Monitor went black with on/off light flashing?

I have a Dell 17-inch E173FP flat panel display monitor.  Just after I visited a website, I left the room and returned to find that the monitor had gone black and that the on/off light was flashing every few seconds.  Unplugged the monitor from the outlet, plugged it back in, but no change.  Couldn't shut down my computer as a result and so I just had to turn it off manually.  Any idea what's wrong with the monitor?

Comments

[frollard]

based on this information I'll give a 90% probability it's a loose video (not power) cable, with an uncertainty of 3 cables out of 4.

[Vyger]

Um, the screan saver kicked in and turned it off.

The computer shut down to install some updates and its off.

Your cat stepped on the keyboard and hit the sleep button.

Someone took over remote control of your computer and turned it into a zombie slave and doesn't want you to see what they are doing so they shut the montor off.

The list could go on and on.

The dog yanked the video cable loose from the video card.

Skynet has become aware and self conscious --- we all know how that ends up.

[nurdee1]

If you have access to another monitor I would try it that will narrow it down to either the monitor or the computer. Let me know if this helps.

[The Skinnerz]

It could have overheated. If so, it should work again after a while, but is likely to happen again at some point. Alternatively, the manual may have some simple information on faults.