IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

[ncovert]

My IBM thinkpad t60 switched to a screen mode where there are letterboxes around the Windows Display. How do I switch it back?

[selldoor]

Re: IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

Not sure what you mean - in Contral Panel>Display>appearance is it the difference between Windows Classical and Windows XP or whatever you have in there.

[ncovert]

Re: IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

No, I mean the entire display is centered on the monitor and there is a big black border around it.

[selldoor]

Re: IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

Screen resolution? - showing desktop - righthand click> properties>settings - move slider

What were you doing when it changed

[ncovert]

Re: IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

Screen resolution? - showing desktop - righthand click> properties>settings - move slider

What were you doing when it changed

Screen resolution - no. Didn't work
What I was doing - I had put it in standby and then when I powered it back on again, the problem occurred.

[selldoor]

Re: IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

Perhaps when starting from standby it is not loading the driver?
Have you tried a full power off and start up. Check driver is latest.
Tried on external monitor?

[seanc]

Re: IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

FN + fkey with a picture of a screen/box on it.

[ncovert]

Re: IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

Tried that, it just switches the primary video source to the VGA connector.

[Heihachi_73]

Re: IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

Sounds like the monitor's stretch feature decided to change (nothing to do with Windows). Usually this only affects video modes where the selected resolution is lower than the monitor's native resolution though.

I had a similar case with a very old Toshiba Satellite 440CX (non-CD drive version of the CDX). On my one there are no buttons on the monitor itself, just the backlight/contrast adjuster. It use to be fine for DOS games and the like (albeit pixelated since the monitor only does a nearest-neighbor stretch), after sitting for 2 years the only thing that fills the 800x600 monitor is 800x600 itself.

[Scenic]

Re: IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

^ Those old Toshibas have an option in the BIOS to enable/disable screen stretching.
With the laptop off, hold down the ESC key and turn it on. Keep holding the key till an error message pops up telling you to hit F1. Press F1 and viola.. you're in the somewhat strange proprietary Toshiba BIOS.

And no.. there's no direct way (like on regular PCs) to get into the BIOS on these old grey (gray?) Toshibas, like pressing the DEL key or something. The ESC trick or an empty CMOS battery (rechargeable little battery pack on these) is the only way.

As for the thinkpad..
There should be an option in the BIOS (in config -> display or something along those lines) to enable/disable screen stretching, so that content which isn't in the native LCD panel resolution gets stretched to the full panel size or displayed in the original resolution (with black borders around it).

Make sure the laptop isn't set to "mirror mode", i.e. trying to display the same image on the internal LCD and the VGA port at the same time. This will limit your maximum resolution (usually to 1024x768 or something), and if stretching is disabled at the same time, you'll end up with a little 1024x768 image centered on the screen with black borders around it if your LCD's native resolution is higher than that (like 1400x1050 on some T60 models)

[ncovert]

Re: IBM Thinkpad T60 screen problem

Thank you Scenic. I will have to try that; it sounds like legit info.