Acer Aspire 6200 series User's Guide

Guide

…th e print ed comp anion

to th e way mo re fun and

handy on-screen experience of

M y Aspire Guide

Introd ucing

the not nearly as exciting

ink on paper version of…

Did you know your Acer Aspire comes wit h incredible mult im edia soft ware that was desigend t o show you all the cool stuff your com puter can do? This boo k can be a handy desktop reference, but you’ll receive m uch more indept h information and inst ruct ion by firing up My Aspire Guide soft ware. (It’s located on your Windows 98 deskt op and in t he Tools ‘N Stuff folder in Ace.) We’re prett y sure you’ll have mo re fun with the soft w are, t oo.

(P.S. - If you’re reading th is because you’re having trouble w ith your compu ter,

check th e Troubleshooting section in My A spire Gu ide softw are or the “N eed

Help?” section in t his book.)

Hey!

Wait

a m inut e!

Tab le of Contents

iii

Acer and the Acer logo are registered t rademarks and Aspire is a trademark of Acer Inc. an d Acer America Corp oration .

M icrosoft W ind ows and t he W indows Logo are registered t rademarks of M icrosoft Corporatio n. Intel and Pentium are regist ered t rademarks of Int el Corp. All ot her brands/prod uct names are t rademarks or registered trademarks of t heir resp ective com panies.

Table of

Cont ent s

Welcom e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Before You St art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Safet y Instruct ions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Proper Set up and Placement Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

An Introduction to Your Aspire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

The System: Aspire Microt ower . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Sett ing Up Your Aspire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Turning Your A spire On and Off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

The M ouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

The Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

The M onit or . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

The Speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Drives on Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Using Your Flo ppy Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Fo rm att ing a Floppy Diskette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Using Your CD-ROM / DVD-ROM Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Your Data/Fax M odem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Accessing the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Connecting an Optional Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Print er Driver Inst allation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Connecting an Optional Serial Device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Connecting an Optional Joyst ick or M IDI Device . . . . . . . . . . 21

Gett ing the Most from Your Acer Audio Syst em . . . . . . . . 22

Playing an Audio CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Adjusting the Volum e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

The Electro nic M ixing Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Adding Options to Your Aspire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Connecting USB Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Op ening/ Closing Your Aspire Microt ower . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Welcom e

Need Help?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

M y Asp ire Guide–Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Troubleshoot ing–General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Troubleshoot ing–Error M essages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Addit ional Acer Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Disclaimer of Warranties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Standard End User License Agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Syst em Warranty Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Limit ed Product Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

FCC Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Acer Year 2000 Com pliance Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

CD-ROM Safet y W arning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Caution on Lithium Batt eries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Welcome and thank you for

purchasing an Aspire computer. You are now t he owner of a mult im edia comput er system! Already inst alled on your syst em and ready to go are so ft w are programs designed to enable you to:

Create personal documents

Access the Int ernet and send and receive e-mail

Use your com puter as a fax machine

Play audio CDs while you’re working

and tons more!

Whether you’ve owned a computer before or not , your Aspire was designed to im prove the way you work and to serve your needs now and into t he fut ure.

Before Yo u St art ...

• Never spill liquid of any kind on the product .

• Do not attempt to service this product yourself; opening or

removing covers may exp ose you to dangerous volt age point s or other risks. Refer all servicing to qualified service personnel. Service by perso ns ot her than Acer authorized service providers may void your warrant y.

• Unplug this prod uct from the wall out let and refer servicing

to qualified service personnel under the follo wing conditions:

a • When the pow er cord or plug is damaged or frayed.

b • If liquid has been spilled int o the prod uct .

c • If the product has been exposed t o rain or water.

d • If the prod uct does not operate norm ally when the

operating instruct ions are follow ed. Adjust only those cont rols that are covered by the operating inst ruct ions since improper adjustment of ot her cont rols may result in damage and will oft en require extensive work by a qualified t echnician to restore the product to no rm al condit ion.

e • If the product has been dropped or the cabinet has been

damaged.

f • If the product exhibit s a dist inct change in performance,

indicating a need for service.

• Replace bat tery with the same type as the product ’s battery

we recom mend. Use of another batt ery may present a risk of fire or explosion. Refer batt ery replacement to qualified service personnel.

• Warning! Battery may explode if not handled properly. Do

not recharge, disassem ble or dispose of in fire. Keep away from children and dispose of used battery pro mpt ly.

• Use only t he proper t ype of power supply cord set (provided

in your keyboard/ manual accessories box) for t his unit . It should be a detachable type: UL listed/CSA certified, t ype SVT/ SJT, rat ed 6A 125V minimum , VDE approved or it s equivalent. M aximum length is 15 feet (4.6 meters).

• Always unplug the computer and monito r before opening

the housing or adjusting connections or cables.

• Use power st rips with surge protection to prot ect your com -

puter in t he event of a power surge, due to severe weather such as a thunderstorm.

Before You Start . . .

M ake sure you read this section carefully for proper placem ent and import ant Safet y Instructions on the use and care of your new com puter. Please save these instruct ions for future reference.

