PLEASE HELP! X201 Randomly screen goes black, flickers, slow

[max3mus]

Hey guys,
My x201 recently started doing the funky chicken. Randomly the screen will go black, then my taskbar will appear, then disappear, a window will appear then disappear, while at the same time being so slow that the it takes a few seconds for the mouse to move on screen after i physically move it. Only seems to happen when watching youtube, im guessing its something with the video. Anyone have similar issues?

BTW i have a second monitor attached. This is driving me nuts, and I have found nothing on the web.

Your help is much appreciated.

[farmall]

Does it happen when watching OTHER videos?

You could scan with antimalware tools and reinstall Flash.

.............

Things I'd do (teach yourself to do them if you aren't familiar, they are basic to modern PC troubleshooting):

Boot a live USB key with a Linux distro (Mint with codecs will do) and see if problem duplicates. If so, it's hardware since switching operating systems eliminates software or drivers being an issue. Every owner of a PC without a DVD drive which can boot from USB should have a tested live USB key handy.

Backup any files worth saving.

Prepare restore/reload media. You can load Windows 7 on a USB key easily using http://wintoflash.com/home/en/, then install from it. Don't wait until you need it, make one in advance.

I just did one this morning for my X200 since I have an SSD on the way. Extra space on the USB key can contain apps etc.

Any Windows install more than a year old which annoys me gets wiped out and reloaded. If I have reason I then make an image-based backup of the clean install.

Always be prepared to reinstall to bare metal. Hard drives can die without warning.