On Thursday 08 April 2021 at 17:26:42, Bernard Rosset via Dng wrote:

> >> I would boot from an installation USB / CD (preferably the one you set
> >> the
> >> machine up from) and go into Rescue Mode, and see whether the hardware
> >> still
> >> continues behaving the same way.
> >
> > I just did that on the latest Devuan Beowulf Live distro (kernel
> > 4.19.0-14), and... no flickering!
>
> Booting back on the internal disk... No flickering.
> I just don't get it. Would it be hardware/cable-related in the end?
> *sighs*

I would say yes, it sounds like a dodgy cable / solder joint / connector to
me.

If you have a spare external keyboard, try using the machine with that for a
while, so that you're working on the machine without actually touching it and
causing any vibration.

I suspect there's a cable between the mainboard and the display which is
losing connectivity from time to time, and I would guess that that's most
likely caused by you actually typing on the keyboard.

As for a repair, I have no idea what it's like trying to get inside Dell
laptops. Other makes which I've attacked with screwdrivers in the past have
ranged from trivial to challenging, especially when some allow you to take a
cover off and immediately see the mainboard; others require you to go in from
the other side and remove almost everything from the machine before you can
get to the board. I wish you luck, but at least you can be grateful it's not
an Apple.


Antony.

--
In Heaven, the beer is Belgian, the chefs are Italian, the supermarkets are
British, the mechanics are German, the lovers are French, the entertainment is
American, and everything is organised by the Swiss.

In Hell, the beer is American, the chefs are British, the supermarkets are
German, the mechanics are French, the lovers are Swiss, the entertainment is
Belgian, and everything is organised by the Italians.

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