Hi all, I'm totally baffled by this dim display problem. If you look very carefully, you can see stuff on the screen but it's like you're wearing extremely dark sunglasses. In this order, I replaced the monitor and cables, video card, system restored from previous month & then I yanked the HD and put it in a twin pc... display still messed up. When you turn on monitor, it will flash for a nanosecond in true color and then dim again. Also, if left on, display will come back (takes a couple of hours). Also of note, the (original) pc time & date went crazy during origial display crash. In system event logs shows all well 6/2/09 then jumps to 1969, next 1970, then 2033. Date has been fine since I reset it. To say I am baffled is an understatement. cpu 3.0mhz, 1gb ram/xp sp3 (sp3 has been running for several months without incident. PC is in cubby and have metered outlets - all ok. Also of note, dim display through entire boot up process not just windows load. Thoughts? Suggestions? Sympathy?

You didn't mention what type of display you have (CRT or LCD). If it's an LCD, the backlight is probably burnt out. Take it to a pro, or buy a new one. -Ryan Adams Free Computer Tips and more:http://RyanTAdams.com Paid Tech Support: Black Diamond

LCD & that's the first thing I replaced (and yes I made sure it was a working monitor before I hooked it up to the problem pc).

So, to make sure I have this straight, you have two identical PCs. #1 has this dim screen issue, #2 does not. You moved the hard drive from PC #1 to PC #2, and then PC #2 has a dim screen. Is that right? -Ryan Adams Free Computer Tips and more:http://RyanTAdams.com Paid Tech Support: Black Diamond

Yup. McAfee scan - clean. Superantispyware - clean. Power configuration standard. Defies logic right?! This morning the display fixed itself after being on for about an hr. No events of note in the system logs... at a loss & hate not knowing why...

The fact that the screen is dim through the entire boot up process, indicates it is a hardware problem. Since the only piece of hardware in common between the two systems when they display this behavior is the hard drive, the hard drive must be bad. I cannot explain why this would affect your screen though. -Ryan Adams Free Computer Tips and more:http://RyanTAdams.com Paid Tech Support: Black Diamond