NVRAM issues, then dead screen

My girlfriend's Macbook Pro, a 2009 Core 2 Duo 2.16ghz, went totally dead about a month ago. After doing some research, I found that resetting the NVRAM (Command+Option+P+R) seemed to get it running again. We'd have to do this once a week or so. And while I assumed the problem might get worse, I hoped that it would stay ok.
Of course, it didn't. Recently, it went dead, and when we reset the NVRAM, the computer seemed to start up again, but with a dead screen. I tried to output video via DVI, but that was dead too.
It's an old laptop, and I'm inclined to say that it's a lost cause - however, it died in such an odd fashion that at the very least, i'm curious about what was going on. Does anyone have any insight? FWIW, it had a 3rd-party battery in it, and I noticed that the NVRAM wasn't resetting when the battery was out and the computer was plugged in.
Thanks!
Tyler

vhanudux wrote:
FWIW, it had a 3rd-party battery in it, and I noticed that the NVRAM wasn't resetting when the battery was out and the computer was plugged in.
You nailed it, Apple can change OS and firmware and the cause problems for third party battery makers.

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