My monitor is lit up again! Muwah gave me some instructions and they worked. Thanks everyone for the help; every bit of info posted here was helpful. I should be getting my new battery in a couple of days, but I have also been having trouble connecting today. However, like some of you, this is a rural area and it's probably the cable co.

I'm appreciative for all your suggestions and I'll say it again~~ I'm a pc dummy!