Compaq A3000 User manual

Notice
© 2000 Compaq Computer Corporation
COMPAQ and the Compaq logo Registered in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Microsoft and Windows are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
All other product names mentioned herein may be trademarks or registered trademarks of
their respective companies.
Compaq shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.
The information in this document is subject to change without notice.
THE INFORMATION IN THIS PUBLICATION IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT
NOTICE AND IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. THE
ENTIRE RISK ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF THIS INFORMATION REMAINS
WITH RECIPIENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL COMPAQ BE LIABLE FOR ANY
DIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE OR OTHER
DAMAGES WHATSOEVER (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES
FOR LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION OR LOSS OF
BUSINESS INFORMATION), EVEN IF COMPAQ HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE
POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. THE FOREGOING SHALL APPLY REGARD-
LESS OF THE NEGLIGENCE OR OTHER FAULT OF EITHER PARTY AND
REGARDLESS OF WHETHER SUCH LIABILITY SOUNDS IN CONTRACT, NEGLI-
GENCE, TORT, OR ANY OTHER THEORY OF LEGAL LIABILITY, AND NOT-
WITHSTANDING ANY FAILURE OF ESSENTIAL PURPOSE OF ANY LIMITED
REMEDY.
The limited warranties for Compaq products are exclusively set forth in the documentation
accompanying such products. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting a further
or additional warranty.
Compaq A3000
First Edition (August 2001)

Contents
Contents
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Contents
Getting Started
Quick Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
About the software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Installing the software. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Cable and power connections. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Component locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Control Panel features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Where to go from here . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Using the Settings Utility
Accessing the Settings Utility. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Main Settings Window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Print Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Copy Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Scan Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Printing
Loading paper. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Printing a document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Accessing the Control Program . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Changing the Printer Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Loading specialty papers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

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Contents
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Copying
Positioning the document. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Basic Copying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Additional copy settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Scanning
Positioning the document. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Scanning with the computer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Scanning with the scan button . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Scanning to a folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Scanning to Email . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Scanning to applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Adjusting scanner settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Maintaining your A3000
Using the Control Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Installing or replacing print cartridges. . . . . . . 40
Improving print quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Troubleshooting
Prints slowly or doesn’t print . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Paper misfeeds or jams. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Document prints with poor quality . . . . . . . . . 51
Transparencies, photos, and envelopes . . . . . . 53
Error messages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Appendix
Regulatory Notices. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Index

Getting Started
GettingStarted
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Getting Started
This section will help you start using your new
Compaq A3000 quickly.
Quick Setup
First, follow the Quick Setup poster. If you have
misplaced the poster, simply follow these steps:
1 Remove the A3000 from the box. Remove all tape and
protective paper and plastic.
2 Unlock the scanner. For instructions, see “Unlocking
and locking the scanner” on page 45.
3 Connect the power and USB cables. The connections
are located in the rear. For a diagram, see “Cable and
power connections” on page 5.
4 Load paper into the paper input tray. See “Loading
paper” on page 17.
5 Press the Power button, open the front door, and install
the ink cartridges. See “Installing or replacing print
cartridges” on page 40.
6 Align the cartridges. For help, see “Aligning print
cartridges” on page 41
Once you have finished these steps, you are ready to
install the software.
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Chapter 1
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About the software
Although your Compaq A3000 can be used as a stand-
alone copier, you will derive the greatest benefit from your
A3000 by connecting it to your computer and installing the
included software.
Installing the software will allow you to:
• Print from your computer
• Scan images to your computer
• Scan documents to email or word processing programs
• Adjust the Compaq A3000 settings
• Upload picture albums to the internet
• And more!
What’s on the CD
The A3000 driver CD includes the following software:
Printer driver
The printer driver tells the computer what kind of printer
you are using and controls the various settings, such as
print quality and paper type. You define these settings
within the printer driver, which then communicates the
settings to both the computer and the printer.
Scanner driver
The scanner driver allows you to scan pictures or other
images. The driver is compatible with any graphics or OCR
(Optical Character Recognition) application program that
supports the TWAIN standard; for example, Kodak
Imaging
, Microsoft Paint , etc.
Compaq A3000 utilities
The Compaq utility software allows you to customize how you
want your Compaq A3000 to print, copy, and scan.

Getting Started
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GettingStarted
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With the utility software, you can access your printer
properties, change your default settings, and set your
scanning applications.
MediaBrowser 2000
Use Media Browser to manage your images. Create
picture albums, enhance your images, and post your
albums to the internet.
ReadIRIS (OCR)
With ReadIRIS, you can scan documents and convert
them to text. Once they are converted, you can load the
text files into your favorite word processor for editing.
System requirements
Make sure your computer has the minimum system
requirements:
• 486 processor (recommend Pentium 100 or better
for optimum performance).
• Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition, Windows
Millennium, or Windows 2000.
• 32 MB RAM (64 MB RAM or more for optimum
performance, and 128 MB or more for scanning
large images).
• 40 MB available hard drive space (100 MB for a full
installation).
• Additional minimum of 100 MB free hard drive
space recommended for full-color scanning.
• CD-ROM drive required for software installation.
Note: The Compaq Limited Warranty excludes the use of the
A3000 outside of the country of purchase. See your Limited
Warranty Statement for more details.

