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Troubleshooting 147
ADJUST THE WINDOWS DISPLAY SETTINGS —
Windows XP:
1
Click
Start
→
Control Panel
→
Appearance and Themes
.
2
Click the area you want to change or click the
Display
icon.
3
Try different settings for
Color quality
and
Screen resolution
.
Windows Vista:
1
Click
Start
→
Control Panel
→
Hardware and Sound
→
Personalization
→
Display Settings
.
2
Adjust
Resolution
and
Colors settings
, as needed.
RUN THE VIDEO DIAGNOSTICS TESTS — If no error message appears and you
still have a display problem, but the display is not completely blank, run the
Video device group in the "Dell Diagnostics" on page 115, then contact Dell
(see "Contacting Dell" on page 201).
SEE "ERROR MESSAGES"—If an error message appears, see "Error Messages"
on page 127.
If only part of the display is readable
CONNECT AN EXTERNAL MONITOR —
1
Shut down your computer and connect an external monitor to the
computer.
2
Turn on the computer and the monitor, and then adjust the monitor
brightness and contrast controls.
If the external monitor works, the computer display or video controller
may be defective. Contact Dell (see
"Contacting Dell
" on page 201).
Drivers
What Is a Driver?
A driver is a program that controls a device such as a printer, mouse, or
keyboard. All devices require a driver program.
A driver acts like a translator between the device and any other programs that
use the device. Each device has its own set of specialized commands that only
its driver recognizes.
book.book Page 147 Wednesday, September 16, 2009 11:12 AM