Laptop, external monitor no picture.

[oNeKOG]

My friend gave me his old laptop, he bought a new one.
The screen is crack making it totally useless.
I'm trying to boot from a USB stick but can't because I can't see what's going on.
If the system boots normal windows will show up on the external monitor.

Sony vaio

VPCEH33FD

Intel i3 2.3 ghz
6 gb ram
Intel video card
500 gb hard drive

Thanks in advance.

 

[MrNeeds]

You could try pressing fn+F7 to see if it cycles to the external display while booting, if it does then just press enter to confirm and save, it's not done via windows but the Sony hardware, so give it a go and good luck.

 

[oNeKOG]

Thanks for the reply MrNeeds.
I tried that last night didn't work.
Maybe I'm doing wrong?
I'll try again tonight.
Is there anything else I give a try.

 

[MrNeeds]

A lot of people have had issues with the fn key, just keep trying and see if it responds, doesn't say much for the reliability of Sony hardware though.

 

[oNeKOG]

I'm banging away at it I don't think it likes me LOL
Sould the keys be pressed right after hitting the power button or do I hold them till the miracle happens?

 

[Berton]

Some Notebooks use the Fn + F5 or F7 key but there are some that have the functions using only the Fx key such as for Volume, PrntScrn, etc. and the Fn combination is used for traditional things. Another example is my MacBook Pro that doesn't need the Fn key for changing brightness using only the F1 or F2 key. One just has to pay attention to any colored markings on the keys which will be the same as the Fn key.

 

[oNeKOG]

Ok Berton.
Seems to be Fn+F7
I'll keep trying.

 

[oNeKOG]

I've tried and tried and tried it's not working.
Updated bios thought that might help but nope.
Is there anything else I can try?

 

[MrNeeds]

this is from the sony vaio website for your laptop

Selecting Display Modes

You can switch the display output between the computer screen and an external display connected to your VAIO computer.
Turn on an external display.
Press the Fn+F7 keys several times to select your desired display output, and then press the Enter key.
Note
If you disconnect a display cable (not supplied) from your VAIO computer while an external display is selected as the display output, the computer screen goes blank. In such a case, press the Fn+F7 keys twice, and then press the Enter key to switch the display output to the computer screen.
The display switch may become unavailable or your VAIO computer may become unstable during video playback. Exit the video playback software before switching the display output.
The display switch may not be available depending on the type of external display or projector.