Infected system; new monitor.

[whorton]

Is anyone aware of viruses etc. that attack the monitor itself? Or is the monitor a completely "passive" device? My flatscreen flashes on and off with "signal out of range" for the first ten minutes then works without problem. I have reloaded drivers, adjusted resolution, cleaned the registry, scanned etc... Nothing seems to affect the problem except patience (10 minutes).

I want to test my monitor by replacing it. I fear contamination and would like some assurance that this is safe first.

Thank you in advance.

[unlovedwarrior]

infections dont attack monitors.

whats your OS and what protections do you have? and is the video card a addon or intergraded??


unlovedwarrior

[whorton]

Windows XP sp2
NVidia G-force
integrated

Symantec
Spybot

I'm away from the computer in question.  I can run diagnostics and give more complete info tomorrow. I have read the faq's and searched the other boards.

[unlovedwarrior]

ok dl avg anti-spyware

superantispyware

Ccleaner

adaware se personel

scan with those and tell us what they find( save and post the logs if you can save them)

[whorton]

I appreciate your time and advice, and I will keep these suggestions for future reference. At present high speed internet is not an option where I live except through satellite. My dial -up is intermittant and only slightly faster than an earthworm in dirt. Downloading the programs would take hours if not days. (I am at work now)... i have learned a great deal from your posts and those of others.
Again thank you.

[unlovedwarrior]

you cant dl them at work or a friends house??

and your welcome

[whorton]

Downloading at work is risky and is a good way to get fired. I work two jobs and have 4 kids under the age of 5 to take care of at home... I think I need to bite the bullit and invest in satellite so I can download late at night. A friend's house is a good idea. Would a thumb drive be a good medium? As you can probably guess i am new to computers...

[unlovedwarrior]

yes 128mb will do

[chriscool9]

Hi there,
Just out of interest do you know how many start up operations you have?! It could just be that the P.C is taking a while to load up all that is necessary to display the images on screen. Do me a favour and just click Start---->Run--->Then type MSCONFIG--->Then click the Startup Tab, and just give me an approximation as to how many objects are ticked.
Hope this helps

Chris

[whorton]

Thanks for the idea. I will have to reply tomorrow. Got to go teach a class...

[CBMatt]

A friend's house is a good idea. Would a thumb drive be a good medium? As you can probably guess i am new to computers...

If you don't already have a drive, then even a CD-R would suffice.  Also, you should add AVG Free to your list.  You'll need to update it before scanning, but thankfully, Grisoft includes manual downloads of the newest definitions so you don't have to worry about doing this at home.

And don't worry, your monitor won't carry any sort of infection.  Your computer could be infected, though, so be sure to scan with all of the programs.

[whorton]

Information asked for:

14 start up operations.

Operating System: Windows XP Home Edition (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 1 (2600.xpsp2.050301-1526)
           Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Gateway                       
       System Model: E-6000                         
               BIOS: Default System BIOS
          Processor: Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 2.66GHz
             Memory: 512MB RAM
          Page File: 351MB used, 898MB available
        Windows Dir: C:\WINNT
    DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0b (4.09.0000.0902)
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
     DxDiag Version: 5.03.0001.0902 32bit Unicode

----------------
Display Devices
---------------
        Card name: NVIDIA GeForce4 MX 440 (Gateway)
     Manufacturer: NVIDIA
        Chip type: GeForce4 MX 440
         DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC
       Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0171&SUBSYS_87311462&REV_A3
   Display Memory: 128.0 MB
     Current Mode: 1024 x 768 (32 bit) (60Hz)
          Monitor: Gateway FPD1730
  Monitor Max Res: 1280,1024
      Driver Name: nv4_disp.dll
   Driver Version: 6.13.0010.3082 (English)
      DDI Version: 8
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
 Driver Date/Size: 7/16/2002 13:16:00, 3552826 bytes

I have not tested the monitor yet. Last night it flashed on and off for 15 minutes getting gradually better as i put the computer to work. It is acting the way electronics used to act when they were warming up.

By the way, I am purchasing a laptop soon. I assume the above programs are your reccommendations for setting it up for safe use.

[CBMatt]

Use the suggested programs to scan your computer in Safe Mode (make sure you update them first).  If the scans come up clean, you should update your Windows XP to Service Pack 2.  If there are any issues, consult with us first.  Installing SP2 on an infected machine can cause problems.