Hi BulkHedd,

It is always recommended to keep the BIOS and Video drivers updated to ensure all the components of the computer are working optimally

I’ll suggest you to update the BIOS and Video drivers for your computer first and check if the issue still persists.

Note: Before flashing the BIOS please check the following:-

• Battery should have 10% or greater charge

• Adapter should be connected

• No external devices should be connected.

• All other programs should be closed and documents saved

Link to download the BIOS of your computer is:-

http://dell.to/PmvU2B

Steps to download BIOS:-

• Click 'Download' to download the list to a folder you will designate.

• Click 'Save'. Then designate the folder you would like to save the files to.

• Once you have designated the folder you would like to save your files to, Click 'OK'.

• Selected downloads will automatically start downloading. You can Pause , Stop , or Continue  downloading the items you have selected. Once the download is complete you will have a green check mark. Next is Installation.

• To start installation, Click Open folder. Double-click a downloaded file to run it.

• A small window will appear with 'Continue' and 'Exit' buttons, click 'Continue'.

• In the Select the folder where you want to unzip the files to window, click OK.

• If a message appears asking to create a folder, click 'Yes'. If a message appears asking to overwrite the folder, click 'Yes to All'.

• In the All files were successfully unzipped window, click OK.

• A new window will appear, follow the prompts that appear to finish the installation.

• Restart the system.

Once the BIOS is updated, Update the Video driver by following steps:-

Open Device Manager by clicking Start/Windows logo on desktop --> ‘Control Panel' --> ‘System and Maintenance' --> ‘Device Manager' --> Click on arrow in front of ‘Display adaptors’ and check for the Graphics card--> Right click on the Graphics card listed there and ‘Uninstall’  Again go to ‘Control Panel’ --> Programs and Features --> Select the Graphics driver ‘ATI’ utility (Only If you have ATI graphics card)  --> Uninstall it --> Restart your computer after that.

Once you restart, click on the link below to download the video/graphics driver for your computer:

If your computer has an ATI graphics card, you can download the updated driver from link:-

http://dell.to/PIRQrt

If your computer has an Intel graphics card, you can download the driver:-

http://dell.to/Ooj1aQ

Follow the same steps as above to download and install drivers.

Please reply if you have any other questions.

I did the BIOS upgrade yesterday and had quite a scare.  It was doing the upgrade within Windows and the system completely froze at 27 of 31 blocks.  The fans spun up and I couldn't do anything.  I waited about 20 minutes and tried to shut it down but even holding down the power button had no effect so I had to pull the battery to shut it down.

I was expecting the worst but it booted right back up and the BIOS version says A11 now.  I installed the the RAM and when I left everything was working perfectly.

I will check in with her this morning and make sure but I think this did the trick.

Well, no such luck.  Last night the computer would not wake from sleep.  We pulled the battery and tried several times and finally it booted but quickly crashed to blue screen.

Later, while watching something on YouTube it blue-screened again.  

I ran MemTest Pro from within Windows and it almost immediately started reporting errors.  So the RAM is being returned.  I may try a different brand.

Hi BulkHedd,

Thank you for the quick response.

The maximum memory supported by your computer is 4GB with the following specifications: 800 MHz DDR2 SODIMM. If you are planning to purchase a new memory, please ensure that it is compatible with your computer as per the specifications. Also, to ensure that there are no more issues with system hardware, you can run a diagnostic test on your machine following the steps below:-

1. Restart the system.
2. Press F12 at Dell logo to enter the ‘One Time Boot Menu’.
3. Navigate to ‘Diagnostics’ using the Up/Down arrow key and press enter to launch the diagnostics.
4. When you get a prompt on the screen “Were colored bars displayed?” Press ‘Y’ in case in case you see the colored bars and ‘N’ in case you don’t see them.
5. Continue testing till you get a message: ‘No errors found so far. Would you like to run a 30 minutes extended test?’
6. Press ‘N’ to stop the test.
7. Write down any error code that you receive during the diagnostics.

 Please reply if you have further questions.

Hi Bellasario,

I believe your system is Studio 1555. Do you face the choppy text issue while on Internet only? I will recommend you to observe your system in Safe Mode with Networking:

• Restart the system and keep tapping 'F8' as soon as the Dell logo appears.
• Highlight 'Safe Mode with Networking' using arrow keys and press enter.

In case the system works fine in safe mode with networking, boot your system in normal mode and uninstall and re install the video driver on your system.

To uninstall the video driver:

• Click on 'Start' and right click on 'My Computer'.
• Click on 'Manage' and click on 'Device manager'.
• Expand 'Display adapters'.
• Right click on both Intel and AMD video drivers and click on 'uninstall'
• Once the driver is uninstalled, click on 'Start' and click on 'Control Panel'.
• Click on 'Add or remove programs'/ 'Programs and features'.
• A list of applications will be listed.
• Look for the video driver's application for both the Video drivers.
• Right click on it and click on 'uninstall'.
• Once done, restart the system.

