Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 Internal 802.11b PC Card User's Guide Introduction Completing the Setup Using the Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 Wireless Utility Specifications Regulatory Information Troubleshooting Glossary Information in this document is subject to change without notice. © 2000–2003 Dell Computer Corporation. All rights reserved. The copying or reproducing of any material in this document in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of Dell Computer Corporation is strictly forbidden.
Back to Contents Introduction: Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 PC Card User's Guide Before you begin Things you should know TrueMobile 1180 network Before you begin Obtain the following information from your network administrator (if you are a home user, obtain this information from the person that installed your wireless access point): ● ● ● ● ● Network names (SSID) of the specific wireless networks that you want to connect to.
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Back to Contents Completing the Setup: Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 PC Card User's Guide NOTE—Before you begin, be sure you have the required network information from your network administrator (see Before you begin in the Introduction section).
You can configure a network profile for networks that are listed in the Available networks list as well as networks that are not listed. When you have completed configuring a network profile, the network name and icon appear at the top of the Preferred networks list. Your computer automatically connects to the network at the top of the Preferred networks list.
1. After opening the utility, select the network from the Available networks list and click Configure. 2. Click OK in the Wireless Network Properties box. 3. The network name and icon appear at the top of the Preferred networks list. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the selected network when you see a blue bubble on top of the icon for that network.
Configuring a profile for a listed network that requires a WEP key (Windows 2000 environment) 1. After opening the utility, select the network from the Available networks list and click Configure.
2. Select the Data encryption (WEP enabled) box. 3. Clear the The key is provided for me automatically box. 4. Type the network key in the Network key box. NOTE—You do not need to select the Key format or the Key length before typing the network key. These settings automatically change to the appropriate setting as you type the network key. 5. Click OK.
6. The network name and icon appear at the top of the Preferred networks list. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the selected network when you see a blue bubble on top of the icon for that network. If the bubble does not appear, try to access a Web page to verify that you are connected to the Internet.
Configuring a profile for a network that is not listed and does not require a WEP key (Windows 2000 environment) 1. After opening the utility, click Add.
2. Type the network name in the Network name (SSID) box. 3. Click OK.
4. The network name and icon appear at the top of the Preferred networks list. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the added network when you see a blue bubble on top of the icon for that network. If the bubble does not appear, try to access a Web page to verify that you are connected to the Internet.
Configuring a profile for a network that is not listed and requires a WEP key (Windows 2000 environment) 1. After opening the utility, click Add.
2. 3. 4. 5. Type the network name in the Network name (SSID) box. Select the Data encryption (WEP enabled) box. Clear the The key is provided for me automatically box. Type the network key in the Network key box. NOTE—You do not need to select the Key format or the Key length before typing the network key. These settings automatically change to the appropriate setting as you type the network key. 6. Click OK.
7. The network name and icon appear at the top of the Preferred networks list. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the added network when you see a blue bubble on top of the icon for that network. If the bubble does not appear, try to access a Web page to verify that you are connected to the Internet.
Configuring a network profile (Windows® XP environment) Before you can connect to a wireless network, you must configure a network profile for that network on your computer using the TrueMobile wireless utility. If you purchased your portable computer with the Dell TrueMobile 1180 internal 802.11b PC Card already installed and set up at the factory, follow the network profile configuration instructions provided below.
Opening the utility 1. From the desktop, click the Start button and click Control Panel. 2. If you are looking at the Category View of Control Panel, click Switch to Classic View. If you are looking at the Classic View of Control Panel, go to the next step. 3. Double-click the Network Connections icon. 4. Right-click Dell TrueMobile 1180 Internal 802.11b PC Card in the LAN or High-Speed Internet area and click Properties. 5. If the Wireless Networks tab is not on top, Click the Wireless Networks tab. 6.
● ● ● ● Configuring a profile for a listed network that does not require a WEP key Configuring a profile for a listed network that requires a WEP key Configuring a profile for an network that is not listed and does not require a WEP key Configuring a profile for an network that is not listed and requires a WEP key Configuring a profile for a listed network that does not require a WEP key (Windows XP environment) 1.
Configuring a profile for a listed network that requires a WEP key (Windows XP environment) 1. After opening the utility, select the network from the Available networks list and click Configure.
2. In the Wireless Network Properties box, select the Data encryption (WEP enabled) box. 3. Clear the The key is provided for me automatically box. 4. Type the network key in the Network key box. NOTE—You do not need to select the Key format or the Key length before typing the network key. These settings automatically change to the appropriate setting as you type the network key. 5. Click OK.
