Argus DC1500N User manual

®
DC1500N
Video &
Photo Software
Video &
Photo Software

Contents
Electromagnetic Compatibility Notice....................................................................2
Caution .................................................................................................................2
Precautions...........................................................................................................3
About batteries ..................................................................................................3
Features of camera...............................................................................................4
System Requirements...........................................................................................4
Contents of package .............................................................................................4
Nomenclature .......................................................................................................5
Installing batteries .................................................................................................5
Low Battery .......................................................................................................6
Preparing to take photos.......................................................................................6
Turning camera on / off .....................................................................................6
Auto Power Off ..............................................................................................6
Selecting resolution ...........................................................................................6
Selecting AC mains frequency ..........................................................................7
Taking a photo ......................................................................................................7
Other Capture Modes ...........................................................................................8
Taking photos in Continuous mode ...................................................................8
Taking photos with self-timer.............................................................................8
Erasing photos......................................................................................................8
Erasing all photos at once .................................................................................8
Erasing the last taken photo..............................................................................8
Connecting camera to PC.....................................................................................9
Installing Arcsoft programs and camera drivers in Windows 98SE/Me .............9
Installing camera drivers ...............................................................................9
Installing Arcsoft programs and camera drivers in Windows 2000/XP ..............9
Installing camera drivers .............................................................................10
Downloading photos by using PhotoStudio .....................................................11
Downloading photos taken in Continuous Mode as a video ............................14
Recording videos directly to your computer by using PCCam.........................17
Using PhotoPrinter ..........................................................................................18
Using PhotoFantasy ........................................................................................20
Additional Information .........................................................................................22
Opening the User’s Manual on program CD ...................................................22
Installing Acrobat Reader ............................................................................22
Uninstalling Arcsoft programs .........................................................................22
Product Specifications.....................................................................................22
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)...............................................................23
Trademark acknowledgements .......................................................................25
Responsible party............................................................................................25
1

Electromagnetic Compatibility Notice
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC rules. Operation is subject to the
following two conditions:
(1) This device may not cause harmful interference, and
(2) This device must accept any interference received, including interference
that may cause undesired operation.
Warning: Changes or modifications to this unit not expressly approved by the
party responsible for compliance could void the user's authority to operate the
equipment.
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. However, there is no
guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation.
If the unit does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which
can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged
to try correcting the interference by one or more of the following measures:
• Re-orient or relocate the receiving antenna.
• Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to
which the receiver is connected.
• Consult the dealer or any experienced TV/radio technician for help.
NOTE:
• Shielded cables are used with this unit to ensure compliance with the
Class B FCC limits.
• A high electrostatic discharge environment may cause the camera to
malfunction. Reset the camera by taking out the batteries and re-inserting
them.
Caution
In order to maintain compliance with FCC regulations, shielded cables must be
used with this equipment. Operation with non-approved equipment or unshielded
cables is likely to result in interference to radio and TV reception. To comply with
the limits for a class B digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC rules, this
device must only be installed on computer equipment certified to comply with the
Class B limits.
In addition, only the supplied USB cable should be used with the product.
Operation with non-certified computers, use of a cable other than that supplied,
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or modification of the device may result in interference to radio or television
reception and could void the user’s authority to operate this device.
Precautions
Thank you for purchasing DC1500 Digital Camera. Please read the following
precautions carefully before using the product.
 This camera is not resistant to water and should not be used outdoors in
snow or rain. If accidentally dropped in water, please quickly pour out the
water. Dry it with sunlight or an air-blower.
 Protect it from excessive humidity. It will wet the lens and the pictures
taken will be blurred.
 Do not expose the camera to sand
 Do not attempt to disassemble the camera yourself. Always take it to an
authorized service facility for repair.
 To store the camera, wrap it in a piece of clean, soft cloth and place it in a
cool, dry, dust-free place. Do not place the camera directly under the sun
or in any hot circumstances.
 Take care of the lens. Use special cloth to clean it.
 Do not scratch hard objects against the Lens, Status LCD Panel, or
Viewfinder.
 If the Status LCD Panel is damaged, do not touch it.
 Condensation is a problem when bringing cold equipment into a warm
room. Try to put the camera in a plastic bag so condensation forms on the
outside of the bag.
About batteries
 Battery life is shorter for poor quality batteries.
 If nothing at all appears on the Status LCD panel, the batteries may be
inserted in wrong orientation.
 The batteries may explode or cause burns if disassembled, recharged,
shorted, exposed to high temperature, or disposed of in fire.
 Alkaline or Ni-MH batteries can be used with this camera. The camera
may not function properly if you use poor quality batteries.
 Make sure all batteries are fresh, unused or fully charged.
 Ensure that batteries’ orientation is correct when placing them in the
camera
 Remove the batteries if you do not expect to use the camera for 1 month
or longer.
Important: Do not connect camera to PC before drivers are
installed.
3

