Running the Dell Diagnostics 7-11
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The Video Test Group verifies the proper operation of the video controller and the
video control circuitry. The group also tests all the video memory and c hec ks the color
features of a color monitor.
Before you run the Video Test Group, make sure that the problem is not in the soft-
ware or caused by a hardware change. If the following symptoms stil l occur, run the
appropriate tests as described in Table 7-5:
If your monitor shows a partially formed or distorted image, run
all
of the sub-
tests in the Video Test Group.
If the alignment of text or images is

off,

regardless of the program you are run-
ning, run the Text Mode Character, Text Mode Pages, and Graphics Mode tests.
If you have a color monitor or a program that runs in color, but the color is inter-
mittent or not displayed at all, run the Text Mode Color, Color Palettes, and Solid
Color tests.
If your monitor malfunctions in one mo de but works fine in another (for example,
text is displayed correctly, but graphics are not) r un the Text Mode Character, Text
Mode Color, Text Mode Pages, and Graphics Mode tests.

NOTE: The default limit for testing super video graphics array (SVGA) modes is No. If

you are testing with an SVGA-capable monitor, change the default to Yes to test the

entire video subsystem

.
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Video Memory Checks the read/write capability of video memory in vari-
ous video modes.
Video Hardware Checks the cursor registers and the horizontal and verti-
cal retrace bit registers in the video controller.
Text Mode Character Checks the video subsystem’s ability to present data in
text modes.
Text Mode Color Checks the video subsystem’s ability to present color in
text modes.
Text Mode Pages Checks the video subsystem’s ability to map and present
all available video pages on the screen, one page at a
time.
Graphics Mode Checks the video subsystem’s ability to present color
graphics images.
Color Palettes Checks the video subsystem’s ability to display all of the
available colors.
Solid Colors Checks the video subsystem’s ability to show screens
full of solid colors. Allows you to check for missing color
subpixels.