6. The network name and icon appear at the top of the Preferred networks list. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the selected network when you see a blue bubble on top of the icon for that network. If the bubble does not appear, try to access a Web page to verify that you are connected to the Internet.
Configuring a profile for a network that is not listed and does not require a WEP key (Windows XP environment) 1. After opening the utility, click Add.
2. Type the network name in the Network name (SSID) box. 3. Click OK.
4. The network name and icon appear at the top of the Preferred networks list. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the added network when you see a blue bubble on top of the icon for that network. If the bubble does not appear, try to access a Web page to verify that you are connected to the Internet.
Configuring a profile for a network that is not listed and requires a WEP key (Windows XP environment) 1. After opening the utility, click Add.
2. 3. 4. 5. Type the network name in the Network name (SSID) box. Select the Data encryption (WEP enabled) box. Clear the The key is provided for me automatically box. Type the network key in the Network key box. NOTE—You do not need to select the Key format or the Key length before typing the network key. These settings automatically change to the appropriate setting as you type the network key. 6. Click OK.
7. The network name and icon appear at the top of the Preferred networks list. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the added network when you see a blue bubble on top of the icon for that network. If the bubble does not appear, try to access a Web page to verify that you are connected to the Internet.
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Back to Contents Using the Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 Wireless Utility: Dell TrueMobile 1180 PC Card User's Guide Opening the utility Adding a new network to the list of preferred networks Viewing the link status of your wireless connection Viewing or modifying the wireless network properties Setting up an ad hoc (peer-to-peer) group network for connecting to the Internet Adding an ad hoc network Disabling the radio Diagnostics Opening the utility The TrueMobile™ 1180 wireless utility starts automatically eve
To open the utility in the Windows XP environment 1. From the desktop, click the Start button and click Control Panel. 2. If you are looking at the Category View of Control Panel, click Switch to Classic View. If you are looking at the Classic View of Control Panel, go to the next step. 3. Double-click the Network Connections icon. 4. Right-click Dell TrueMobile 1180 Internal 802.11b PC Card in the LAN or High-Speed Internet area and click Properties.
Adding a new network to the list of preferred networks Your computer automatically connects to the network at the top of the Preferred networks list. You must configure a network profile for each network that you want to add to the Preferred networks list. To add a new network to the list of preferred networks in the Windows 2000 environment, first check to see if the new network is listed in the Available networks list of the Wireless Networks tab of the utility.
● ● ● Completing the setup. See Configuring a profile for a listed network that requires a WEP key (Windows 2000 environment) in Completing the setup. See Configuring a profile for a listed network that does not require a WEP key (Windows XP environment) in Completing the setup See Configuring a profile for a listed network that requires a WEP key (Windows XP environment) in the Completing the setup.
To view the link status (Windows XP environment) 1. Open the TrueMobile 1180 wireless utility a. From the desktop, click the Start button and click Control Panel. b. If you are looking at the Category View of Control Panel, click Switch to Classic View. If you are looking at the Classic View of Control Panel, go to the next step. c. Double-click the Network Connections icon. d. Double-click Dell TrueMobile 1180 Internal 802.11b PC Card in the LAN or High-Speed Internet area. 2.
The quality of the connection (signal strength) is indicated graphically by the color of the vertical bars in the TrueMobile 1180 Wireless Utility icon and is indicated verbally by the description (in this case, Excellent). Three vertical green bars indicate that the signal strength is very good or excellent. Two vertical green bars indicate that the signal is good. Two vertical yellow bars indicate that the signal strength is marginal. Suggested action: Move closer to the access point.
A single vertical red bar indicates that the signal strength is very weak Suggested action: Move closer to the access point. Uncolored vertical bars indicate that there is no signal being received. Probable causes: ● ● The computer is trying to establish an initial connection. You have moved out of range of the network. Suggested action: ● ● Wait Move closer to the access point. Uncolored vertical bars with a red letter x at the top indicate that there is no radio connection.
4. From the Wireless Network Properties box, you can enable or disable WEP data encryption and change the network name and network key (see the Completing the setup section for instructions).
To view or modify the wireless network properties (Windows XP environment) 1. Open the TrueMobile 1180 wireless utility. a. From the desktop, click the Start button and click Control Panel. If you are looking at the Category View of Control Panel, click Switch to Classic View. b. Double-click the Network Connections icon. c. Right-click Dell TrueMobile 1180 Internal 802.11b PC Card in the LAN or High-Speed Internet area and click Properties. 2. If it is not already on top, click the Wireless Networks tab.
4. 5. From the Wireless Networks Properties box, you can enable or disable WEP data encryption and change the network name and the network key (see the Completing the setup section for instructions).
