Member Avatar for draculax1990

When I try to open Guild Wars, Warcraft, or Starcraft the screen is always filled with these strange blue lines. Sometimes they revert back to normal, but after about 30 seconds the screen has the blue lines again. I've tried updating my driver, but I've no luck. So if anyone has a solution please post it in this topic... I'm really frustrated with this problem.


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EDIT: This problem is on a laptop and I have a MOBILITY RADEON 9000. I hope this information helps.

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Brief expert summary and focused troubleshooting to add to 's thread. Vertical or colored "blue" lines that appear when 3D games start can come from three root causes: driver/software conflicts, GPU/VRAM instability (often heat-related), or the laptop display/inverter/cable. 's point about checking in-game resolution/refresh is valid, but a few targeted tests will quickly narrow the fault to either the GPU or the screen.

Try these checks in order:

  1. Connect an external monitor (VGA/TV-out) and run a game or a graphic-heavy demo.
  2. Observe the screen during POST/BIOS or from a bootable live CD (before Windows loads).
  3. Monitor GPU/CPU temperatures under load (use a hardware monitor tool).
  4. Do a clean driver rollback/install (use safe mode or a driver-cleaning utility) and test a known stable legacy driver.
  5. Inspect/clean the cooling system (fans, vents) and look for obvious cable damage if comfortable opening the case.

Interpretation and likely outcomes: if the external display shows the same artifacts the GPU or its memory is the probable cause (failing chips, heat damage, or solder joints). If artifacts only appear on the laptop panel, suspect the LCD panel, cable, or inverter. Intermittent onset after a short run often points toward thermal issues or marginal solder joints on the GPU rather than pure driver problems.

Cautions and next steps: back up important data before deeper hardware work. Simple fixes include cleaning fans and reseating connectors. Board-level repairs (reflow/reball) are temporary and risky; factory replacement or professional repair is usually required for failed GPU/VRAM. If the machine is under warranty, contact the manufacturer with model/serial and photos showing the artifact.

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Member Avatar for draculax1990

does anyone have any thoughts of what could fix this problem? I've also tried uninstalling my video card driver and such, but it still didn't fix the problem. :sad:

Member Avatar for Catweazle

Perhaps you could check the video options for the games and check that they are not setting display resolution and screen refresh rate which is beyond the native settings for your laptop's display screen.

Member Avatar for draculax1990

oh I forgot to mention I used to be able to play all these games perfectly without lag/video problems at all. However, one day it just started acting up, and I didn't change anything to the settings of my computer or the game.

Oh and I was wondering if the fan on my laptop doesn't work or is filled with dust would it effect anything to my monitor or video card?

Member Avatar for draculax1990

Oh and I just testing something out: When I went to Desktop->Properties->settings and changed the color to 16 bit instead of 32 bit then all the blue lines seem to spread appart. They are still there though, so I still have the problem. I hope this helps.

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