Acer Mini Dock Quick Manual

Mini Dock 1

Quick Guide

Mini Dock

The mini dock serves as a docking base that allows you to connect your

notebook to all the peripherals you need, even network connections with its

built-in Ethernet support.

Dock

g

uides

Dock

guides

Dock

connector

Dock

indicator

Dock

lever

Dock

lock

Ports

2 Quick Guide

Rear Ports

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

The rear ports and their descriptions are listed below:

# Icon Port Connects to...

1 Joystick/MIDI port Joystick, gamepad or MIDI device

2Microphone-in jack Microphone

3Speaker-out/ headphone jack Amplified speakers or headphones

4-5 Stereo line-out jack (R-L) Stereo amplifier

6-7 Stereo line-in jack (R-L) Audio CD player, stereo walkman,

synthesizer

8NTSC/PAL video output jack TV signal

9NTSC/PAL video input jack Video source

10 DC-in port AC adapter and power outlet

11 PS/2 keyboard/ keypad port PS/2-compatible keyboard or

keypad

12 PS/2 mouse port PS/2-compatible pointing device

(e.g., PS/2 mouse)

13 9-pin serial port Serial device (e.g., serial mouse)

Ports

Mini Dock 3

#Icon Port Connects to...

14 25-pin floppy drive port*External floppy drive

15 25-pin parallel port*Parallel device

(e.g., parallel printer)

16 15-pin external CRT port External display device

(e.g., monitor up to 1024x768, 256

colors)

The video jacks are optional and function only if the notebook

supports the feature.

Side Ports

The side ports are found on the left side of the mini dock. These ports and

their descriptions are listed in the following table.

*You can only select either the 25-pin FDD port or the 25-pin parallel port. The two

ports cannot be used simultaneously.

1 2 3

FDD/Printer

Switch

Ports

4 Quick Guide

#Icon Port Connects to...

1RJ-45 jack

(10Base-T Ethernet) Network via a twisted-pair Ethernet cable

2RJ-11 jack (modem) Phone line*

3RJ-11 jack (phone) Telephone device via a phone line cable*

To the left of these ports is the FDD/printer switch. Set this switch to the

appropriate peripheral ( or ) when being used.

*The RJ-11 jacks are optional and function only if the notebook supports the

feature.

Using the Mini Dock

Mini Dock 5

Making the Mini Dock Connections

Follow these steps to make the mini dock connections:

Connect Power (Optional)

Connect one end of the AC

adapter to the DC-in port on the

mini dock. Then connect the

other end to the power outlet.

If you do not connect the AC

adapter, the notebook uses

power from the battery pack.

Connect Peripherals

Connect the desired peripherals

to the ports on the mini dock.

Position the Mini Dock

Route the cables and position

the mini dock on your desk with

one thing in mind — there

should be enough space in the

front of the mini dock for the

notebook to easily dock and

undock.

Now you are ready to dock and undock the notebook.

Using the Mini Dock

6 Quick Guide

Docking the Notebook

You need to power off the notebook before performing a

dock/undock operation. You can do this by using the

Shutdown command in Windows 95. (Use the Eject menu Fn-

F9 if you are using a different operating system.)

Remember that simply closing the display without a proper

shutdown only puts the notebook into suspend mode.

Follow these steps to dock the notebook:

Power off the Notebook

Do a Windows 95 shutdown and

wait for the system to power off.

If you are using a different

operating system, you can press

Fn-F9 to access the eject menu,

then select the Power Off option to

turn the notebook off.

Open the Port Cover

Slide the mini-port cover on the

notebook’s port cover to expose

the mini dock connector.

Using the Mini Dock

Mini Dock 7

Place the Notebook in the

Ready-to-Dock Position

Place the notebook in the docking

position, taking note of the two

docking guides on the mini dock.

Dock the Notebook

Press the dock handle towards the

back end of the mini dock. The

mini dock locks in the notebook.

Open the display to turn on the notebook. After docking, the notebook

automatically detects the presence of all peripheral connections on the mini

dock and re-configures itself accordingly.

Upon system restart, Windows 95 automatically detects the

network adapter and installs the appropriate drivers. If your

notebook computer operates in a different operating system,

there are drivers available in the diskette pack that came with

your mini dock.

Using the Mini Dock

8 Quick Guide

Undocking the Notebook

Follow these steps to undock the notebook:

Power off the Notebook

Do a Windows 95 shutdown and

wait for the system to power off.

If you are using a different

operating system, you can press

Fn-F9 to access the eject menu,

then select the Power Off option to

turn the notebook off.

Release the Dock Lock

Press the dock lock to prepare the

mini dock and notebook for

undocking.

The dock lock prevents accidental

undocking.

Undock the Notebook

Press the dock handle towards the

front end of the mini dock to

undock the notebook.

After undocking, the notebook automatically re-configures itself accordingly.

Troubleshooting

Mini Dock 9

Following are common questions and their corresponding solutions related

with your notebook computer and the mini dock.

Q:

How do I know the notebook is successfully docked into the mini

dock?

A: There are two areas to check here:

•

Physical Lock.

The dock LED, found on the top of the mini dock,

should be lit, and the dock lock pops out.

•

Logical Lock.

The peripherals connected to the mini dock should

function normally with the notebook. Press Fn-F2 to enter Setup

and look at the settings in About My Computer — the peripherals

connected to the mini dock should register.

If a peripheral is not functioning normally, enter suspend-to-memory by

pressing Fn-Esc, then exit to re-configure the system.

Q:

I use my notebook with an internal CD-ROM drive and an external

floppy drive. How do I maintain the same configuration when I use

the mini dock?

A: Follow these steps to make a quick and easy transition:

1. Close the display.

2. Unplug the floppy drive from the parallel port.

3. Connect the floppy drive to the FDD (floppy disk drive) port on the

mini dock. Set the FDD/printer switch to FDD.

4. If you are using AC power, disconnect the AC adapter from the

DC-in port. Then connect it to the DC-in port on the mini dock.

5. Dock the notebook.

6. Open the display.

If other peripherals are connected to the notebook, you can also make

the easy transition by disconnecting them from the notebook (after

closing the display), and connecting them to the mini dock (before

opening the display).

Q:

Does my notebook support Plug and Play after docking?

Troubleshooting

10 Quick Guide

A: Yes. After connecting the notebook to the mini dock, the system will

detect the add-on hardware and load the driver automatically under

Windows 95. For Windows NT, Windows 3.x and DOS, please refer to

Readme file in the diskette.

Acer Mini Dock Quick Manual

Acer Mini Dock Quick Manual

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