To re install the video driver:

• Click on the link: http://dell.to/QjjZDA
• Enter your system's Service Tag and select the operating system.
• Go to 'Video' and click on the Intel driver for your system.
• Click on 'Download File'.
• Select 'Single-file download' and click on 'Continue'.
• Click on 'Save' and save the driver on the desktop.
• Double click on the driver from the desktop.
• Install the driver following the o screen instructions.
• Restart the system after the installation is done.
• Go to the above link again and install AMD driver following the above steps.
• Restart your system after the installation is done.

In case the issue still persists, update the BIOS:

Note: Please save any unsaved data as your system will restart automatically after updating the BIOS. Disconnect all the external peripherals like printer, camera, scanner, external hard drive, flash drive etc. Also, the battery should be charged 10% or above.

• Click on the link: http://dell.to/QjjZDA
• Enter your system's Service Tag and select the operating system.
• Go to 'BIOS' and click on the latest BIOS for your system.
• Click on 'Download Now'.
• Select 'Single-file Download' and click on 'Continue'.
• Click on 'Run' and follow the on screen instructions.

Keep me updated. Please reply for any further questions.

*** THE IMAGE I POSTED ABOVE IS A VISUAL OF THE PROBLEM WITH THE TEXT ON MY LAPTOP. THIS HAPPENS VERY FREQUENTLY IN MY BROWSERS SURFING THE NET AND ALL OF MY SECOND LIFE VIEWERS AS WELL*** :(

Hello Vikram,

Thank you so much for your response.  It is greatly appreciated! :) I have tried the first few steps you have suggested and found my laptop is actually a 1537 version when I entered my tag number, but, my question is when I look into my device manager in display adapters section, I do not see two options like posted in your reply, Mobile Intel(R) 4 Series Express Chipset Family  is the only thing listed under display adapters in my Device manager.. Would you still recommend I follow through completely with your instructions to uninstall and reinstall the other two drives you mentioned? Will they work on my 1537 system do you believe?

And to answer your question , yes it happens, this choppy text problem ( and even distorted images, pixelation ), in my browser when surfing the net as well as any of my second life viewers I use to interact on my second life grids. It was not always like this. I used to get crisp clear text and imaging, I have tried making sure all my hardware is up to date yet I can not seem to resolve this re-occurring problem. slowly but surely it is making my internet time quite unbearable. :(

I really hope I can find a way to fix/ correct this and get my text and distortion problems under control again. What would you recommend I try, Vikram?

Thanks again,

Bellasario

Hi Bellasario,

Thank you for posting the screen shot. I will recommend you to uninstall and re install the video driver on your system.

To uninstall the video driver:

• Click on 'Start' and right click on 'My Computer'.
• Click on 'Manage' and click on 'Device manager'.
• Expand 'Display adapters'.
• Right click on both Intel and AMD video drivers and click on 'uninstall'
• Once the driver is uninstalled, click on 'Start' and click on 'Control Panel'.
• Click on 'Add or remove programs'/ 'Programs and features'.
• A list of applications will be listed.
• Look for the video driver's application for both the Video drivers.
• Right click on it and click on 'uninstall'.
• Once done, restart the system.

To re install the video driver:

• If your system has Windows Vista 32 bit installed, click on the link: http://dell.to/TRvGEb
• If your system has Windows Vista 64 bit installed, click on the link: http://dell.to/12KDHyI
• Click on 'Download File'.
• Select 'Single-file download' and click on 'Continue'.
• Click on 'Save' and save the driver on the desktop.
• Right click on the driver from the desktop and click on 'Run as administrator'.
• Install the driver following the on screen instructions.
• Restart the system after the installation is done.

In case the issue still persists, update the BIOS:

Note: Please save any unsaved data as your system will restart automatically after updating the BIOS. Disconnect all the external peripherals like printer, camera, scanner, external hard drive, flash drive etc. Also, the battery should be charged 10% or above.

• Click on the link: http://dell.to/U6zQ9J
• Enter your system's Service Tag and select the operating system.
• Go to 'BIOS' and click on the latest BIOS for your system.
• Click on 'Download Now'.
• Select 'Single-file Download' and click on 'Continue'.
• Click on 'Run' and follow the on screen instructions.

Keep me updated. Please reply for any further questions.

Hello Vikram,

Thank you .. I have followed your instructions and reinstalled the video driver and now my problem has been corrected, No more pixelation or distorted text issues. What a relief, I thought my laptop was doomed! lol Now I may enjoy my internet time again. Yay! Thanks again so much. :)

Bellasario