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Screen going black
#22460 07/05/12 10:21 PM
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grelber Offline OP
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And add to that the screen's going black when the cursor is dragged through the dock ... and comes back to life when dragged back again.
Mystery upon mystery.

Last edited by joemikeb; 07/06/12 02:03 AM. Reason: Split off from another thread

That must be wonderful; I have no idea what it means.
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Re: Screen going black
grelber #22461 07/05/12 10:28 PM
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Originally Posted By: grelber
And add to that the screen's going black when the cursor is dragged through the dock ... and comes back to life when dragged back again.
Mystery upon mystery.

mmm can't say I've ever seen that happen before. related? or needs a new thread?

Re: Screen going black
Virtual1 #22462 07/05/12 11:29 PM
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grelber Offline OP
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It only happens occasionally, and I can't replicate it "on purpose".

As for a new "mystery gesture" thread ... it makes me no never mind. Just thought it might be useful to put such weirdness together in one spot.

EDIT: Actually, the screen doesn't go "black", just extremely dark, but one can see what is there very dimly.

Last edited by grelber; 07/06/12 08:46 AM. Reason: Addendum
Re: Screen going black
grelber #22463 07/05/12 11:48 PM
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Originally Posted By: grelber
Just thought it might be useful to put such weirdness together in one spot.

You unlock this door with a key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension - a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You're moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas. You've just crossed over into… the twilight zone.

Re: Screen going black
Virtual1 #22464 07/06/12 01:06 AM
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Re: Screen going black
MicroMatTech3 #22467 07/06/12 08:44 AM
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grelber Offline OP
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Ah yes ... such weirdness does bring out the channelers of Rod Serling.

[See EDIT in my last post.]

Re: Screen going black
grelber #22468 07/06/12 09:04 AM
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> Actually, the screen doesn't go "black", just extremely dark, but one can see what is there very dimly.

That's the same thing you'll see if you turn your screen brightness down to its lowest possible setting.

I'll suggest that you run Apple Hardware Test, although I don't know what, if anything, it may tell you.

For more ideas you'll have to wait for more of America to awaken.


The new Great Equalizer is the SEND button.

In Memory of Harv: Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire
Re: Screen going black
artie505 #22469 07/06/12 09:50 AM
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grelber Offline OP
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I doubt that it would tell me anything, since it only occurs sporadically under the conditions noted.
I've checked various System Preferences for anything which might have been inadvertently checked, but nothing out of the ordinary pops up.

Re: Screen going black
grelber #22475 07/07/12 07:33 PM
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Originally Posted By: grelber
And add to that the screen's going black when the cursor is dragged through the dock ... and comes back to life when dragged back again.
Mystery upon mystery.

Maybe the trigger isn't so much dragging the cursor through the dock as dragging it into a corner. Each of the four corners of the screen can be configured as a "hot corner" to trigger actions like "Put Display to Sleep" (makes screen go black), "Start Screen Saver" (possibly likewise, depending on your choice of screen saver), or "Desktop" (move windows off-screen and put a gray border around the now-exposed desktop).

Re: Screen going black
ganbustein #22476 07/07/12 08:15 PM
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When I use my "Put Display to Sleep" hot corner my display blackens with no desktop image visible behind the black, as opposed to grelber's description of what he is seeing:

Originally Posted By: gelber
Actually, the screen doesn't go "black", just extremely dark, but one can see what is there very dimly.

Since that's precisely what I see when I turn my screen brightness down to -0-, I suggested a possible hardware issue, but grelber is disinclined to run Apple Hardware Test (again, not that I've got the least idea whether it will find anything).


The new Great Equalizer is the SEND button.

In Memory of Harv: Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire
Re: Screen going black
ganbustein #22477 07/07/12 09:14 PM
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grelber Offline OP
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Nope. It has nothing to do with corners. And, as noted, all such possibilities have been ruled out.

Re: Screen going black
artie505 #22478 07/07/12 09:24 PM
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grelber Offline OP
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I don't know what Apple Hardware Test is. It certainly didn't come with my iMac or Lion ... at least not so I can find it. It's not mentioned in Pogue's Missing Manual.

Re: Screen going black
grelber #22479 07/07/12 09:34 PM
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See Intel-based Macs: Using Apple Hardware Test. (I can't imagine Pogue having overlooked it.)

Although I doubt that it will tell you anything more than "Nothing" (which, in and of itself, is something), I'll still recommend that you run the extended test.


The new Great Equalizer is the SEND button.

In Memory of Harv: Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire
Re: Screen going black
artie505 #22482 07/08/12 08:26 AM
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grelber Offline OP
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I have scoured Pogue's manual and find no reference to AHT in any form. I'll consider this approach if the problem surfaces again.

Re: Screen going black
grelber #22483 07/08/12 10:28 AM
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> I have scoured Pogue's manual and find no reference to AHT in any form.

That's odd; have you looked in "Help" on your iMac?


The new Great Equalizer is the SEND button.

In Memory of Harv: Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire
Re: Screen going black
artie505 #22485 07/08/12 03:29 PM
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grelber Offline OP
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Yes. Spotlight shows up nothing related. Help Center shows up nothing either on or off line; of course, Help Center online never loads — it seems to want broadband interaction.

Re: Screen going black
grelber #22486 07/08/12 04:49 PM
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Originally Posted By: grelber
Yes. Spotlight shows up nothing related. Help Center shows up nothing either on or off line; of course, Help Center online never loads — it seems to want broadband interaction.

Bizarre! (That's on my MacBook, not on line/OS X 10.6.8.)


The new Great Equalizer is the SEND button.

In Memory of Harv: Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire

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