IBM thinkpad P2 laptop - backlight only comes on for a few seconds

[JANINE]

I have an IBM thinkpad P2 laptop with 128mb RAM, onboard graphics etc running WinXp Pro.

My problem is that i am not getting any signs of backlight on it unless i press Fn and F7 (button that changes between laptop screen and external monitor) a number of times. even then all i am getting is the IBM startup screen that displays how much memory i have and that the memory is ok. the screen is then going dark again but i can see the microsoft windows NT loader screen and can log into windows itself. i cannot see to alter any settings to troubleshoot it though.

When i connect it to an external monitor i can log in and work on it fine so i dont think this is anything to do with the graphics. My brother thinks that the backlight has gone. trouble is that i hope not as i have a lot of work related documents on there that i can't backup to a disk because the optical drive is only a cd-rom.

Is my brother right??? if so how can i retrieve my work or send it to another PC. I am networked but this laptop is not on the network and i am not sure how to transfer the files and settings from my laptop to my desktop.

please assist:mad: :sad:

[DMR]

... i am getting is the IBM startup screen... the screen is then going dark again but i can see the microsoft windows NT loader screen and can log into windows itself. i cannot see to alter any settings to troubleshoot it though.

What exactly are you saying there?

Does the initial "IBM logo" screen display properly?

Is the screen too dark to read once Windows loads?

Since an external monitor does seem to work, your brother's general assessment of the problem with the lappy's screen might be right. If that's the case, I would:

1. Set up filesharing between the laptop and desktop in order to back up your data. We can walk you through that if need be.

2. Buy a laptop-to-desktop (2.5"-to-3.5") drive adaptor and temporarilly install the laptop drive on the desktop machine. That will bypass any possible problems with networking the two machines together. Again- if you need more info on that we can give to you.

[BThree]

To get your files from the laptop, if you have a USB port you can always get a memory stick. They make them pretty large these days.

[JANINE]

What exactly are you saying there?

Does the initial "IBM logo" screen display properly?

Is the screen too dark to read once Windows loads?

Since an external monitor does seem to work, your brother's general assessment of the problem with the lappy's screen might be right. If that's the case, I would:

1. Set up filesharing between the laptop and desktop in order to back up your data. We can walk you through that if need be.

2. Buy a laptop-to-desktop (2.5"-to-3.5") drive adaptor and temporarilly install the laptop drive on the desktop machine. That will bypass any possible problems with networking the two machines together. Again- if you need more info on that we can give to you.

It didn't unless i pressed Fn and F7 together. it would then pop up for a second then once the Microsoft NT loader screen would come up and this is when it went very dark. because it went very dark i couldnt see to shutdown the pc properly so was shutting it down via the button on the side.

However last night i switched the laptop on and played round with the brightness (strees that this was up as far as it would go) and i managed to get a screen that lasted and let me work for a fair while (least until i shut down). could this be a loose connection?

can you walk me through the steps to enabling file sharing between 2 or 3 pcs please. it will be appreciated.

thanks:cool:

[DMR]

1. Judging from the info you've given so far about the screen- you could have a hardware problem, and it could even be the specific connection problem you mentioned. The ribbon cable that carries the power and data signals between a laptop's motherboard and its screen has to do a lot of flexing in the course of opening and closing the lappy, and that wear can take a toll on the integrity of the cable over time.

However, if you haven't done this already (and if you can get a useable brightness again, obviously), I'd try downloading and installing a fresh load of video drivers before doing anything else. Replacing or repairing the screen won't be cheap, and you could get dinged a fair amount of $$ just to have a pro repair shop diagnose it for you.

2. In terms of your filesharing/networking question: are you using XP Home, Pro, a mix of both, and are the systems running SP2 or SP1? Networking is one of the major areas where the two versions of XP differ greatly, so the sharing configuration differs between the two as well.

[djrivera1]

checked voltage on DC to DC inverter located on bottom of the lcd panel long board with tranformer on it, sure be around 425 to 550 volt dc if not or drop replace you can find them on ebay cheap depend on size screen, but will cause screen to black out or dim. If this doen't work replaced the fluorescent tubes on back of lcd panel replaced DC to DC inverter first cheap.

[JANINE]

1. Judging from the info you've given so far about the screen- you could have a hardware problem, and it could even be the specific connection problem you mentioned. The ribbon cable that carries the power and data signals between a laptop's motherboard and its screen has to do a lot of flexing in the course of opening and closing the lappy, and that wear can take a toll on the integrity of the cable over time.

However, if you haven't done this already (and if you can get a useable brightness again, obviously), I'd try downloading and installing a fresh load of video drivers before doing anything else. Replacing or repairing the screen won't be cheap, and you could get dinged a fair amount of $$ just to have a pro repair shop diagnose it for you.

2. In terms of your filesharing/networking question: are you using XP Home, Pro, a mix of both, and are the systems running SP2 or SP1? Networking is one of the major areas where the two versions of XP differ greatly, so the sharing configuration differs between the two as well.

thanks for that DMR. i thought that it might be a connection working its way loose. also i havent had a chance to look at what the display driver is. it isnt hooked up to the net as yet but as soon as i get it hooked up it will be doing a lot of driver updates including the video driver. my brother has said that if that doesnt work it will be cheaper to lob that machine out and buy a new one. a basic P4 with winxp pro sells here in england for as low as £400.:D

regarding the networking i am running winxp pro on the laptop, win xp pro on a desktop machine i am having problems with (see my other thread 'win xp pro stop error - happens after only a few minutes loading up') and this desktop i am using to post messages is xp home. all are running service pack 2. :D

ps dxdiag networking test works on both desktops, not sure about the lappy though

[DMR]

I agree with your brother on this one: a P-II certainly has no real value anymore, so it isn't worth dumping any $$ whatsoever into fixing it given that new machines are pretty cheap.

[JANINE]

I agree with your brother on this one: a P-II certainly has no real value anymore, so it isn't worth dumping any $$ whatsoever into fixing it given that new machines are pretty cheap.

think i'll just use it til it refuses to work any more and in the mean time save up for a nice new one.;)

[DMR]

Yeah; P-IIs are worth ziltch these days to begin with, and given how old the machine must be, you might not be too far away from seeing signs of failures in other components in the beast.

[JANINE]

Yeah; P-IIs are worth ziltch these days to begin with, and given how old the machine must be, you might not be too far away from seeing signs of failures in other components in the beast.

probably right but guess it'll last me until september.;) :D