Last night, while VISITING the Amazing Race CBS site, my flat screen MONITOR went dark.  I can STILL make out what is on the screen...barely... but it's not usable.  When I restarted my computer the monitor was bright for about 2 minutes then went dark again.  I ran a virus scan to no avail.  I tried turning off the monitor and turning it back on helped a few times, but now it stays dark (even after leaving the computer off all night and trying to just turn on the monitor without the computer- I can just make out the no signal detected notice).  Do I need a new monitor, video card, anti-virus software?

 sounds more like a problem with the monitor. If possible, try in on a different machine (or connect it to a LAPTOP or something). If the problem persists, then it sounds like the LCD backlight is shot.Had this happen several months ago, it was the back light inside the monitor  (HP).  I understand they can be repaired but with some difficulty, is cheaper to buy a new monitor.

I bought new monitor (HP), not as nice as the old one though.

It was suggested that a solder point had loosened.  The monitor would  come on, but as it warmed up I'd lose the backlight.   Kept the old monitor, one day I'll tear it apart and look for that cold solder point.

Probably cheaper still to GET a bundle package, as monitors alone are not cheap.

I had to somewhat fix one on my really old thinkpad; it was easier to fix, since it's backlight snapped on, and I could remove it easily (it was designed for overhead projectors)