Setting up an ad hoc (peer-to-peer) group network for connecting to the Internet To connect the computers in an ad hoc group network to the Internet, you must install the Windows Internet connection sharing (ICS) component. ICS installation is not required, however, for communication among a group of computers that have a Dell TrueMobile 1180 PC Card installed in each computer.
Setting up Internet connection sharing (ICS) on the host computer To set up ICS in the Windows XP environment 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Connect the host computer to the Internet. From the host computer, click the Start button. Click Help and Support. Perform a search on Internet Connection Sharing. From the Pick a task list, click Enable Internet Connection Sharing on a Network Connection. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete setting up ICS. To set up ICS in the Windows 2000 environment 1. 2. 3. 4.
4. Type the network name in the Network name (SSID) box. 5. Select the This is a computer-to-computer (ad hoc) network: wireless access points are not used box. 6. Click OK.
7. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the added network when you see a bubble on top of the icon for that network.
Adding an ad hoc network that requires a WEP key (Windows 2000 environment) 1. To add an ad hoc network to the Preferred networks list, open the TrueMobile 1180 wireless utility. a. From the desktop, click the Start button, point to Settings, and click Control Panel. b. Double-click the TrueMobile 1180 Wireless Utility icon . 2. If the Wireless Networks tab is not already on top, click the Wireless Networks tab. 3. Click Add.
4. 5. 6. 7. Type the network name in the Network name (SSID) box. Select the Data encryption (WEP enabled) box. Clear the The key is provided for me automatically box. Type the network key in the Network key box. NOTE—You do not need to select the Key format or the Key length before typing the network key. These settings automatically change to the appropriate setting as you type the network key. 8. Select the This is a computer-to-computer (ad hoc) network: wireless access points are not used box. 9.
10. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the added network when you see a blue bubble on top of the icon for that network.
Adding an ad hoc network that does not require a WEP key (Windows XP environment) 1. To add an ad hoc network to the Preferred networks list, open the TrueMobile 1180 wireless utility. a. From the desktop, click the Start button and click Control Panel. If you are looking at the Category View of Control Panel, click Switch to Classic View. b. Double-click the Network Connections icon. c. Right-click Dell TrueMobile 1180 Internal 802.11b PC Card in the LAN or High-Speed Internet area and click Properties. 2.
5. Type the network name in the Network name (SSID) box. 6. Select the This is a computer-to-computer (ad hoc) network: wireless access points are not used box. 7. Click OK.
8. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the added network when you see a blue bubble on top of the icon for that network. Adding an ad hoc network that requires a WEP key (Windows XP environment) 1. To add an ad hoc network to the Preferred networks list, open the TrueMobile 1180 wireless utility. a. From the desktop, click the Start button and click Control Panel. If you are looking at the Category View of Control Panel, click Switch to Classic View.
5. 6. 7. 8. Type the network name in the Network name (SSID) box. Select the Data encryption (WEP enabled) box. Clear the The key is provided for me automatically box. Type the network key in the Network key box. NOTE—You do not need to select the Key format or the Key length before typing the network key. These settings automatically change to the appropriate setting as you type the network key. 9. Select the This is a computer-to-computer (ad hoc) network: wireless access points are not used box. 10.
11. Wait up to one minute for the network connection to be made. Your computer is connected to the added network when you see a blue bubble on top of the icon for that network. Disabling the radio To disable the radio on your Dell TrueMobile 1180 internal 802.11b PC Card, right-click the TrueMobile 1180 Wireless Utility icon in the system tray and click Disable Radio. To enable the radio, right-click the TrueMobile 1180 Wireless Utility icon and click Enable Radio.
You can run a number of diagnostics on your Dell TrueMobile 1180 wireless device to verify its operational and functional status. NOTE—Your network connection is lost when you run the diagnostics. When the test run is over, your network connection is automatically reestablished. Diagnostics (Windows 2000 environment) 1. To begin running the diagnostics, open the TrueMobile 1180 wireless utility. a. From the desktop, click the Start button, point to Settings, and click Control Panel. b.
section. Diagnostics (Windows XP environment) 1. To begin running the diagnostics, open the TrueMobile 1180 wireless utility. a. From the desktop, click the Start button and click Control Panel. If you are looking at the Category View of Control Panel, click Switch to Classic View. b. Double-click the TrueMobile 1180 Wireless Utility icon. 2. Click the Diagnostics tab. 3. To see a description of the test, click each test and look in the Status area. 4. All tests are selected by default.
6. If your Dell TrueMobile 1180 internal 802.11b PC Card fails any of the diagnostics tests, see the Troubleshooting section. Back to top Back to Contents Please read copyright and trademark information.
