Monitor problem

10-year-old Microtec 815C monitor having A/C problems. Yesterday took plug
fiddling and source power (UPS) to get the power indicator light to come
on. This morning I gave up. Had same problem and replaced it temorarily
with a monitor from another system. Played with defective monitor with A/C
power strip switch. First worked sometimes but now not at all. Changed A/C
cord. Checked connection to monitor. No fuse I can see.

Seems kaput. Any suggestions before I junk it? Otherwise it works fine.

If I need to replace it what do you think? Buy another monitor? Buy another
Desktop and monitor (my XP ststem is about 10 years old - hate to buy it
another monitor)? Buy a laptop? Can't really afford any of these options
but still - got to get on Usenet!

TIA

--
You know it's time to clean the refrigerator
when something closes the door from the inside.

KenK wrote:

10-year-old Microtec ...

Microtec? Not Microtek?

... 815C monitor having A/C problems. Yesterday took plug
fiddling and source power (UPS) to get the power indicator light to come
on. This morning I gave up. Had same problem and replaced it temorarily
with a monitor from another system. Played with defective monitor with A/C
power strip switch. First worked sometimes but now not at all. Changed A/C
cord. Checked connection to monitor. No fuse I can see.

Seems kaput. Any suggestions before I junk it? Otherwise it works fine.

If I need to replace it what do you think? Buy another monitor? Buy another
Desktop and monitor (my XP ststem is about 10 years old - hate to buy it
another monitor)? Buy a laptop? Can't really afford any of these options
but still - got to get on Usenet!

TIA

"Monitor problem"
"A/C problem"
Those do not detail the problem.

"power indicator light to come on"
That's the extent of the problem? Probably not but we have to assume
the real problem is the monitor does not power on, not that just a light
doesn't come on.

"plug fiddling"
Does that mean the monitor did power up when you pushed the plug's
prongs in and out or around within the socket? In that case, you've got
a loose socket (doesn't grab the prongs) or its female prongs are bent
and the male prongs in the plug aren't sliding into the female but
perhaps pushing in on the outside of the female prongs and not touching
very well. You could have a socket problem. Try bending out the male
prongs on the cord plug and see if that makes better contact (until you
replace the socket).

"replaced the cord"
Does the power cord have a brick in the middle? According the following
online manual and a pic for a sale of one, yep, it does. That is the
A/C converter. Instead of putting it inside the device, they have it
outside in the cord. If you replaced just the wire-only cord in your
testing, the A/C brick was still present. If you ever felt them after
awhile of use, they get warm. They can go bad. For such an old
monitor, you won't likely find an exact replacement. Look at the label
to get the specs to find a suitable replacement.

http://tinyurl.com/oof2eqs
That's for your model, sold at eBay ($7).

Once the monitor has been switched on (even if it looks dead) and the OS
has been loaded from the HDD (give it time to boot), take a flashlight
and shine it up against the monitor. If you can see the Windows desktop
dimly lit by the flashlight, the monitor is working (it is trying to
display the video signal it gets) but the backlight lamps are burnt out
(or the power supply for them). LCDs work by opening/closing pixels to
allow light through (realigning the crystals so light is either blocked
or passed through). But there has to be a light source behind them to
have any light pass through them.

Wouldn't be a fuse but, when blown, it never thereafter lets any
electricity pass through it. You wouldn't be able to sometimes get the
monitor to power on. It would always be off. That's how a fuse works.
If instead you have a thermal fuse, it will pop when it heats up too
much because too many amperes are flowing through it. So does the
monitor stay on when you manage to get it powered up or does it stay on
only for a short time and them pop off and you have to push the reset on
the fuse or wait for a cool down period before the fuse resets?

What fuse were you looking at? The online manual for that monitor at
http://www.manualslib.com/manual/295...otek-815c.html doesn't
mention a user-accessible fuse (from the outside). I have had fusible
link fuses (the type where a flat thin bar burns out and breaks) that
still had a whisker filament left behind. That whisker was enough to
run the clock in a car radio but definitely not hefty enough to operate
the radio, especially with its amp for the speakers. I tested the fuse
with an ohmmeter and it read zero so it looked good. After a lot of
other testing (since the fuse looked good), I retested and visually
looked at the fuse link which looked burnt out but still read zero ohms.
Put in a different fuse, everything worked. Whevever you saw the fuse,
is it removable so you could try a replacement? Or is it soldered?

Did you plug another A/C device (e.g., table lamp) to test the socket
into which you plug the monitor is okay?

Switches do go bad. Maybe the power on/off switch on the monitor is
broken. You could open the case and short the switch (to emulate
pushing the switch on) to test. If that works, you probably won't find
a replacement switch so just solder a shorting wire (of sufficient gauge
for the monitor peak/surge load) across the switch's contacts to force
the monitor always on.

If your old computer does everything you want, is this problem just an
excuse for you wanting (not needing) to buy a whole new computer (system
unit and monitor)? Just replace the monitor if that's all that is
broke. You might find a cheapie on Craigslist. My aunt's old CRT was
fading out (had to turn brightness all the way up to see anything but
that also reduced contrast) so I got an used LCD from Craigslist that
was much richer in color, contrast, and correct brightness. Could've
gotten a one for $20 but decided to get a larger one for $30. Sellers
get bigger monitors so they sell off their old smaller ones.

Just remember that once the cash is passed to the Craigslist seller
(owner sale), you have no leverage if the item is or becomes faulty.
Sales there are as-is (no warranties). Some Craiglist sellers aren't so
money tight that they won't help out if the item is faulty but some are
very greedy and once they get the money then they aren't giving it back.
Because it was a cash transaction, rarely do you get a sales receipt
from an owner selling off their wares at Craigslist. There are
non-owner sellers (businesses) using Craigslist but their prices are
usually higher and too many there are shady. Had a business selling
washing and dryer machines at Craigslist (that were recycled units, like
from laundermats) who claimed a 6-month warranty. Upon doing some
research, found out he rarely honored his warranty. Figure what you pay
for a Craigslist item, especially if cash, you won't get back if the
item is wrong, broken, or goes bad quickly. It's a risk there but
prices can be pretty good if you're willing to wait for the right sale.
You might have to wait because way too many Craigslist sellers think
their used item has way too much remaining value. They overcharge. You
can ask them for their best offer price but still they are too attached
to their wares so they overcharge on them.

The Microtek you have is an 18" monitor. Kind of small. I see 20"
monitors at Craigslist for $20. If you or a friend have a laptop, take
it with you along with a VGA and DVI cable/converter so you can test the
monitor before you pass the cash to the seller.