Massaging pixels
I own a Mac that had a bad pixel. I'd read about the "massaging" trick, and gave it a try every now and then, gently rubbing the bad pixel. No effect.
Then I tried the "borders" trick. Go straight up from the bad pixel and rub the border of the screen. Then go down and rub the bottom border. Then do the same for left and right.
I know it won't work for every case, but on my machine it brough the dead pixel to life, and all has been well since.
I understand that all manufacturers allow some number of bad pixels, and know that doing otherwise would raise the cost of our machines. But I hate the "crap shoot" aspect of it, and understand buyers' anger completely.
I saw a man in an Apple store last year who was livid over a very visible stuck pixel on his new 17" iMac. He was a new switcher from Windows, and couldn't believe that the price of an iMac didn't guarantee a perfect screen. The Apple Store manager only told him over and over that policy did not allow them to accept a return for that defect.
I should have stepped in and told him what the manager should have been telling him: that it's not an Apple-only issue, and he'd be taking the same chances with other brands. But whatever the explanations and reasonings, there's no quelling a buyer who's regretting a $2,000 purchase.
I was very worried over pixels when I bought my new PB. I lucked out on the crap shoot, and got a perfect screen. But next time? I'll have to roll the dice all over again...