Acer TRAVELMATE-53X, TRAVELMATE 530 User Manual

TravelMate 530 series

User’s guide

TravelMate 530 series User’s guide Original Issue: February 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. This company makes no representations or warranties, either expressed or implied, with respect to the contents hereof and specifically disclaims the implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Record the model number, serial number, purchase date, and place of purchase information in the space provided below. The serial number and model number are recorded on the label affixed to your computer. All correspondence concerning your unit should include the serial number, model number, and purchase information.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Acer Incorporated.

TravelMate 530 series Notebook computer

Model number : _________________________________

Serial number: ___________________________________

Purchase date: ___________________________________

Place of purchase: ________________________________

Acer and the Acer logo are registered trademarks of Acer Incorporated. Other company's product names or trademarks are used herein for identification purposes only and belong to their respective companies.

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First things first

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. This guide provides clear and concise information about the computer, so read it thoroughly.

If you ever need to print out a copy, this User’s guide is also available in PDF (Portable Document Format). Follow these steps:

1 Click on Start, Programs, TravelMate. 2 Click on TravelMate User’s Guide. Note: Viewing the file requires Adobe Acrobat Reader

installed. For instructions on how to use Adobe Acrobat Reader, access the Help menu.

English

For more information about our products, services, and support information, please visit our Web site (global.acer.com).

Basic care and tips for using your computer

English

Turning your computer on and off

To turn on the computer, simply press and release the power button on the top left of your TravelMate. See page 3 for the location of the power switch.

To turn the power off, do any of the following:

• Use the Windows shutdown command For Windows 2000:

down; then click on OK.

- or For Windows XP:

Turn Off .

• Use the power switch

Note: You can also use the power switch to perform power management functions. See Windows help for more information.

• Use the customized functions for power management You can also shut down the computer by closing the display cover,

or by pressing the sleep hot key (Fn-F4).

Note: If you cannot power off the computer normally, press and hold the power switch for more than four seconds to shut down the computer. If you turn off the computer and want to turn it on again, wait at least two seconds before powering up.

Click on Start, Shut Down..., and select Shut

Click on Start, Turn off Comput e r ; then click

Taking care of your computer

Your computer will serve you well if you take care of it.

• Do not expose the computer to direct sunlight. Do not place it near sources of heat, such as a radiator.

• Do not expose the computer to temperatures below 0ºC (32ºF) or above 50ºC (122ºF).

• Do not subject the computer to magnetic fields.

• Do not expose the computer to rain or moisture.

• Do not spill water or any other 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.

Taking care of your AC adapter

Here are some ways to take care of your AC adapter:

• Do not connect the adapter to any other device.

• Do not step on the power cord or place heavy objects on top of it.

Carefully route the power cord and any cables away from personal traffic.

• When unplugging the power cord, do not pull on the cord itself but pull on the plug.

• The total ampere ratings of the equipment plugged in should not exceed the ampere rating of the cord if you are using an extension cord. Also, the total current rating of all equipment plugged into a single wall outlet should not exceed the fuse rating.

Taking care of your battery pack

English

Here are some ways to take care of your battery pack:

• Use only batteries of the same kind as replacements. Turn the power off before removing or replacing batteries.

• Do not tamper with batteries. Keep them away from children.

• Dispose of used batteries according to local regulations. Recycle if

at all possible.

Cleaning and servicing

When cleaning the computer, follow these steps:

1 Power off the computer and remove the battery pack. 2 Disconnect the AC adapter.

English

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.

First things first iii

Your guides iii Basic care and tips for using your computer iv

1 Getting to know your TravelMate 1

A TravelMate tour 3

Front view 3 Left view 4 Right view 5 Rear view 6

Bottom view 8 Features 9 Indicators 11 Using the keyboard 13

Special keys 13 Touchpad 21

Touchpad basics 21 Storage 23

Hard disk 23

Optical drive 23

Using software 24 Audio 25

Adjusting the volume 25 Power management 26 Moving around with your TravelMate 27

Disconnecting from the desktop 27

Moving around 27

Taking the computer home 28

Traveling with the computer 30

Traveling internationally with the computer 30 Securing your computer 32

Using a computer security lock 32

Using passwords 32

Contents

2 Customizing my computer 35

Expanding through options 37

Connectivity options 37

Connecting to Acer EasyPort replicator 41 Using system utilities 44

Notebook Manager 44

Launch Manager 44

BIOS Utility 45

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3 Troubleshooting my computer 47

Frequently-asked questions 49 Requesting service 52

International Traveler’s Warranty (ITW) 52 Before you call 52

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.