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Chapter 1
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Installing the software
Before you start, make sure your computer meets or
exceeds the system requirements for the drivers and
application programs you want to install. See the
System
Requirements
listed above.
To install the Compaq A3000 software:
1 Make sure you have followed the steps on the Quick Setup
poster, or those described in “Quick Setup” on page 1.
2 Turn on your computer and let it complete its start up into
Windows.
3 Windows will then detect new hardware.
Important: For proper software installation, you MUST cancel the Add New
Hardware wizard!
Windows detects that you have installed the Compaq
A3000 and asks you for the installation media. Select the
Cancel button on the above dialog. If you are starting
Windows for the first time, Windows asks you to select a
printer. Again, select Cancel.
4 Put the A3000 Driver CD in the CD-ROM drive. The
installation will start after a short period of time.

Getting Started
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GettingStarted
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If the CD does not run automatically, you will need to
start it yourself:
a From the Windows Start button, click Start > Run.
b Type x:\setup.exe
(where x is the drive letter for your CD-ROM
drive, usually
d , e , or f )
c Click OK.
5 When the A3000 setup screen appears, follow the on-
screen instructions to complete the software
installation.
Cable and power connections
The USB cable connection and power outlet are located
on the rear of the unit:
#Connection Description
1 USB Plug the USB cable into this connector.
2 Power Plug in the A3000 power supply cable.

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Chapter 1
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Component locations
Take a moment to become familiar with the main
components of your A3000.
# Component Description
1 Front door Open the front door for access to the ink cartridges and the
scanner lock.
2 Control Panel Controls the functions of the A3000 (see the next page).
3 Scanner cover Covers the scanner glass. Lift or remove to scan.
4 Input tray
latches Press down on the two latches to open the input tray. Used when adjusting the paper width, loading envelopes, or
clearing paper jams.
5 Input tray Place blank paper into the input tray for printing.
6 Exit tray Extend the paper exit tray to support your printed
documents.

Getting Started
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GettingStarted
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Control Panel features
The A3000 control panel is described below:
#Button Description
1 Power Turns the power on or off.
2 Form Feed Use to continue printing after reloading the paper tray
when it runs out of paper during a print job. Also removes
paper if paper does not exit after printing.
3 Setup Provides access to the system setup mode. Use the menu
button to cycle through all setup menus, and the Up/Down
buttons to permanently change the settings.
4 Color Copy Performs a color copy, or switches to the color copy mode
from another mode.
5 LCD Display Displays current copy information and menu options.
6 Black Copy Performs a black copy, or switch to the black copy mode
from another mode.
7 Scan Accesses the Scan To mode. Use the Up/Down buttons to
select a scan destination, then press Start.
8 Menu Display a menu of the current settings. Press repeatedly to
cycle through all menus of the current mode, and use the
Up/Down buttons to change the settings.
9 Up/Down Use to change the number of copies, or to change the
setting while in a menu.
10 Cancel/No Cancels an operation at any time. Also provides a No
response when answering questions.
11 Start/Yes Starts a copy or scan job. Also provides a Yes response
when answering questions.

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Chapter 1
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Where to go from here
If you want to get started using your A3000 right away,
you can jump to the following sections in this guide:
• To learn about the A3000 Settings Utility software for
your computer, see the next chapter “Using the Settings
Utility” on page 9.
• For information on printing, see “Printing” on page 17.
• To make copies, see “Copying” on page 25.
• To learn how to scan, see “Scanning” on page 31.

Using the Settings Utility
Using theSettingsUtility
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Using the Settings Utility
The Compaq A3000 Settings Utility allows you to
change the default settings of your A3000. For instance,
if you make a copy by pressing the Black Copy or Color
Copy button, the default copy settings will be used. You
can customize settings to suit your preferences.
You can always make a temporary change for a
specific job (such as changing the contrast while
performing a copy). When you are finished with the
current job, the A3000 will default back to the settings
you have chosen with the Settings Utility.
Accessing the Settings Utility
There are a number of ways to access the A3000
Settings Utility from your PC:
• From the Windows Start menu button, click:
Start Programs > Compaq A3000 >
Compaq A3000 Settings Utility
• From the system tray, left click on the A3000
Monitor icon (shown here on the left):
• Or right click on the A3000 Monitor icon, and select
A3000 Settings from the menu.
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Chapter 2
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The Monitor icon
The Monitor icon not only provides you with a fast and
easy way to access many of the A3000 features...it provides
you feedback as well:
• The normal monitor icon indicates the A3000 is
connected and communicating properly.
• An icon with a Red “X” indicates the unit is not
connected or there is some other problem.
• An animated icon shows that the PC is assisting the
A3000 in a task, such as scanning.
Main Settings Window
The main settings window is the first window that appears
when accessing the A3000 settings utility. Select one of the
buttons to change the default settings for the corresponding
feature ( Print for print settings, Copy for copy settings,
and
Scan for scan settings).
You can make changes to your settings even when your
A3000 is not connected to your computer. Any changes
will be sent to the A3000 the next time it is connected.
IMPORTANT
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Your settings changes are sent to the A3000 after you press the
Ok button, the Close button, or the [x] close button.

