Nothing wrong with that John. Hope you stay in school and study hard. Anyhow, do you remember what operating system was on there? Something like Windows XP or something like that. To access the BIOS "Press the blue Access IBM button when the message "To interrupt normal startup, press the blue Access IBM button" is displayed to enter the ThinkVantage Productivity Center, then select Start setup utility to open the BIOS Setup Utility." Check your setting and see if it displays properly when you are in the BIOS. You can also set your boot devices to the CD and restart your computer with a bootable CD. Do you know how to make a LINUX CD? Check for something like Puppy Linux. When you goole it you can check on their website how to burn a bootable version. Place that in your computer and see if it starts up. This link [http://www.ehow.com/how_6673046_connect-keyboard-monitor-ibm-t41.html|RIGHT HERE] will tell you how to connect an external monitor. See if that makes a difference. Let us know what you get with these steps. Do not hesitate to ask questions or comments to clarify any of these steps.