A TravelMate tour

After setting up your computer as illustrated in the Just for Starters... poster, let us show you around your new TravelMate

computer.

Front view

English

# Item Description

1 Display screen Also called LCD (liquid-crystal display),

2 Launch keys Special keys for launching internet browser,

3 Power Switch Turns on the computer power.

4 Touchpad Touch-sensitive pointing device which

displays computer output.

email program and frequently used programs. See “Launch Keys” on page 19 for more details.

functions like a computer mouse.

# Item Description

1 Getting to know your TravelMate4

English

5 Click buttons (left,

center and right)

6 Floppy disk drive (or

card reader, if installed)

7 Floppy eject button Ejects floppy disk. (N/A when card reader

8 Speakers Outputs sound.

9 Palmrest Comfortable support area for your hands

10 Keyboard Inputs data into your computer.

11 Status indicators LEDs (light-emitting diode) that turn on and

12 Locking Latch Slide locking mechanism secures the lid when

The left and right buttons function like the left and right mouse buttons; the center button serves as a 4-way scroll button.

Reads/writes data from/to the media.

installed.)

when you use the computer.

off to show the status of the computer, its functions and components.

the computer is not in use.

Left view



# Item Description

1 Optical drive Houses an optical drive module (CD-ROM ,

DVD-ROM or DVD/CD-RW combo drive).

# Item Description

2 Optical drive

indicator

3 Eject button Ejects the drive tray.

4 Emergency eject slot Ejects the drive tray when the computer is

Note: The positions of the Optical drive indicator, eject button and emergency eject hole may differ depending on the optical drive module installed.

Lights up when the optical drive is active.

turned off. See page 50 for more details.

Right view

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# Item Description

1 Microphone/Line-in

jack

2 Headphone/

Speaker/Line-out jack

Accepts audio line-in devices(e.g., microphone, audio CD player, stereo walkman).

Connects to audio line-out devices(e.g., headphones, speakers).

# Item Description

1 Getting to know your TravelMate6

English

3 PC card eject button Ejects the PC card from the slot.

4 PC card slots Accepts two type II or one type III PC cards.

5 Modem jack Connects to a phone line.

6 IEEE 1394 port Connects to an IEEE 1394 device.

7 Infrared port Interfaces with infrared devices (e.g.,

infrared printer, IR-aware computer).

Rear view

# Item Description

1 Security keylock Connects to a Kensington-compatible

computer security lock.

2 Power jack Connects to an AC adapter.

# Item Description

3 External display

port

4 Expansion port Connects to I/O port replicator or expansion

5 Parallel port Connects to a parallel device (e.g., parallel

6 Network jack Connects to an Ethernet 10/100-based

7 S-video Connects to a television or display device

8 USB ports Connects to Universal Serial Bus devices (e.g.,

Connects to a display device (e.g., external monitor, LCD projector).

devices (e.g., Acer EasyPort).

printer).

network.

with S-video input.

USB mouse, USB camera).

English

1 Getting to know your TravelMate8

Bottom view

# Item Description

1 Cooling fan Helps keep the computer cool.

Note: Don’t cover or obstruct the opening of the fan.

2 Battery bay Houses the computer's battery pack.

3 Battery release

latches

4 Hard disk bay Houses the computer's hard disk.

5Memory

compartment

Unlatches the battery to remove the battery pack.

Houses the computer's main memory.