Safety Instructions

• Follow all warnings and inst ruct ions marked on the product .

• Unplug this prod uct from the wall out let before cleaning. Do

not use liquid cleaners or aeroso l cleaners. Use a clot h m ildly damp ened wit h water for cleaning.

• Do not use t his product in or near water.

• Do not place this product on an unstable cart , st and, or table.

The product m ay fall, causing serious damage to t he product.

• Slot s and openings in t he cabinet and t he back or bottom are

provided for vent ilatio n; to ensure reliable operat io n of the product and to protect it from overheat ing, these openings must not be blocked or covered. The openings should never be blocked by placing the product on a bed, sofa, rug, or other similar surface. This product should never be placed near or over a radiato r or heat register, or in a built-in inst allation unless proper ventilation is provided.

• This product should be operated from the type of power indi-

cated on t he marking label. If you are not sure of the type of power available, consult your dealer or local power company.

• This product is equip ped wit h a 3-wire grounding-t ype plug,

a plug having a third (grounding) pin. This plug will only fit int o a grounding-type pow er out let. This is a safet y feature. If you are unable to insert the plug into the out let, cont act your electrician to replace your obsolete out let. Do not defeat the purpose of t he grounding-type plug.

• Do not allow anything to rest on t he power cord. Do not

locate this product where persons will walk on the cord.

• If an extension cord is used with this product, make sure that

the total am pere rating of t he equipm ent plugged int o the extensio n cord does not exceed the extensio n cord ampere rating. Also, make sure that the tot al rating of all product s plugged int o the wall outlet does not exceed 15 am p eres.

• Never push objects of any kind into t his product through

cabinet slots as t hey may touch dangerous volt age point s or short out parts t hat could result in a fire or electric shock.

An Int roduct ion t o Your A spire

Aspire

An In t roduct ion to Your

The System: Aspire Microtower

CD-ROM /

DVD-ROM Drive

CD-ROM /

DVD-ROM

Eject But to n

Expansion Bay

Door

Pow er/

Quickst art

Button

Power Indicato r Light

Act ivity Indicator

Light

Proper Setup and Placement Tips

It’s im portant t hat your com put er be set up correct ly and according to your own comfo rt and ergonomic need s. The following tips should make your workst ation a com fort able and healthy place:

M onitor Level. Position your com put er so that it is at arm’s

length aw ay and the top t hird of the monitor viewing area is at eye level. This helps prevent eye and neck st rain. To furt her reduce eye st rain, close your eyes and refocus on so mething ot her than your comp ut er screen at least twice an hour. M ost monito rs come standard wit h a detachable tilt -and-swivel base and adjust able, rear-mounted foot , which allow you to position the monit or exact ly where you want it .

Your Seat. If you plan to use your Acer comput er for extended

periods (for exam ple, in a hom e office environment ), select a highly adjustable office chair with a five-pronged base. The seat and chair back should be adjustable, while you’re sit ting in the chair, for height and tilt , and forward/ backward positio ning, and the lumbar area of the back should be supp orted by the chair adjustments or a cushion. Arm rest s should conform to your elbow height and shoulder width and should be used for support . For maximum comfort , vary positions frequently throughout the day. Use good post ure when seated, keep your head centered over your shoulders and, just like your m other always told you, don’t slump over your work.

Ant i-Glare Coating. Some monit or screens are construct ed

wit h a sp ecial ant i-glare coating, which minimizes ref lections t hat cause eye st rain and discomfo rt . To further reduce eye st rain, close your eyes and refocus on so mething other than your com put er screen at least twice an hour .

Task Lighting. W hen roo m lighting is dimmed, t here may

be insufficient light on do cum ents or reference m aterials for comfortable reading. A well-lit room or a few directional, adjustable task lights will allow you to see your monit or screen and ot her materials clearly, and with the least amount of st rain.

Hand and Wrist . Keep your wrists st raight and your forearms

parallel to the floo r while you are typing. If you use a wrist rest , use it only briefly for rest ing. Do not rest your hands on the table or on t he wrist rest while you are typing. During long periods of typing, frequent breaks are recomm ended.

An Int roduct ion t o Your A spire

1 • Press and release the monit or power but t o n if it is not on

or blinking already.

2 • Press and release the comp ut er power but t on (Q uickst art

or t raditional st art ).

The monit or will begin displaying images after 5-10 second s. The power button lights on the comput er and monit o r will be on.

Not e: If you previously used Q uickstart OFFwh en you were done using your Aspire,

your comp ut er will return exactly where it was in just a couple of seconds. If you previously shut dow n W indows 98, your comput er will take 2-3 minutes to start.

Setting Up Your Aspire

Refer t o the Aspire Easy Setup Post er included in your syst em box for details on how to set up your comp ut er.

Turning Your Aspire On and Off

You have two options for turning your Aspire on and off. Your Aspire was designed for you wit h convenience in mind. The Quickstart opt ion allows your com put er to instantly t urn on and off, without waiting for a long st art-up time. If you like the tradit ional approach bett er, you can use it instead.

