TravelMate 430 Series User’s Guide Model BQ12
Copyright © 2003 Acer Incorporated. All Rights Reserved. TravelMate 430 Series Notebook Computer User's Guide Original Issue: January 2003 Changes may be made periodically to the information in this publication without obligation to notify any person of such revision or changes. Such changes will be incorporated in new editions of this manual or supplementary documents and publications.
Federal Communication Commission Interference Statement This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications.
iii We would like to thank you for making the TravelMate series of notebook computers your choice for your mobile computing needs. We hope you will be happy with your TravelMate as much as we enjoyed making it for you. Your guides To help you use your TravelMate, we have designed a set of guides: First off, the Just for Starters... poster helps you get started with setting up your computer. This User’s Guide introduces you to the many ways your computer can help you be more productive.
English iv Basic care and tips for using your computer Turning your computer on and off To turn on the computer, simply press the power button - the leftmost button above the keybaord of your TravelMate. See page 3 for the exact location of the power button. To turn the power off, do any of the following: • Use the Windows shutdown command For Windows 2000: Click on Start, Shut Down..., and select Shut down; then click on OK. - or For Windows XP: Click on Start, Turn off Computer; then click Turn Off.
v Do not expose the computer to rain or moisture. • Do not spill water or any liquid on the computer. • Do not subject the computer to heavy shock and vibration. • Do not expose the computer to dust and dirt. • Never place objects on top of the computer to avoid damaging the computer. • Do not slam the computer display when you close it. • Never place the computer on uneven surfaces.
English vi 3 Use a soft cloth moistened with water. Do not use liquid or aerosol cleaners. 4 To clean the display screen, use an LCD cleaning kit. If any of the following occurs: • The computer has been dropped or the body has been damaged. • Liquid has been spilled into the product. • The computer does not operate normally. Please refer to "Troubleshooting my computer" on page 47.
1 Getting to know your TravelMate A TravelMate tour Front view Left view Right view Rear view Bottom view Features Indicators Using the keyboard Special keys Touchpad Touchpad basics Storage Hard disk Optical drive Using software Audio Adjusting the volume Using the Audio DJ feature Power management Moving around with your TravelMate Disconnecting from the desktop Moving around Taking the computer home Traveling with the computer Traveling internationally with the computer Securing your computer Using a com
viii English BIOS Utility 3 Troubleshooting my computer Frequently-asked questions Requesting service International Traveler’s Warranty (ITW) Before you call 44 47 49 52 52 53 Appendix A Specifications 55 Appendix B Notices 61 Index 69
1 Getting to know your TravelMate
Your TravelMate computer combines highperformance, versatility, power management features and multimedia capabilities with a unique style and ergonomic design. Work with unmatched productivity and reliability with your new power computing partner.
3 After setting up your computer as illustrated in the Just for Starters... poster, let us show you around your new TravelMate computer. Front view # Item Description 1 Display screen Also called LCD (liquid-crystal display), displays computer output. 2 Power Button Turns on the computer power. 3 Speakers Outputs sound.
English 4 1 Getting to know your TravelMate # Item Description 4 Keyboard Inputs data into your computer. 5 Touchpad Touch-sensitive pointing device which functions like a computer mouse. 6 Click buttons (left, center and right) The left and right buttons function like the left and right mouse buttons; the center button serves as a 4-way scroll button. 7 Audio DJ controls and indicators Button and indicators for the Audio DJ function.
5 Left view # Item Description 1 Power jack Connects to an AC adapter. 2 Security keylock Connects to a Kensington-compatible computer security lock. K English Note: The positions of the Optical drive indicator, eject button and emergency eject hole may differ depending on the optical drive module installed.
English 6 1 Getting to know your TravelMate Right view # Item Description 1 USB port Connects to Universal Serial Bus devices (e.g.,USB mouse, USB camera). 2 Line-in/Mic-in jack Accepts audio line-in devices (e.g., audio CD player, stereo walkman). Selection is through the OS Windows mixer. 3 Speaker/ Headphone-out jack Connects to audio line-out devices (e.g.,speakers, headphones). 4 Modem jack Connects to a phone line. 5 IEEE 1394 port Connects to an IEEE 1394 device.
7 Item Description 9 Memory stick slot Accepts memory sticks. 10 SD/MMC slot Accepts SD or MMC cards. Rear view # Item Description 1 Expansion port I/O replicator or EasyPort expansion devices. 2 External display port Connects to a display device (e.g., external monitor, LCD projector). 3 Parallel port Connects to a parallel device (e.g., parallel printer). 4 S-video Connects to a television or display device with S-video input.
