It sounds like you have a problem with your lcd or video card.

To test out your LCD do the following.


Attach the system to an external monitor to see if the problem occurs there. If video shows properly on the external monitor, it may be possible that the LCD is no longer functional.


If the problem occurs on the external monitor also, then it may be possible there is a problem with the video card or video drivers in the system.


Some systems also have a small plunger that detects when the lid is closed and activate power management features. If your system has this, depress this plunger several times to see if this changes the effect.


Also see if there is any change in display while moving the screen back and forth.


Also try running the Dell diagnostics on the system to see if the problem occurs in diagnostics as well.

You can email Dell by Clicking Here for assistance.

Please include your system service tag and a description of the problem and troubleshooting done to try to resolve it.

You can also call Dell Technical Support. The phone number to contact our US Mobile Computing Hotline is 800-822-8965 for Corporate/Government Accounts or at 800-247-9252 for Direct accounts.

You will be connected to a Technical Specialist who will help you resolve the issue over the phone or arrange the appropriate service.

If you are outside of the United States, you will need to contact Dell in your global area.

Thank you for choosing Dell.

Dell-John M.:

Thanks for the information and help.

The external monitor behaves similar to the LCD.

The following comments are based upon my limited understanding of computer operation:

If the video is messed up from the get-go- from start-up- so that even the screen is "distorted" during the bios "run"  then could it be video drivers that do not "kick in" until W98 loads?
Is there a basic video driver in the "bios" that could be "bad or could the bios, itself, be corrupted?" If the bios video is bad then would not the W98 video drivers correct it when they load.

How can one find the bios that is being used when you can't read the screen?

How does one go about ordering a new video card- how do you figure out which video card is in the computer that "should" be replaced?

Thanks,

Dan R.

Sounds like the video card is bad.

The following video cards are available for the Inspiron 5000.

6937U 4MB video card

7937U 8MB Video card

The Inspiron 5000e has a few of other video cards available for it, including the following.
07DEP 16MB Graphics/Video Card, VGA,ATI

66DJD 16MB video card

89JVW 8MB Video card

I am not sure if these are compatible with your system so make sure you check on the Video forum first.

You can get pricing and availability information from Dell Software and Peripherals.

The Software and Peripherals department can sell components from other vendors.


While Dell does not support these items outside of the first 30 days of ownership, this site can help guide you more effectively on a peripheral purchase than another retail vendor could.

Choose your business segment.

Click on Parts for Your Dell.

Pick your system type and model or enter your service tag for suggested products for your Dell computer.

They also have hard drive, memory and peripheral upgrade options.

If you cannot find what you are looking for by the search engine, you can contact our Spare Parts department.

Spare Parts

1-800-372-3355

M - F

8 AM - 6 PM

Thank you for choosing Dell.

Dell-John M.:

Thanks for the help.

Dan R.