Features of camera
1. Image Resolution: High resolution: 352x288 pixels (CIF), Low resolution
176x144 (QCIF)
2. 2MB SDRAM internal memory for holding 20 photos at CIF and 80 photos
at QCIF
3. Front LED indicator (Illuminates when camera is on, flashes when using
timer)
4. Status LCD panel with 2-digit-7-segment display.
5. Buzzer sounds differently to indicate different operation modes
6. Picture Retention (while battery power is supplied)
7. Battery Power (3 pieces of AAA alkaline batteries recommended (4.5V))
8. Auto Power Off when no operation for 30 seconds
9. TWAIN driver “My DSC” provided for downloading photos and AVI videos
recorded with the camera
10. “PCCam” provided for recording AVI videos of size as large as your
computer hard disk can hold
11. USB port for PC connection
System Requirements
 Personal computer with a Pentium 300MHz microprocessor (minimum)
and a CD-ROM drive
 Windows 98SE / Me / 2000 / XP
 32MB RAM for Windows 98SE, 64MB RAM for Windows Me/2000, 128MB
RAM for Windows XP
 500MB of available hard disk space for Windows 98SE/Me/2000, 1GB for
Windows XP
 Color display monitor with 16 bit color or above
 Available USB port
Contents of package
• DC1500 Digital Camera x 1
• Program CD (containing PhotoPrinter, x 1
PhotoFantasy, PhotoStudio,
User’s Manual and camera drivers)
• USB cable x 1
• Quick Start Guide x 1
• Warranty Card x 1
NOTE: 3 pieces of AAA alkaline batteries needed for the Digital Camera are
NOT included in this package.
4

Nomenclature
Installing batteries
1. Slide open battery compartment cover at the bottom of your camera.
2. Install 3 pieces of AAA size alkaline batteries into battery compartment as
shown.
3. Make sure battery polarities are oriented exactly as shown.
4. Close battery compartment cover.
5