English 8 1 Getting to know your TravelMate Bottom view # Item Description 1 Battery bay Houses the computer's battery pack. 2 Battery release latch Unlatches the battery to remove the battery pack. 3 Memory compartment Houses the computer's main memory. 4 Cooling fans Helps keep the computer cool. Note: Don't cover or obstruct the opening of the fan.
9 Below is a brief summary of the computer’s many features: Performance • Intel® Desktop P4P CPU with packing mPGA 478 package • PC2100 DDR SDRAM, Maximum memory up 2GB (with two 1024MB SODIMM when available ) • Internal optical drive (swappable with optional drive) • Removable PCI Bus Master Enhanced IDE hard disk • Li-lon battery pack • Power management system with ACPI (Advanced Configuration Power Interface) Display • Thin-Film Transistor (TFT) liquid crystal display (LCD) displaying 32bi
English 10 1 Getting to know your TravelMate Connectivity • High-speed fax/data modem port • Ethernet/Fast Ethernet port • 3 USB 2.
11 The computer has seven easy-to-read status icons below the display screen. Icon Function Description Power Lights green when the computer is on. Flashes when the computer is in low power. Sleep Flashes when the computer is entering Sleep mode. Lights orange when the computer is in Sleep mode. Battery charge Lights when the battery is being charged. Wireless communication Lights when the Wireless LAN or Bluetooth capabilities are enabled. Caps lock Lights when Caps Lock is activated.
English 12 1 Getting to know your TravelMate Using the keyboard The full-sized keyboard includes an embedded numeric keypad, separate cursor keys, two Windows keys and twelve function keys. Special keys Lock keys The keyboard has three lock keys which you can toggle on and off. Lock key Description Caps Lock When Caps Lock is on, all alphabetic characters typed are in uppercase. Num Lock (Fn-F11) When Num Lock is on, the embedded keypad is in numeric mode.
13 The embedded numeric keypad functions like a desktop numeric keypad. It is indicated by small characters located on the upper right corner of the keycaps. To simplify the keyboard legend, cursor-control key symbols are not printed on the keys. Desired access Num lock on Num lock off Number keys on embedded keypad Type numbers in a normal manner. Cursor-control keys on embedded keypad Hold Shift while using cursor-control keys. Hold Fn while using cursor-control keys.
English 14 1 Getting to know your TravelMate Windows keys The keyboard has two keys that perform Windows-specific functions. Key Description Windows logo key Start button. Combinations with this key perform shortcut functions. Below are a few examples: + Tab (Activates next taskbar button) + E (Explores My Computer) + F (Finds Document) + M (Minimizes All) Shift + + M (Undoes Minimize All) + R (Displays the Run... dialog box) Application key Opens a context menu (same as a right-click).
15 The computer employs hot keys or key combinations to access most of the computer’s controls like screen brightness, volume output. To activate hot keys, press and hold the Fn key before pressing the other key in the hot key combination. Hot key Icon Function Description Fn-F1 Hot key help Displays help on hot keys. Fn-F2 System Property Displays the System Property.
English 16 Hot key 1 Getting to know your TravelMate Icon Function Description Fn-F5 Display toggle Switches display output between the display screen, external monitor (if connected) and both the display screen and external monitor. Fn-F6 Screen blank Turns the display screen backlight off to save power. Press any key to return. Fn-F7 Touchpad toggle Turns the internal touchpad on and off. Fn-F8 Speaker toggle Turns the speakers on and off. Fn-↑ Volume up Increases the speaker volume.
17 The Euro symbol Note for US keyboard users: The keyboard layout is set when you first set up Windows. For the Euro symbol to work, the keyboard layout has to be set to United States-International. To verify the keyboard type in Windows 2000, follow the steps below: 1 Click on Start, Settings, Control Panel. 2 Double-click on Keyboard. 3 Click on the Language tab. 4 Verify that the keyboard layout used for "En English (United States)" is set to United States-International.
18 English 5 1 Getting to know your TravelMate Click on OK. To type the Euro symbol: 1 Locate the Euro symbol on your keyboard. 2 Open a text editor or word processor. 3 Hold Alt Gr and press the Euro symbol. Note: Some fonts and software do not support the Euro symbol. Please refer to www.microsoft.com/typography/faq/faq12.htm for more information. Launch Keys Located at the top of the keyboard are four buttons. These buttons are called launch keys.