Using the Settings Utility
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UsingtheSettingsUtility
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Print Settings
Select the Print button from the main settings window
to access the Print Settings. The Print Settings gives
you access to the
Control Program and the Printer
Properties
.
These dialogs allow you to control printing functions
such as cartridge alignment and cleaning, paper size,
orientation, etc.
For more information on using the Control Program
and Printer Properties, see page 19.
Copy Settings
The Copy Settings window controls how the A3000
makes copies.
Copy Type
By default, the A3000 makes normal resolution color
copies. You can change the default copy type to three
different black settings and three different color
settings. Choose the type of copy you expect to usually
make, and it will become your default setting.

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Chapter 2
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Copy Quality
Select a default quality for Black copies, and a default
quality for Color copies. Use a lower quality setting for fast
copies and less ink usage.
Copy Contrast
The Copy Contrast setting controls the lightness or
darkness of the copy. You can select a default contrast for
Black copies and one for Color copies.
Paper Type
The paper type makes a big difference, especially when
making color copies. Select the default paper type you plan
to use when you make black copies, and the paper type you
plan to use for color copies.
Default Mode
When the A3000 is powered on, or has been inactive for a a
few minutes, it will return to the defaults you select above.
You can also select which copy mode you use the most
often as your default mode.

Using the Settings Utility
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UsingtheSettingsUtility
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Defaults
To reset all of the copy settings to the A3000 shipping
defaults, press this button.
Scan Settings
The Scan Settings window controls the scan type and
contrast and the Scan To list.
Scan To Menu
When you press the Scan button on the A3000, a Scan
To menu appears on the LCD display panel. The first
two menu entries are
User Folder and Email . You can
add up to six (6) additional menu options for scanning
to your favorite applications.
Scan To User Folder
The first menu entry is always the User Folder . The
User Folder is where your scanned pictures are stored
after you scan them. Once scanned, they will be given
the filename of
Month-Day-###.ext . For example,
the second file you scan on August 5th will be named
Aug-05-002.JPG (if you scanned to a JPEG file).

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Chapter 2
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By default, the User Folder is set to store scanned images
to the
My Pictures folder, which is usually located in your
My Documents folder. You can change this to any folder
you wish. Type in a new folder name where you would like
your scanned files to be stored, or press the
[…] button to
browse for an existing folder.
Scan To Email
The second Scan To menu entry is always Email . To scan
to email, you must have an internet account and
connection, a valid email address, and an email program
that supports MAPI (such as Microsoft Outlook , Outlook
Express
, Eudora, Netscape Mail, etc).
By default, the text file format
TXT is used for emails.
Your documents will be scanned, converted by ReadIRIS,
and then placed into the body of your email message.
Note: Be sure to read over any scanned text to verify its accuracy.
You can select a different default file type, such as JPG or
TIF. Your scanned files will be attached to the email
message.
Once scanned, your email program will start up. You can
then select recipients from your email address book, add a
subject, and type a message.

Using the Settings Utility
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UsingtheSettingsUtility
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Scan To Applications
Once an image is scanned, the A3000 can launch your
favorite image processing applications. You can define
up to six (6) additional
Scan To applications.
For each application, you must select an entry number,
a name to appear on the LCD menu, the path to the
application, and a file type. These are described below.
Scan To Entry
To store an entry, first select the number you wish to
assign to that entry. The number is used to order the
entry in the Scan To menu. Entry #1 is displayed first.
Display Name
Once you've chosen a number, give the entry a name.
This name can be up to 16 characters, and will be
displayed on the A3000 LCD panel.
Application
Type the path of the application program you want to
use to edit or view the scanned image. To browse for a
program, click on the
[…] browse button.
File Type
Select a file type that is compatible with the program.
Scanned files can be stored in one of three popular
image file types:
1BMP: the standard Windows bitmap file
2TIF: the TIFF file format
3JPG: the JPEG file format
or one of two text formats:
4TXT: a generic ASCII text file
5RTF: the Rich Text Format used by word processors

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Chapter 2
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Note: ReadIRIS must be installed to convert your scanned files into the
text (TXT) or word processing (RTF) formats. ReadIRIS is
normally installed as part of the A3000
software installation.
Select a file type that is compatible with your selected
application. For graphics programs like
Paint or Adobe
Photoshop
, choose one of the graphics file formats (BMP,
TIFF, or JPG). For word processing programs like
Microsoft Word , choose TXT or RTF.
Clearing an Entry
To clear an entry of all information, first select the entry
number you wish to clear and then press the Clear button.
Scan Type
By default, the A3000 performs normal resolution color
scans. You can change the default scan type to three
different black settings and three different color settings.
Choose the type of scan you expect to usually make.
Scan Contrast
The contrast setting controls the lightness or darkness of
the scan. Use the contrast to lighten or darken your scans if
needed.
Defaults
To reset all of the scan settings to the A3000 shipping
defaults, press this button.