|First my Compaq Presario monitor only looked like it was having a seizure,
|wiggled intermittantly, then it shrunk into an "hourglass" figure
|with both sides totally black.
|[...]do I just need to[...]buy a new monitor?
| Marilyn

It could well be that your horizontal deflection circuit
(the hardest-working part of the thing) has broken down.

Wiggling is often an indication of electrolytic capacitor failure in the power supply.

The pincushion correction circuit is another possibility.
Vertical deflection circuits also have an obscure failure mode
which gives a double-trapazoid effect.

Before spending $$ (and adding to the landfill mass),
try someone else's monitor with your box and/or your monitor with his box.


If it is an electrical problem,
any continued, sustained use of the thing is an invitation to a fire.

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