19 E-Mail Detection Aside from the email checking function, there is a mail button that is used to launch the email application. It is located above the keyboard right below the LCD. English Click right button at the Launch Manager icon on the taskbar and click on E-Mail Detection. In this dialog box, you have the option to enable/ disable mail checking, set the time interval for mail checking, etc.
English 20 1 Getting to know your TravelMate Touchpad The built-in touchpad is a pointing device that senses movement on its surface. This means the cursor responds as you move your finger on the surface of the touchpad. The central location on the palmrest provides optimal comfort and support. Note: When using an external USB mouse, you can press Fn-F7 to disable the touchpad.
21 Note: Keep your fingers dry and clean when using the touchpad. Also keep the touchpad dry and clean. The touchpad is sensitive to finger movements. Hence, the lighter the touch, the better the response. Tapping harder will not increase the touchpad's responsiveness.
English 22 1 Getting to know your TravelMate Storage This computer supplies you with the following media storage: • High-capacity Enhanced-IDE hard disk • Optical drive Hard disk The high-capacity hard disk is the answer to your storage needs. This is where your programs and data are stored. Optical drive The optical drive bay accepts a wide variety of optional media drive modules for use with your computer.
23 Playing DVD movies When the DVD-ROM drive module is installed in the optical drive bay, you can play DVD movies on your computer. 1 Eject the DVD tray and insert a DVD movie disc; then close the DVD tray. Important! When you launch the DVD player for the first time, the program asks you to input the region code. DVD discs are divided into 6 regions. Once your DVD drive is set to a region code, it will play DVD discs of that region only.
English 24 1 Getting to know your TravelMate Audio The computer comes with 18-bit high-fidelity AC’97 stereo audio, and includes a built-in sensitive microphone and dual stereo speakers. There are audio ports on the right side of the computer. See “Right view” on page 6 for more information on connecting external audio devices. Adjusting the volume Adjusting the volume on the computer is as easy as pressing some buttons. See “Hot keys” on page 15 for more informations on adjusting the speaker volume.
25 The Audio DJ feature allows you to control the playback of music CDs even with the computer turned off. # Item Description 1 Power indicator Lights when the Audio DJ function is on. 2 Power Press for more than one second to turn the Audio DJ feature on/off. 3 Stop Stops audio playback. 4 Play/pause Plays/pauses audio. 5 Next track Skip to next audio track. 6 Previous track Skips to previous audio track. 7 Volume down Decrease volume. 8 Volume up Increase volume.
26 English 5 1 Getting to know your TravelMate You can now press the music playback buttons to begin music playback. Adjust the volume by using the volume buttons found at the left side of the front panel. Power management This computer has a built-in power management unit that monitors system activity. System activity refers to any activity involving one or more of the following devices: keyboard, mouse, floppy drive, hard disk, peripherals connected to the serial and parallel ports.
27 This section gives you tips and hints to consider when moving around or traveling with your computer. Disconnecting from the desktop Follow these steps to disconnect your computer from external accessories: 1 Save your work in progress. 2 Remove any media, diskette or compact disc, from the drive(s). 3 Shut down the computer. 4 Close the display cover. 5 Disconnect the cord from the AC adapter. 6 Disconnect the keyboard, pointing device, printer, external monitor, and other external devices.
English 28 1 Getting to know your TravelMate 1 Click on Start, Turn off Computer (Windows XP). 2 Hold "Shift" 3 Click on Hibernation (Windows XP). Then close and latch the display. When you are ready to use the computer again, unlatch and open the display; then release the power button. Note: If the sleep indicator is off, the computer has entered Hibernation mode and turned off. If the power indicator is off but the sleep indicator is on, the computer has entered Sleep mode.
29 Check if you have removed all media, diskettes and compact discs, from the drive(s). Failure to remove the media can damage the drive head. • Pack the computer in a protective case that can prevent the computer from sliding around and cushion it if it should fall. Caution: Avoid packing items next to the top cover of the computer.
English 30 1 Getting to know your TravelMate If you use your computer at home for significant periods of time, you might also want to add an external keyboard, monitor, or mouse. Traveling with the computer “when you are moving within a larger distance, for instance, from your office building to a client’s office building or traveling locally” Preparing the computer Prepare the computer as if you were taking it home. Make sure that the battery in the computer is charged.
31 Bring the following items with you: • AC adapter • Power cords that are appropriate for the country to which you are traveling • Spare, fully-charged battery packs • Proof of purchase, in case you need to show it to Customs officials • International Traveler’s Warranty passport Special considerations Follow the same special considerations as when traveling with the computer.