CAUTION – To avoid battery leakage
• Non-rechargeable batteries are not to be recharged
• Be sure to insert batteries in correct orientation
• Remove batteries from the camera before extended storage
• Always remove old or dead batteries from the camera
• Do not short-circuit the power supply terminals
• Check that the contact surfaces are clean and bright before installing
batteries
Low Battery
If at anytime the frame counter information begins to flash in the LCD panel, the
battery level is low. Download your photos to the computer and replace the
batteries immediately.
Preparing to take photos
Turning camera on / off
Press Mode button to power on the camera. Two short beeps will sound.
(meaning High Resolution) will appear momentarily before (frame counter)
is shown on the LCD panel, indicating that a maximum of 20 photos can be taken
with high resolution.
To power off the camera, press Mode button repeatedly until “oF” displays on the
LCD panel. Then press Shutter button.
Auto Power Off
With the camera on, if there is no operation for 30 seconds, the camera
will automatically be turned off.
Selecting resolution
The camera is defaulted to High Resolution (CIF) mode .
To select low resolution (QCIF):
1. Press Mode button repeatedly until is shown on the LCD panel.
2. Press Shutter button to confirm your selection and “80” will appear on the
LCD panel, indicating that a maximum of 80 photos can be taken with low
resolution.
NOTE: After taking a few photos of low resolution, if you want to switch back to
high resolution: (1) Press Mode button until appears on the LCD panel (2)
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Press Shutter button to confirm your selection and the remaining number of
photos that can be taken will be shown on the LCD panel.
Selecting AC mains frequency
This camera is set to your country’s AC mains frequency (e.g. 60Hz for US). If
you take photos under an electric light source in another country with a different
frequency (e.g. 50Hz for Europe), you have to set the frequency to 50Hz or
horizontal, black stripes will be found on the photos, due to incorrect mains
frequency. There will be no problems when taking photos under sunlight.
To change the frequency:
1. Press Mode button repeatedly until “60 (Hz)” or “50 (Hz)” is shown on the
LCD panel
2. Press Shutter button to change from “60 (Hz)” to “50 (Hz)” (or from “50
(Hz)” to “60 (Hz)” to match that country’s AC mains frequency.
Taking a photo
Hold your camera in the way as shown below when taking photos.
1. Look through the viewfinder.
NOTE: The focus is set to work best when taking photos of an object
that is at least 2 feet away from the camera.
2. Press Shutter button.
You will hear a “beep” and the frame counter will count down 1 frame,
indicating that an image has been taken.
NOTE: If you do not hear the “beep” and/or the frame counter does not
count down 1 frame, the photo has not yet been taken. Press Shutter
button again to take the picture.
Tip:
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It is recommended that you take a few trial shots at different distances
to see how each taken photo looks like.
Other Capture Modes
Taking photos in Continuous mode
1. Press Mode button until is shown on the LCD panel
2. Hold down the Shutter button to take photos continuously until the frame
counter counts down to 00.
NOTE: In Continuous mode, 6 photos will be taken in one second.
Taking photos with self-timer
1. Press Mode button until appears on the LCD panel
2. Press Shutter button. A beep will sound and the LED will blink for 10
seconds before a photo is taken.
Erasing photos
Erasing all photos at once
1. Press Mode button until is shown in the LCD panel.
2. Press Shutter button and will flash in the LCD panel. While is
flashing, press Shutter button again. You will hear two beeps and all
photos will be cleared.
NOTE: If Shutter button is not pressed while is flashing, the frame
counter will appear in the LCD panel in 5 seconds.
Erasing the last taken photo
1. Press Mode button until is shown on the LCD panel
2. Press Shutter button and the last taken photo will be deleted and the
frame counter will change in the following pattern:
When camera is in High Resolution mode:
• Erasing the last 1,2 or 3 photos of low resolution will toggle
frame counter unchanged.
• Erasing the last 4 photos of low resolution will toggle frame
counter to go up by 1
• Erasing the last photo of high resolution will toggle frame
counter to go up by 1
When camera is in low resolution mode:
• Erasing the last photo of high resolution will toggle frame
counter to go up by 4
8

• Erasing the last photo of low resolution will toggle frame counter
to go up by 1
Connecting camera to PC
Installing Arcsoft programs and camera drivers in Windows
98SE/Me
NOTE: The graphics shown are based on the user interface in Windows 98SE
1. Put the program CD into the CD-ROM drive, Autorun will commence.
2. Select your desired language
3. Change Destination Folder if necessary
4. Select components to install
5. Change program folder name if necessary
6. Check the checkbox to start camera drivers installation
Installing camera drivers ......
7. When installation of My DSC is complete, restart your computer
8. After your computer is restarted, connect the camera and computer with
the USB cable and the computer will recognize the camera.
Note: The installed camera drivers may conflict other USB devices in your
computer system.
Installing Arcsoft programs and camera drivers in Windows
2000/XP
NOTE: The graphics shown are based on the user interface in Windows XP
1. Put the program CD into the CD-ROM drive, Autorun will commence.
2. Select your desired language
3. Change Destination Folder if necessary
4. Select components to install
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5. Change program folder name if necessary
6. Check the checkbox to start camera drivers installation
Installing camera drivers ........
7. When installation of My DSC is complete, restart your computer
8. After computer is restarted, connect your camera to the computer with the
USB cable. The following screen will appear. Select the first radio button
and click Next button
9. Click Continue Away button (for Win XP) or Yes button (for Win 2000)
when you see the warning message
10. Click Finish button to complete the setup
Note: The installed camera drivers may conflict other USB devices in your
computer system.
10

