Belkin BITRONICS P72655 User manual

Bitronics Switch Kit
User Manual
P72655
READ THIS MANUAL IN ITS ENTIRETY BEFORE
ATTEMPTING TO CONNECT DEVICES, THE
BITRONICS SWITCH, OR INSTALLING THE
SOFTWARE. IMPROPER SETTINGS OR
CONFIGURATIONS CAN CAUSE DATA
CORRUPTION.

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I. Introduction
Thank you for purchasing the Belkin Components Bitronics DualBus Switch Kit! Now, you and your colleague can share and select
between two different parallel devices from your desktop. Plus, if you are using Windows 95 or 98, you will take advantage of Virtual
Port Software, which allows you to print automatically!
The Bitronics DualBus Switch gives you and another computer the ability to communicate to two parallel devices at the same time.
Also, it allows you to switch so that either user can use either device through the switching software.
II. Package Contents
•Bitronics DualBus Switch, 2-2 F1U127
•Power Adapter, 9VDC, 600mA F1D065-PWR
•2 x IEEE 1284 compliant cables F2A047-06
•User manual P72655
•Registration card P72009
III. Product Detail
Connectors to Devices
Connectors to Computers
Device LEDs
Computer LEDs
Manual select buttons
DIP Switch Settings (ON is Down)
SW1 – RESET switch ON: Normal Operation
OFF: RESET the switch
SW2 and SW3 – Time Out setting.
Time Out is the amount of time the switch remains locked on a
computer after data transfer. Use a longer Time Out when
connecting to Scanners, Mass Storage Devices, or when printing
large print jobs.
SW2 SW3 Time Out Setting
ON ON 5 seconds
ON OFF 10 seconds
OFF ON 20 seconds
OFF OFF 40 seconds
SW4 – Not used
!
!!
!Recommended
Optional DIP Switches
Power Jack
9VDC, 500mA,
Center positive

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Printer Button Computer Button
IV. Choose your Operating System
•Windows3.x "Continue below:
•Windows95/98 and NT "Continue to next page.
•MS-DOS "Continue below:
V. Manual Mode
In manual mode, you can select port manually through the buttons on the Bitronics switch.
•Press computer to select which computer port you wish to configure. For the computer connected to Port 1, press the
COMPUTER button until the LEDs on Port 1 are lit up either in red or green.
•When you have selected which computer you wish to configure, now press the PRINTER button until the LED of the
appropriate device port you wish to use is lit up.
•For example, if you want computer 2 to use the device on port A,
press the COMPUTER button until the LEDs on “2” are lit up. Then,
press the PRINTER button until LED “A” is lit up.
•To use File Transfer mode, press the printer button until the LEDs
on the computer ports turn green. That means that that port is
ready for file transfer mode. For file transfer mode to be successful
for both PCs, the both computer ports must be set file transfer
mode – which is evident when the LEDs next to “1” and “2” are
green. For more information on File Transfer, please see page 12.
VI. Windows

3.x
In Windows3.x, you will have to exit to MS-DOS first to make this easier:
1. At the C:\> prompt, type the following and press ENTER:
md c:\Belkin
2. Insert the floppy disk containing the Windows3.x software (part# P72736) into your a: drive.
3. At the next prompt, type the following and press ENTER:
copy a:\Win3.x\F1U125e.exe c:\Belkin
4. When you get the prompt back, restart your computer and go back into Windows.
5. Lastly, you will have to create a shortcut to the program. In the Program Manager, select the Start Up window by
clicking on WINDOW, then START UP.
6. Click on FILE, NEW, PROGRAM ITEM, then OK. The next window must be filled out like this:
When done, click OK.
In Windows3.x, there is no possibility in making the software automatic because of the limitations of the operating system. Hence,
you will need to use this software each time you need to switch ports. Since it is in the START UP program group, each time you
start Windows, the program will be running.

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VII. MS-DOS
In MS-DOS, there re two files which can be used, and both are in the first disk (part# P72735) in the DOS subdirectory. These files
are: •DOSSWTCH.com
•F1U125.com
DOSSWTCH.com is a directly executable program. You must follow the syntax in order to invoke the switch to change ports. For
example, entering the following,
DOSSWTCH LPT1 A
will cause the switch to set your current computer to connect to Port A.
F1U125.com is a TSR program. Once it is loaded, it stays in memory. You can access it in any non-protected DOS-mode program by
pressing both SHIFT keys simultaneously. The following window will pop-up:
To make a selection, hit ENTER, and to go back, hit ESC. You can also change the “Hot Key” from the default L_SHIFT and R_SHIFT,
to something else you prefer.

