is restarted after it's all warmed up it still goes
through this process.

Any ideas on how to fix it, or whether it's cost effective to do so?

thanks.

Try changing the screen resolution/refresh rate to the mode used during
boot. You'll probably get the same thing. Sounds like something
squirly in the mode change circuitry, bad cap, bad switch fet.
If it were mine, I'd leave the monitor off until the computer
stabilizes. Can't be good for it to run with the narrow band.
mike

--
Return address is VALID.
Bunch of stuff For Sale and Wanted at the link below.
Toshiba & Compaq LiIon Batteries, Test Equipment
Honda CB-125S $800 in PDX
TEK Sampling Sweep Plugin and RM564
Tek 2465 $800, ham radio, 30pS pulser
Tektronix Concept Books, spot welding head...
http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Monitor/4710/