Downloading photos by using PhotoStudio
NOTE: The graphics shown are based on the user interface in Windows 98SE
1. Take some photos with the digital camera
2. Connect the camera to a computer with a USB cable as shown below. If
connection is successful, a beep will sound.
3. Click Start > Programs (“All Programs” for XP) > DC1500 Digital
Camera Suite > PhotoStudio 2.0 SE to open the Arcsoft PhotoStudio
program
4. Click File > Acquire > Select Source from the pull-down menu and select
“My DSC”
5. Click File > Acquire > Acquire from the pull-down menu to open the
following dialog panel. Click Download photos icon.
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6. Select “Download all photos” or “Just download # photos” and click
Download button. If you select “Just download # photos”, the first #
pictures taken will be downloaded.
7. Photo thumbnails will be downloaded. Click Select all photos in this
page icon to select all photos on a page.
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8. Click Page down icon to go to next page.
9. Highlight the thumbnail(s) you want to download and click Transfer
photos button.
13

10. You may edit the photo with the tools in PhotoStudio and then save it by
clicking File > Save from the pull-down menu.
NOTE: If you want to know more about PhotoStudio or how to use it, you can
consult its on-line help which is accessible by clicking “?” icon or “Help” on the
pull-down menu.
Downloading photos taken in Continuous Mode as a video
Program “My DSC” can transfer your photos taken in Continuous Mode to AVI
(video) format.
1. Take some photos in Continuous Mode with the digital camera. NOTE: It
is recommended that you use Low Resolution mode so that you can
take up to 80 pictures (i.e. up to 13 seconds of video playback)
2. Connect the camera to a computer with a USB cable
3. Click Start > Programs (“All Programs” for XP) > My DSC > My DSC
4. Click Download photos button from the following screen
14

5. Select “Download all photos” and click Download button.
6. Highlight the AVI file thumbnail and click Save photos icon
15

7. Enter the filename and click Save button
Tip:
 To change the video playback speed, change the AVI frame rate.
The default value of frame rate is 6. Setting it to a larger value
results in faster playback, while a small value results in slower
playback.
8. Locate the saved AVI file. Double-click to play the movie.
16

Recording videos directly to your computer by using PCCam
Besides taking videos with your digital camera, you can record videos directly to
your computer with the PCCam program.
1. Connect your camera to computer with a USB cable
2. Search through Start>Programs (“All Programs” for Windows XP)>My
DSC and click PCCam icon
3. Select Devices > My DSC from the pull-down menu. You should see a
live picture on screen. If you cannot see a live picture, click Options >
Preview from the menu.
4. Click File > Set Capture File from the pull-down menu
5. Enter the filename for the video to be captured and click Open button.
Make sure to enter avi as the file extension
6. Keep the default value of 1 MBytes in the Capture file size field and click
OK button.
17

7. Click Capture > Start Capture from the pull-down menu
8. Select OK button to start video capture
9. The time elapsed of the video capture is shown at the bottom of the
screen
10. When video capture is finished, click Capture > Stop Capture from the
pull-down menu or press Esc key on the keyboard
NOTE: If you cannot record any videos, try re-installing the camera driver by
double-clicking “Setup.exe” icon inside “Drivers” folder at the root level of the
supplied program CD, and record again.
Using PhotoPrinter
NOTE: The graphics shown are based on the user interface in Windows 98SE.
1. Search through Start>Programs (“All Programs” for Windows XP) >
DC1500 Digital Camera Suite and click PhotoPrinter 2000 icon
2. Click Get Photos icon
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3. You may click New icon to create your new album, click Add icon to add
photos already on your hard disk or other storage medium, click Acquire
icon to add photos stored in your digital camera.
NOTE: Refer to “Downloading photos by using PhotoStudio” section
for more details.
4. When photos have been added, double-click the picture thumbnail.
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