If Only Part Of The Display Is Readable; What Is A Driver; Identifying Drivers; Reinstalling Drivers And Utilities - Dell Inspiron 1521 Owner's Manual

Run the Video diagnostics tests —
If no error message appears and you still have a display problem, but the display is not completely blank, run the Video device group in the
then contact Dell (see Contacting
See "Error Messages" —
If an error message appears, see

If only part of the display is readable

Connect an external monitor —
1. Shut down your computer and connect an external monitor to the computer.
2. Turn on the computer and the monitor, and then adjust the monitor brightness and contrast controls.
If the external monitor works, the computer display or video controller may be defective. Contact Dell (see
Drivers

What Is a Driver?

A driver is a program that controls a device such as a printer, mouse, or keyboard. All devices require a driver program.
A driver acts like a translator between the device and any other programs that use the device. Each device has its own set of specialized commands that only
its driver recognizes.
Dell ships your computer to you with required drivers already installed—no further installation or configuration is needed.
NOTICE: Your Drivers and Utilities media may contain drivers for operating systems that are not on your computer. Ensure that you are installing
software appropriate for your operating system.
Many drivers, such as the keyboard driver, come with your Microsoft
Upgrade your operating system.
l
Reinstall your operating system.
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Connect or install a new device.
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Identifying Drivers

If you experience a problem with any device, identify whether the driver is the source of your problem and, if necessary, update the driver.
1. Click Start , and right-click Computer.
2. Click Properties® Device Manager.
NOTE: The User Account Control window may appear. If you are an administrator on the computer, click Continue; otherwise, contact your
administrator to continue.
Scroll down the list of devices and check for an exclamation point (a circle with a [!]) next to the device name. If an exclamation point is next to the device
name, you may need to reinstall the driver or install a new driver (see

Reinstalling Drivers and Utilities

NOTICE: The Dell Support website at support.dell.com and your Drivers and Utilities media provide approved drivers for Dell computers. If you install
drivers obtained from other sources, your computer might not work correctly.
Dell).
Error Messages.
® ®
Windows operating system. You may need to install drivers if you:
Reinstalling Drivers and Utilities).
Dell Diagnostics,
Contacting Dell).