u/crocolover87

I'm working with one laptop connected to an external monitor. The bottom part of my laptop screen is just black. I know I need to repair it, but the IT people I've spoken to have told me that I need to replace the entire screen, which is pretty expensive.

Until I have the money to repair it, I'm stuck with this black band at the bottom, which means I can't see the taskbar on my laptop. I have to use the taskbar on my external monitor instead. It's not a big deal by itself, but when you're working 8 hours a day, a minor inconvenience like this can become a big deal by the end of the day.

I've already asked ChatGPT if it's possible to have a vertical taskbar on my laptop screen while keeping a normal bottom taskbar on my external monitor, but it just hallucinated an answer, so I thought I'd ask here.

Any ideas?

Hello everyone,

My account was put on hold, restricted temporarily suspended from August 1st 2026 to August 7th 2026.

I’m sharing this because I couldn’t find similar stories when I was trying to understand what was happening. Seeing so many stories about permanent deactivations for no reason made me panic, so I hope this helps someone going through the same thing.

The trigger: a free VPN extension that I forgot to turn off.

What I was accused of: sharing my account with someone abroad (not exactly worded like that, but based on the questions during the verification call, that’s what I understood).

What I did: I explained when I used the VPN extension and sent a Loom video explaining the situation after the verification call.

I panicked during the whole 6 days:

• I had to send my government-issued ID and proof of address.
• My verification call lasted 41 minutes, even though it was scheduled for 30 minutes.
• After the verification call, I expected an update within 48 hours, but I had to wait 48 hours + 12 more hours.
• I lost my Top Rated Badge during the process.
• My payment was postponed.

In the end, Upwork restored my account access after the review.

I’m sharing this because when I searched for answers, I mostly found stories about permanent suspensions. I hope this helps someone who is currently going through the same panic I experienced.