im stumped (MBP black display)

[meepzork]

My mother's MBP ("Core 2 Duo" 2.4 15" SR) has suddenly developed an annoying issue, and shes freaking out.

1. After the grey startup screen (apple logo) the screen goes black (off). If i connect an external display i can see the desktop. I have tried resetting PRAM as well as SMC.

2. The keyboard has a stuck key(or keys) which causes a beeping noise once the login screen appears. This makes it impossible to use and startup key combinations. All I have to do is tap a key (literally any key) and the noise stops.

at this point i cant tell if the 2 issues are related. im assuming that since the display works fine during the grey screen, i dont have a hardware issue. any ideas?

 

[duervo]

If the keyboard has stuck keys, then I question whether or not your PRAM/SMC reset attempts were successful.

First thing I would do is get an external Apple-compatible keyboard connected to the system, and then try the SMC/PRAM resets again.

If they don't make a difference, then check the display brightness. It's possible that it may be switching to its lowest brightness setting for some reason (perhaps a corrupt preferences file, or something to that affect.) So, I would try the display brightness function key on the keyboard, turning up the brightness.

If that works, then boot the system up in safe mode (Shift key during boot.)

In fact, I'd probably boot it in verbose safe mode, so I could see what it was doing as it booted. Shift-Command-V right after the chime.

 

[meepzork]

thanks for the input. i did some digging around online and found several articles regarding a known issue with the nvidia 8600. i took the laptop to the genius bar and they pretty much confirmed that i had the same issue, however i was outside of the warranty/recall coverage period. $310 flat rate repair looks like my only option.

Thanks again.