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VIII. Windows

95 / 98 and NT
BEFORE YOU INSTALL THE BELKIN BITRONICS SOFTWARE, YOU MUST FIRST MAKE SURE THAT EACH DEVICE WORKS
PROPERLY ON ITS OWN WITH EACH COMPUTER
1. Make sure that the printer port on your computer is set to ECP mode. To do this, you must go into your computer’s BIOS or
CMOS setup. Instructions on how to do this differ from one computer to the next. Please consult your computer manufacturer’s
manual, tech support, or website for information on how to do this. Please do not call Belkin Tech Support on this
because each computer’s BIOS setup routine is different.
2. Make sure that the software and drivers for the devices to be shared are properly installed on both computers. If you are
sharing two printers between two computers, make sure that the printer drivers for both printers are installed and working
properly on both computers. If you are sharing a Zipdrive and a scanner between two computers, make sure that the
software and drivers of each device are installed and working properly on both computers.
3. Connect the two computers, and the device to be shared to the Bitronics Switch as shown below. The cables from the
computers to the Bitronics switch are included in the package. Take note of which port each device is connected to:
The example shown has a Zipdrive connected to Port A and an InkJet printer on Port B of the switch.
4. In order for both computers to properly share the devices, the software must be installed on both computers.
4.1. Put the disk into your floppy drive. Click on START, then RUN. Enter a:\BITRONIX.exe, then click OK
4.2. You will see the following window. Click SETUP.
Device A connected to
Port A
Device B connected to
Port B
These two cables
included

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4.3. Close all other running applications so that the software installation can proceed quickly and smoothly. Click NEXT.
4.4. Select the model of Bitronics Switch you have, which is the F1U127 / F1U128. Click NEXT.

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4.5. Select destination folder. The default folder is recommended. Click NEXT.
4.6. Select Program Folder. The default is the recommended. Click NEXT.

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4.7. When done installing, the program will ask you to restart your computer. You must restart in order to activate the
software properly. Click FINISH.
5. Once your computer has rebooted, the Bitronics icon will appear in your system tray.
6. Double-click on the icon to open up the setup program:
Select the correct LPT
port the Bitronics
switch is connected
to. If you only have
ONE parallel port
(usually that is the
case), leave this in
LPT1.

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7. Click on SETTINGS. Here, we have to tell the software what devices are connect to which port:
Click OK when done.
8. If one or both of the devices being shared is a printer, you must follow the procedure below to reconfigure the port connected to
the printer. If both devices are printers, then this must be done for both printers.
8.1. Click on START, SETTINGS, PRINTERS.
8.2. Right-click on the printer installed on the Bitronics switch, and click on PROPERTIES:
DISPLAY NAME is a free text field. You can
enter any description here for the attached
devices. For instance, Port A has the Zip
drive connected and Port B has the InkJet
connected. You can rename these fields to say
“My Zip Drive” and “Color Printer #2”.
DEVICE TYPE gives you a pull-down menu showing the types of
printers installed on your computer and other parallel devices as
well.
Here, you must select the correct type for the device
connected to that port.
•If you are using a device which adds a drive letter to
your system (like a ZipDrive, CD-ROM, LS-120, etc...), use
MASS STORAGE DEVICE.
•If you are using a printer, use the printer driver used
for that particular printer on that port of the Bitronics switch.
If it does not show up in this menu, that means the printer
drivers have not been installed. (If not, reinstall the printer
drivers and repeat this step after rebooting your computer.)
If you have more than one printer installed, make sure that
the correct driver is used for the printer connected to that
port on the Bitronics switch.
•For any other parallel device, just use SCANNER, and
change the DISPLAY NAME accordingly. For example, if you
have a parallel tape drive, use SCANNER for DEVICE TYPE,
then enter “Tape Drive” in DISPLAY NAME.

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8.3. Click on the DETAILS tab. In the pull-down menu “Print to the following port:”, select the correct port this printer
is connected to on the Bitronics switch:
•LPx1 – PA (auto switch) "Select this if the printer is connected to Port A of the Bitronics switch
•LPx1 – PB (auto switch) "Select this if the printer is connected to Port B of the Bitronics switch
In the image below, the printer is connected to Port B of the Bitronics switch. Therefore, LPx1 – PB (auto switch) is
selected. When done, click OK.
8.4. Click on SPOOL SETTINGS and click on “Start printing after last page is spooled”.
8.5. If NOT grayed out, click on “Disable bi-directional support for this printer”. Otherwise, ignore.
8.6. Click OK in the Spool Settings window, and OK again in the main properties window.