Weird issue with my comp. Need help!!!

[Keavy]

Okay, I'll start with what its doing and it only does this when running normally: The screen will freeze and the image will scramble. It does not do this in Safe Boot mode. I want to make that clear since it may shed some light on what is going on.

The issue started about a year ago with the screen going dark. Really, really dark. Like, I'd have to go into my settings and set the brightness to full just to barely see what was on my screen. About six months ago the darkness issue stopped but I got weird glitches on the screen. Stuff would appear scrambled but restarting would solve that. Then, it started freezing. Like the whole image would freeze. Now it scrables then freezes.

For those that want to know I have a Radeon 9200 graphics card.

I'm pretty sure you're all going to say what I don't want to hear: You need a new graphics card. I say that because I'll have to take this thing into a repair center to have it replaced and assuming they have the parts in-stock it'll probably take a few days to have it fixed.

Anyways, I'm gonna do another HDD wipe and fresh install of drivers and software so I'll be back later. I'm gonna double check that I did install everything properly and also go over the software updates "Read Me" files with a fine tooth comb to make sure I didn't miss anything.

OK I reinstalled everything and the problem persists. Set up an appointment with an Apple Repair Center. If it can be fixed, they will. If not, I'll get store credit towards a new Mac and they'll transfer over all my files for free.

[Okuza]

It could just be one of the simple HW issues. Try removing the card and gently cleaning the contacts with an eraser. Blowing away all the dust inside the comp can fix things, too.

My experience has been that Radeon cards are very intolerant of heat. They don't seem to run particularly hot, but their own "too hot" threshold is very low. If you can do something to keep the card cool while you use the system, it might help; eg. make sure the card is in a slot that is as far from other heat sources as possible, add a better fan, etc..

[Sugami]

It's not hardware problems if it works fine in safe mode.

Oh you're using an Apple, that's your problem.

Solution, buy PC

I'm not sure about Apples but what Windows does with Safe Mode is load with the minimal drivers for it to work. Usually that's only the FDD (no CD/DVD), basic graphics drivers, no network drivers.

If this was a PC I'd say your graphics drivers are corrupt. Have you been using the same drivers with the fresh install or have you downloaded newer ones? Are you downloading the right drivers? Check your drivers, see if they're working properly, try updating and if that's still giving you grief then it probably is the GFX card.

Is the problem there from when the computer is turned on or does it start after a certain amount of time? Latter might suggest Okuza is right, but if that is so it should probably screw up in Safe Mode too.

[Okuza]

Safe-mode doesn't mean your HW isn't broken. I have a couple cards right now that only work in safe-mode. They've been deep-fried by trying to run too hot.

One of the problems is that the Radeon drivers for the fried card I have runs in two modes. Basic 2D and 3D. The 3D mode is automatically overclocked by the vanilla driver. When the driver does that, the card's fan spools up like a 707 taking off and the heat just goes crazy. Couple weeks of that and the card is toast (quite literally).

I found out about what was going on after the fact when I started installing some instrumentation to figure out what was going wrong. Turns out the fan wasn't even running at 50%. So, I cranked the fan up to 100%. Now my neighbors are complaining about the "airplane" noises from my house and I have to bolt the computer to the floor to prevent liftoff.

Still isn't enough cooling, though. The card runs fine for another week before it surrenders and decides to start a new life as a french fry.

Anyway, the morale is that the card's HW is broken (no more 3d), but it still works in 2D mode. It's only half-baked.

HW problems aren't all-or-nothing except in the simplest of devices.

[Keavy]

The freezing occurs at any time. Its frozen during startup and sometimes while loading the desktop and widgets it'll freeze.

I've run the hardware tests and everything comes out clean. Drivers are the newest and I install the fresh ones after each HDD wipe.

More likely than not it is the graphics card. Since the computer is locked with special screws it has to be taken in to a shop for the repair.

[Keavy]

Well I took it into Apple today and found out what was wrong: Not only do I need a new Graphics Card but I also need a new Sound Card and a whole new Motherboard.

Its all covered under a recall. It was noisy in the store so I couldn't really hear what the guy said but it was something about bad capacitors. Should have it back in a week or two. Until then I won't be posting much.

[Fiye]

. Poor keavy.

Join the darkside of Microsoft!

[Keavy]

. Poor keavy.

Join the darkside of Microsoft!

Right now I'm posting from my sister's Vista laptop and considering every place I've ever worked also uses Windows I only have this to say concerning switching: F*** THAT!!!

Been using Mac OS for far too long. Everything in Windows is too weird. The Minimize/Maximize/Close buttons are on the wrong side, I don't know any of the keyboard shortcuts, and I hate double-clicking the mouse.

I imagine my feelings towards using Windows are how most Brits feel about driving in the US.

[Sugami]

Don't you have to double click on those single-buttoned mouses/mice anyways?

Macs are for mitten people!

Vista sucks though, I'm staying away from that for a while.

[Keavy]

Don't you have to double click on those single-buttoned mouses/mice anyways?

Macs are for mitten people!

Vista sucks though, I'm staying away from that for a while.

Vista does suck but the one nice thing I can say about it is MS won't abandon it in a year and replace it with a new OS.