Turning on your Aspire

Not e: M ake sure that the AC mast er pow er switch located on the

back of your system is in the ON posit ion. Leave it O N at all times unless th e system is being serviced.

An Int roduct ion t o Your A spire

The Mouse

The mouse uses a curso r called a pointer. Point ers come in many different shapes but are most com m only shaped like an arrow.

Your m ouse has two but t ons: a left but t on and a right button. Quickly pressing and releasing one of t hese but to ns is called clicking. Som etimes you will need to double-click–or click the same but to n t w ice quickly.

In this manual, click means to position your m ouse point on an icon and to single click the left button. When a right click is required, this is stated clearly. Double-click also refers t o the left but t on.

The ratchet wheel in between the two but t ons is added to provide easier scrolling capabilit y. By sim ply moving the wheel wit h your index finger, you can quicky move through m ultiple pages, line, or windows. The wheel m ay also funct ion as a third but t on allowing you to quickly click or double-click an icon or a selected item

Not e: If you are left-handed, please refer to your W indows 98 manual

for inst ruct ions on ho w t o set up your mo use for left-handed use.

Right but t on

Left but t on

Point er movement on th e

screen is controlled by the

mo vement o f a small ball

on t he bott om of the

mo use.

Using a mou se pad under

your m ou se will help to

keep t he internal part s of

th e mou se clean. A dirt y

mo use result s in jerky

point er movement and dif-

ficult y get ting th e point er

where you want it o n

screen .

To clean your mouse:

1 • Tur n the mou se upside

dow n.

2 • Remove the ring hold ing

th e ball in place b y tur ning

it count erclockwise.

3 • Using a lint-free clot h or a

cotto n swab dipped in rub-

bing alcohol, clean all mov-

ing part s.

4 • Inser t t he ball back into

th e mouse, m aking su re to

tu rn t he ring clockw ise.

Caring for your M ouse

Turning off your Aspire Option 1: Quickst art O FF • Your Aspire will continue to run

in t he Quickstart O FF condit ion. It will ap pear t hat it is OFF. When you press the power but ton to swit ch your Aspire to the fully ON condit ion, it will do it in only a few seconds.

Option 2: Traditional OFF • If you want your Aspire to com-

pletely pow er OFF (if you need to unplug it):

1 • Click on the Windows St art but t on on the taskbar.

2 • Click on Shut Down.

3 • Click on Shut Down the Com puter and click Yes. Your

computer will guide you t hrough saving any open files and then will shut down Windows 98. Your com puter will then turn off all comput er power automatically. Yo u will have to manually turn off your monitor after you see the comput er power go off.

Refer t o M y Aspire Guide soft ware for more in-dept h opt ions and recom m endations for Quickstart and t raditional on/off modes.

Ratchet wheel

An Int roduct ion t o Your A spire

End key • takes you to t he end of a line.

Page Up / Page Down keys • move you up or down a screen

at a time.

Backspace key • is similar to t he delete key above, but it will

delete one character at a tim e to the left of the cursor.

Alt and Ctrl keys • have varying funct ions on their own or

when used with ot her keys, depending on the soft ware being used.

Num Lock key and numeric key pad • when t he Num

Lock/Num Pad key is on, t he keys on t he numeric key pad can be used for entering numbers. When it ’s off, these keys become arrow keys, page up and page down keys– as ind icated on the bottom half of t he key.

Sleep • put s your comp ut er into sleep mod e.

Volume Control / M ute • cont rols the speaker volume. Press

to mut e.

Web Connection • st arts up the Internet brow ser.

• brings up t he Windows 98 START m enu.

• displays drop-down menus from icons (same as right click)

and currently act ive applications.

Home

End

Page Up

Page Dow n

Backspace

Alt

Ctrl

Num Lock/

Num Pad

Sleep

Web

Connect ion

Volum e

Cont rol/

M ute

The Keyboard

The way keys are used varies from program to program. Here are some of t he most commo n uses:

Esc key • exits the current action, screen, or program.

Tab key • moves the cursor over a set number of spaces in

word processing so ft w are. In other types of programs, it m oves the curso r from one field (an area on t he screen where data can be ent ered) to t he next.

Enter key • st art s a new paragraph in word processing. In other

programs, it accept s data entered or shows that an action is com p lete.

Shift key • p ressing this key while typing a let t er or symbol key

will give you the capit al letter or sym bol on the to p of the key.

Caps Lock key • locks t he capit al letters in place. Pressing it

again will t ake the Caps Lock off. (A Caps Lock indicator light will turn on when the Caps Lock is on.)

Function keys • num bered F1 t hrough F12, each will perform a

sp ecific and well-defined function, should an ap plication use them.

Cursor Arrow keys • mo ve the cursor in the directions that

the arrow s point .

Insert key • when activated, insert s data vs. typing over/

replacing it.

Delet e key • will delet e data that is highlight ed or t o the right

of t he cursor.

Home key • takes you t o the beginning of a line.

Esc

Ent er

Tab

Caps Lock

Shift

Fu nct io n

Cursor Arrow s

Insert

Delete

+ 20 hidden pages