I have two computers at home.  One runs Windows 95, the other XP.  The
monitor with the XP computer just died, so i moved the other (windows
95) monitor downstairs and hooked it up.  It looks find through the
initial XP loading screen, and then just goes black.  Is there a way
to get this monitor to work with XP?

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Clarification of Question by bluepenguin-ga on 23 Dec 2004 11:41 PST

Typo:  Should say, "it looks fine through the initial XP loading screen."

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Request for Question Clarification by endo-ga on 26 Dec 2004 08:58 PST

Hi,

Try this: press F8 at the beginning of the boot process. Just before
you see the Windows XP loading screen. You should get a menu giving
you several options.

Choose "enable VGA mode". Once you have booted to Windows, go to the
display properties and lower the resolution to 800x600 and 60Hz. You
should then be able to reboot normally.

Once you're in normal mode, you can try changing the resolution and
refresh rate to higher values.

Please let me know if this helps.

Thanks.
endo

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Request for Question Clarification by cynthia-ga on 26 Dec 2004 20:44 PST

bluepenguin,

Give me the make and model number of your monitor and I will locate
the XP drivers for it for you.

~~Cynthia

XP comes with nearly every available driver known to man, except the
one for your monitor.  Look at the back of the monitor, get the
Manufacturer name, go to their website and look for XP drivers.

~~Cynthia

maybe you should try booting into safe mode - removing the driver for
the old monitor - and then booting to normal mode.  Most monitors will
work with generic drivers...

Assuming the monitor is a crt.

Very annoying when they go down because they can usually be fixed in a
hour or so but there are only two repairers in the whole world who
bother to. It should be taught in school :-)

Your problem is most likely that the refresh rate is too high for the
monitor and it takes a huffy. Older monitors were slower. The correct
driver, as cynthia says, should fix this. As doctah says, generic
drivers should be fine but working out the best to use can be tricky.
Depends on your graphics card interface whether or not you can set the
refresh rate at specific figures. You may come across dire warnings of
impending doom if the refresh is set too high but whilst theoretically
it is so, never in hundreds of cases have I come across a case of
actuality. So fret not.

Unfortunately in all my computers I don?t have XP (because I hate it!)
so I don?t quite recall if you can set the rates in safe mode which
will then come up after re-boot. Can someone confirm please?

Alternatively borrow a newish monitor and set the graphics to
something lowly like SVGA then hook up your own. You can then try
different refresh rates because you are given a few seconds to OK it
after the change. If you don?t OK, it?ll return to the previous
setting.

Best