Screen keeps shutting down - Help!

I posted this in the XP forum, but thought that it might apply here as well.

Hello all,

I just obtained a Compaq Armada PII400 laptop computer running XP and I keep experiencing this unusual phenomenon of the screen simply blanking and shutting off. The computer seems to continue running normally (i.e. when I'm watching a DVD, I can still hear it playing).

I've tried adjusting all the display and power settings, so I'm pretty sure that the problem lies elsewhere.

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A few curious points:

Initially, this "blanking" of the screen was occuring in fifteen minute intervals, now it's happening every 3 minutes (this would lead one to think it is the settings).

On occasion, this computer has a tendency to "time out", in which case I have to unplug its C-mos battery for about one minute, plug it in again, and then restart the computer. This seems unrelated to the screen problem, however.

My keypad retains it functionality (i.e. I can hear beeps when I press the keys during a "blank screen period"), yet neither striking the keys or the touchpad has any affect on the display.

The laptop appears to be continuing normal operations. I can hear the fan and the hard-drive working.

I can hit either the "suspend" or power button on the laptop, to shut the unit down. Restarting with the suspend button brings the computer back to its previous state (for instance, where the DVD left off).

If I am continuously using the laptop (i.e. creating a document) it stays on.

One question for all of you. Is XP too cumbersome for a PII? If so, would I be better off running 98 or 2000? What about Linux?

Well, I guess that's it. Any help would be most appreciated, since this has rendered my computer all but unusable.

Regards,
John