# HELP! D:



## Ley (Aug 3, 2011)

Alright, I've had this laptop for about a month or so and it's not given me that many problems, other than occasionally saying that my 'copy of windows is not verified'. Now, freaking out here and there, I let it do its updates and whatever.

At night I usually just close the lid, and generally I don't turn the computer off for a while, only for updates and whatnot. Freakin' out, though

Yesterday, my screen went like.. like there were vertical white lines all over  the screen. I adjust the screen and it goes back to normal. NOW though, this screen came up this time, except green




freaking out here, I know nothing about computers, the screen is still like this, what do? D: 

If it's relevant, it's a 2008 HP Altec Lansing.


----------



## dinosaurdammit (Aug 3, 2011)

/sergal rushes in to the rescue

That pic looks like just a screen shot of a normal computer?

/trips over cape 

I DUNNO WHAT TO DO ;~; my grandmother had a similar problem and all she needed to do was pull the battery out and hard reboot it.


----------



## Onnes (Aug 3, 2011)

Do you mean that the lines show up as you are closing the notebook, and they disappear if you fully reopen the lid?

Also, I'm not sure 2008 HP Altec Lansing identifies what particular series notebook you have. It should have a model designation like "HP Pavilion dv6-3210us."


----------



## Kranda (Aug 3, 2011)

Well from what you describe it might be the graphics card going out. Same type of stuff happened to my dads.


----------



## Evan of Phrygia (Aug 3, 2011)

I have a different laptop and it does the same things with the exception of green screening. After a while the windowsupdates become useless and initialize shutdown after 15 minutes, which is usually NOWHERE near enough time, so maybe be aware of this. As for green-screening, i'm not sure. I found that the laptop usually avoids this when on a flat, unmoving surface.Regardless of whatever issues, windows tends to suck in the regard of capable computers


----------



## Sarcastic Coffeecup (Aug 4, 2011)

As said above, HP 2008 Altec lansing isn't a computer at all. Altec lansing makes audio systems and speakers to your laptop.
I think you problems might be caused by faulty GPU. Or just overheating. Really needs a bit more info.
I had an HP Pavilion xxxx once and it was buggy and kept slowing down. HP appears not to be too reliable manufacturer.


----------



## Draconas (Aug 4, 2011)

question, what do you have it sitting on?


----------



## Ley (Aug 4, 2011)

Onnes said:


> Do you mean that the lines show up as you are closing the notebook, and they disappear if you fully reopen the lid?
> 
> Also, I'm not sure 2008 HP Altec Lansing identifies what particular series notebook you have. It should have a model designation like "HP Pavilion dv6-3210us."



Sorry.. it's a HP Pavillion dv97000 Notebook PC. Its uhm.. the processor is Intel(R)Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T5550 @ 1.83GHz.. RAM is 4 GB and it's a 64 bit operating system. 

This computer has been sitting on a cooling pad, on my desk, for over two weeks. it's elevated and it never overheats. 

My stepdad looked at it.. and since I've had 'security issues' since my biological dad- the person who'd given me the PC- used bootleg disks to reset it to factory settings. At the moment it looks like I need to purchase a new copy of Windows... and I haven't found any vista/XP things for sale. It's all win7 and I don't exactly have 300 bucks.


----------



## Draconas (Aug 4, 2011)

Ley said:


> Sorry.. it's a HP Pavillion dv97000 Notebook PC. Its uhm.. the processor is Intel(R)Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T5550 @ 1.83GHz.. RAM is 4 GB and it's a 64 bit operating system.
> 
> My stepdad looked at it.. and since I've had 'security issues' since my biological dad- the person who'd given me the PC- used bootleg disks to reset it to factory settings. At the moment it looks like I need to purchase a new copy of Windows... and I haven't found any vista/XP things for sale. It's all win7 and I don't exactly have 300 bucks.



umm.... I have something for you windows 7 wise that'll help, but posting it here is kinda.... yeah, got a way that I can contact you that isn't fa/faf?


----------



## Ley (Aug 4, 2011)

Draconas said:


> umm.... I have something for you windows 7 wise that'll help, but posting it here is kinda.... yeah, got a way that I can contact you that isn't fa/faf?



x_x If it's bootleg/not the MS sanctioned I'm sorry but I cannot accept. I've had SOO many problems with this behind-the-back software I might as well get the actual software to not deal with this mess.


----------



## Draconas (Aug 4, 2011)

Ley said:


> x_x If it's bootleg/not the MS sanctioned I'm sorry but I cannot accept. I've had SOO many problems with this behind-the-back software I might as well get the actual software to not deal with this mess.


Yes it's bootlegged, so far I haven't had a problem since there's a security update that you're not supposed to install, but if you don't want it, that's fine. If you can't get anything or it'll take you a long time to get a legit copy, might I suggest Linux Mint 11? It looks just like windows, at least you wont have the stupid black wallpaper of doom.


----------



## Onnes (Aug 4, 2011)

If the lines change when you move the screen then there are three possibilities, in order of increasing likelihood:

GPU. This is unlikely given the circumstances, and can be eliminated completely by failing to replicate the issue on an external monitor.
Video Connection. It could simply be a problem with the video connection to the LCD panel. This could potentially be fixed just by replacing the cable or even simply re-seating it.
LCD Panel. It is highly likely that there is a problem with the panel itself, in particular the connections along its back. If this is the case then one expects the problem to get worse with time as the contacts further degrade. The only fix here is to replace the panel.

Basically, you either need to find someone who is confident enough to partially disassemble the notebook and access the panel or send it somewhere for service.

As for acquiring a valid copy of Windows 7, the cheapest way is typically through academic pricing for students or faculty.


----------



## Genumix (Aug 4, 2011)

For the record, legit Windows 7 is 120 from the Windows website and 110 from Tigerdirect.com (no discounts).  Office is 120 from TigerDirect and 150 @Windows site.  I'm sure Newegg is along the lines of tigerdirect, too.


----------



## Ley (Aug 4, 2011)

Onnes said:


> If the lines change when you move the screen then there are three possibilities, in order of increasing likelihood:
> 
> GPU. This is unlikely given the circumstances, and can be eliminated completely by failing to replicate the issue on an external monitor.
> Video Connection. It could simply be a problem with the video connection to the LCD panel. This could potentially be fixed just by replacing the cable or even simply re-seating it.
> ...



Alright, thank you! That was all pretty much greek to me but with some quick googling.. I'll definitely be taking it to best buy. I left the computer on standby, though, and I came back and it looks just fine now. o.o but yes, I'll definitely get it checked now and mention all of that. Thanks again!



Genumix said:


> For the record, legit Windows 7 is 120 from the Windows website and 110 from Tigerdirect.com (no discounts).  Office is 120 from TigerDirect and 150 @Windows site.  I'm sure Newegg is along the lines of tigerdirect, too.



Even then I still don't have that much... Eh, I'll find a way to make the kind of money needed. 

Again, thanks everyone!


----------



## Draconas (Aug 4, 2011)

I'll ask again, what is it usually sitting on? if it's like a bed or rug, it's overheat city, a little laptop stand helps even on a desk for the intake fan to breathe a little bit more, just in case if that's what caused it, and to prevent some unavoidable problems from occuring sooner than needed.


----------



## Genumix (Aug 4, 2011)

Ley said:


> Alright, thank you! That was all pretty much greek to me but with some quick googling..


Greek or geek?


----------