Features

Below is a brief summary of the computer’s many features:

Performance

• Mobile Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor-M with 512 KB level 2 cache featuring the new Enhanced Intel® SpeedStep™ technology; or Mobile Intel® Celeron® Processor with 256 KB level 2 cache

• Standard 256MB DDR-266 SDRAM, upgradeable to 1 GB on dual soDIMM sockets

• Integrated 24x CD-ROM, 8x DVD-ROM or 24/10/8/24x DVD/CD-RW combo drive

• 20/30/40 GB or higher-capacity Ultra DMA-100 HDD

• Li-lon battery pack

• Power management system with ACPI (Advanced Configuration

Power Interface) 2.0 supporting Standby and Hibernation power saving modes

Display

• Thin-Film Transistor (TFT) liquid crystal display (LCD) displaying 32bit high true color up to 1024 x 786 eXtended Graphics Array (XGA) resolution for 14.1”/15”

• 3D capabilities

• Simultaneous LCD and CRT display support

• S-video for output to a television or display device that supports S-

video input

• "Automatic LCD dim" feature that automatically decides the best settings for your display and conserves power

• Dual display capability

English

Multimedia

• 16-bit high-fidelity AC’97 stereo audio

• Built-in dual speakers

• Built-in microphone

• High-speed optical drive

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1 Getting to know your TravelMate10

Connectivity

• High-speed fax/data modem port

• Ethernet/Fast Ethernet port

• USB (Universal Serial Bus) ports

• IEEE 1394 port

• Fast Infrared (FIR) port

• Docking port for port replicator

• Optional Invilink wireless LAN module

• Optional Integrated Bluetooth module

Human-centric design and ergonomics

• 5 Launch keys, including Internet Browser and email and 3 userprogrammable keys

• 4-way scroll button

• Sleek, smooth and stylish design

• Full-sized keyboard

• Ergonomically-centered touchpad pointing device

Expansion

• Two type II or one type III CardBus PC Card slots

• Upgradeable memory

Indicators

The computer has seven easy-to-read status icons below the display screen.

Icon Function Description

Power Lights green when the computer is on and

lights orange when the computer is in Standby mode.

Media activity Lights when the hard disk is active.

English

Battery charge Lights green when the battery is being

charged. Lights orange when the battery power is low

and is being charged.

Wireless Communication

(applicable only when Wireless LAN or Bluetooth installed)

Caps lock Lights when Caps Lock is activated.

Lights orange when the Wireless LAN capabilities are enabled.

Lignts blue when Bluetooth capabilities are enabled.

Icon Function Description

1 Getting to know your TravelMate12

English

Num lock Lights when Num Lock is activated.

Scroll lock Lights when Scroll lock is activated.

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.

English

Num Lock (Fn-F11)

Scroll Lock (Fn-F12)

When Num Lock is on, the embedded keypad is in numeric mode. The keys function as a calculator (complete with the arithmetic operators +, -, *, and /). Use this mode when you need to do a lot of numeric data entry. A better solution would be to connect an external keypad.

When Scroll Lock is on, the screen moves one line up or down when you press the up or down arrow keys respectively. Scroll Lock does not work with some applications.

Embedded numeric keypad

1 Getting to know your TravelMate14

English

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

Cursor-control keys on embedded keypad

Main keyboard keys Hold Fn while typing letters

Type numbers in a normal manner.

Hold Shift while using cursor-control keys.

on embedded keypad.

Hold Fn while using cursor-control keys.

Type the letters in a normal manner.

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)

English

Application key Opens a context menu (same as a right-click).

Hot keys

1 Getting to know your TravelMate16

English

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 Setup Launch Notebook Manager

Fn-F3 Power

management scheme toggle

Switches the power management scheme used by the computer (function available if supported by operating system).

See “Power management” on page 26.

Fn-F4 Sleep Puts the computer in Sleep

mode. See “Power management” on

page 26.

+ 54 hidden pages

Acer TRAVELMATE-53X, TRAVELMATE 530 User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

TravelMate 530 series

First things first

Your guides

Basic care and tips for using your computer

A TravelMate tour

Front view

Left view

Right view

Rear view

Bottom view

Features

Indicators

Using the keyboard

Special keys