Normal? Short flash when I power up,and a line comes on and off my screen sometimes.

[amycishere]

Hey, everyone

First issue: Most of the time when I power up I get a very quick flash before I get the gray screen. A few people told me this is normal, and others told me this was a big problem...just wanted to know if I was the only one.

Second issue: When I am doing something a horizontal line will come up on the screen than disappear. Not a flash or flicker. Does this make sense to anyone, I can't get a print screen to show this because I believe it is so fast.

So before I call apple because a store is way too far away for me to just to pop in, I thought I'd see what you guys have to say.

Thanks,
Amy

 

[mad jew]

I think the startup flash is probably okay, but the line is a bit more of a worry. It could be something as simple as a slightly loose GPU connection and probably nothing to worry about, but I'd run the Apple Hardware Test from the OSX discs all the same. Insert the discs and hold D at startup to run the diagnostics. How thick is the line?

 

[amycishere]

It is really thin. Thank you so very much for the reply!

 

[mad jew]

No worries. Tell us how the test goes.

 

[amycishere]

I have the CDS but I can't get to them at them at the moment because I am disabled and they are out of my reach. Is there a way to fix the GPU connection if its loose?

 

[mad jew]

Well, if you're handy with a spanner and a hacksaw, you could follow one of the iFixit guides to open the thing up and see if you can retighten the cable. By the way, don't really use a hacksaw or a spanner. Do the guides look manageable?

 

[amycishere]

Ohhhh, I am sadly not very techy at all and would be scared out of my wits to do something like that.

But I did notice something, my tv was doing the same thing the other day when my macbook was doing it alot. Now my tv is alot better and my macbook is doing it alot less so it may be a power thing. I should try unplugging it for a while and see if it stops, now it is so infrequent though.

 

[TraceyS/FL]

Definitely see if it is doing it on the battery...

power spikes - up AND down can be bad, so make sure you have a really good surge suppressor on there.