What happened to the display?

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Level 1

5 points

What happened to the display?

Hello Community,

Tonight I got a call from my mother-in-law. It appears her old iMac is going wonky on her. (I think it's an iMac G5, but I'm not sure.) She was led to believe it might have been a hard drive going bad, but after she sent me a picture, I think it's something else. Here's the picture:

Here's another, with the white and black lines moving up closer to the top:

If I understood her right, the display looks normal enough when it starts up (apple logo, etc.) but then it turns into what the pictures show. (I could be wrong, I can have her clarify.) Attempting to start up from the system DVD didn't change anything, but I can't be 100% sure she got the DVD in at the right time and held down the right keys to get it starting up from the DVD.

Any ideas what might be happening here?

Thanks!

Posted on Sep 30, 2014 7:54 PM

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Answer 1

Allan Jones

Level 9

68,690 points

Oct 1, 2014 7:16 AM in response to DaveInFargo

Hello Dave,

Due to an ongoing forum glitch that Apple seems unable to resolve, your images don't show up for everyone. Can you please describe the symptoms as best you can?

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Answer 2

DaveInFargo Author

Level 1

5 points

Oct 1, 2014 8:39 PM in response to Allan Jones

Hi Allan,

I wasn't aware of any image glitches (they showed up fine for me), but you can see them here:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/1pfoio48v6oejxb/AABNhs-uteI8Q1KNm8BzW-gva?dl=0

Thanks for letting me know!

Now for the funny part of the story. My mother-in-law drove the computer to me today to check it out (not a short drive!), and when I started it up, everything came up exactly as expected! Hmm...

Nevertheless, if you have any ideas on what might have happened, as shown by the pictures, I'm all ears!

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Answer 3

K Shaffer

Level 7

34,972 points

Oct 2, 2014 1:17 AM in response to DaveInFargo

Could be a graphics processor issue, where a power reset (or shutdown,

then restart later) may have helped alleviate symptoms; however may not

have provided an actual cure to the cause of them.

An inspection of the hardware by an expert, could (or not) help tell if there

may be a power supply or other logic board issue; capacitors have been

known to go weak and fail, and may cause problems in other hardware.

Did anyone attempt a system power reset or power management reset;

and separately, when was the computer in for service or had the clock

battery replaced? If the unit is overheating, there could be issues in how

the display and graphic processor function. Also dust may inhibit air flow.

Good luck & happy computing! 🙂

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