Back to Contents Troubleshooting: Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 PC Card User's Guide Cannot connect to the network Performance and connectivity problems Getting help Cannot connect to the network If your Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 wireless device appears to be functioning properly but you cannot connect to the network, the problem may be that there is a mismatch between the Network name (SSID) and Wireless network key (WEP) settings in your Wireless Network Properties and the name and WEP key of the network you are
Verify that File and Printer Sharing is enabled on all the computers on your network. 1. From the desktop, click the Start button, point to Settings, and click Control Panel. 2. In Control Panel, double-click the Network and Dial-up Connections icon. 3. In the Network and Dial-up Connections window, doubleclick the Local Area Connection icon. 4. In the Local Area Connection Status box, click Properties. 5.
Network performance is really slow when the system is docked to a docking station that has an active Ethernet port. NOTE—For Windows 2000 only. This condition occurs if you dock your system into a docking station that has an active Ethernet port while your Dell TrueMobile 1180 internal PC Card is still active and connected to an access point. This happens because Windows 2000 must now handle two active network connections.
Back to Contents Specifications: Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 PC Card User's Guide Physical characteristics Temperature and humidity limitations Power characteristics Networking characteristics Radio characteristics Physical characteristics Form factor PCMCIA/CardBus Dimensions (length, width) 110x54x6 mm Temperature and humidity limitations Operating 0 to 85°C 95% maximum (no condensation allowed) Storage 95% maximum (no condensation allowed) –20 to 85°C Power characteristics Doze mode 100 mA Receive
Networking characteristics Compatibility IEEE 802.11 standard for wireless LANs (DSSS) Network operating system Microsoft® Windows® Networking Host operating system Microsoft® Windows® XP, 2000 ● NDIS5 miniport driver Media access protocol CSMA/CA (collision avoidance) with acknowledgment (ACK) Data rate High 11 Mbps Medium 5.5 Mbps Standard 2 Mbps Low 1 Mbps NOTE—The Dell TrueMobile 1180 internal 802.
Semi-open office environment range 59 m (194 ft) 74 m (244 ft) 90 m (300 ft) 115 m (375 ft) Closed office environment range 29 m (96 ft) 36 m (119 ft) 40 m (130 ft) 50 m (165 ft) Receiver sensitivity –85 dBm –88 dBm –91 dBm –94 dBm Delay spread (at FER of <1%) ›250 ns ›300 ns 400 ns 500 ns NOTES 1—The range of your wireless devices can be affected when the antennas are placed near metal surfaces and solid highdensity materials.
Back to Contents Regulatory Information: Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 PC Card User's Guide Information for the user Regulatory information Information for the user Wireless interoperability The Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 products are designed to be interoperable with any wireless LAN product that is based on direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) radio technology and to comply with the following standards: ● ● IEEE Std. 802.1b-1999. Standard on Wireless LAN.
Regulatory information The Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 wireless network device must be installed and used in strict accordance with the manufacturer's instructions as described in the user documentation that comes with the product. For country-specific approvals, see Radio approvals.
Tämä laite vastaa EU:n radio- ja telepäätelaitedirektiivin (EU R&TTE Directive 1999/5/EC) vaatimuksia. France Some areas of France have a restricted frequency band. The worst case maximum authorised power indoors is: 10 mW for the entire 2.4 GHz band (2400 MHz–2483.5 MHz) 100 mW for frequencies between 2446.5 MHz and 2483.5 MHz (NOTE—Channels 10 through 13 inclusive operate in the band 2446.6 MHz to 2483.
Italia A license is required for indoor use. Outdoor use is prohibited. E' necessaria la concessione ministeriale anche per l'uso interno. Verificare con i rivenditori la procedura da seguire. L'uso per installazione in esterni non e' permessa. USA—Federal Communications Commission (FCC) This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation of the device is subject to the following two conditions: ● ● This device may not cause harmful interference.
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Back to Contents Glossary: Dell™ TrueMobile™ 1180 PC Card User's Guide access point A stand-alone wireless hub that allows any computer that has a wireless network adapter to communicate with another computer and to connect to the Internet. available network One of the networks listed in the Available networks list on the Wireless Networks tab of the Wireless Configuration box that appears when the TrueMobile 1180 wireless utility is open.
ns nanosecond. 1 billionth (1/1 000 000 000) of a second. peer-to-peer network A communication configuration in which every computer has the same capabilities and any computer can initiate a communication session. preferred network One of the networks that you have configured. Such networks appear in the Preferred networks list on the Wireless Networks tab of the Wireless Configuration box when the TrueMobile 1180 wireless utility is open.