Dell Inspiron 3500 Instruction Manual

Dell Inspiron 3500 Portable Computer — Installing System Software 1
'HOO®,QVSLURQ™3RUWDEOH
&RPSXWHU³,QVWDOOLQJ6\VWHP
6RIWZDUH
This document explains how to install the Microsoft®Windows®98 operating system
and the Dell device drivers and utilities on your Dell Inspiron 3500 portable computer.
You may need to use this document under the following conditions:
Dell did not install an operating system or other system software on your
computer.
You are reinstalling the version of Windows 98 that came with your computer,
and you need to reinstall the drivers and utilities that Dell provides.
You have a new hard-disk drive and you need to install all of the system software.
To install the system software, you must have the following items:

Microsoft Windows 98
CD

Microsoft Boot Disk Windows 98 Series
diskette

Dell Inspiron 3500 System Software
CD

Diskette drive cable
NOTE: Refer to “Reinstalling the Device Drivers,” found later in this document, if
some of the drivers and/or utilities that came with your computer are corrupted, and
you need to reinstall them individually.
%HIRUH<RX%HJLQ
Before you begin the installation, you must install the CD-ROM or the optional
DVD-ROM drive in the options bay of your computer, and you must attach the diskette
drive externally. For instructions on installing the CD-ROM or the optional DVD-ROM
drive in the options bay, refer to the
Dell Inspiron 3500 Portable Computer — Using
the Options Bay
document. To install the external diskette drive, follow these steps:
1. Plug the squared end of the cable into the parallel connector on the back of the
computer, and tighten the screws on either side of the cable connector.

2 Dell Inspiron 3500 Portable Computer — Installing System Software
2. Plug the triangular end of the cable into the diskette drive, and tighten the screws
on either side of the cable connector.
The diskette drive is now connected.
,QVWDOOLQJ0LFURVRIW:LQGRZVDQG
'HYLFH'ULYHUV
To install Microsoft Windows 98 and device drivers on your computer, follow these
steps:
1. Insert the
Microsoft Boot Disk Windows 98 Series
diskette into the external
diskette drive.
2. Restart the system.
3. When the Microsoft Windows 98 Startup menu appears, insert the
Microsoft
Windows 98
CD into the CD-ROM or optional DVD-ROM drive.
4. Select Start Windows 98 Setup from CD-ROM and press <Enter>.
The setup program runs ScanDisk to check your hard-disk drive.
5. When the hard-disk drive check is completed, type xto exit ScanDisk.
6. When prompted to create a start-up diskette, remove the
Microsoft Boot Disk
Windows 98 Series
diskette from the diskette drive, and click Next>.
7. Label a blank, high-density diskette as instructed, insert the diskette into the
diskette drive, and click OK.
After installing Windows 98 on your computer, you needto install the following device
drivers:
Video driver
Internal modem driver
Audio driver
Touch pad driver
,QVWDOOLQJWKH9LGHR'ULYHU
The video driver controls features such as screen resolution and the number of screen
colors.
NOTE: If you need to use extended video modes, check the documentation that
accompanied the application program to determine if the drivers are provided. If they
are not, contact the software manufacturer to obtain the necessary drivers.

Dell Inspiron 3500 Portable Computer — Installing System Software 3
To install the video driver, follow these steps:
1. Insert the
Dell Inspiron 3500 System Software
CD into the CD-ROM or optional
DVD-ROM drive.
2. Click Start, point to Settings, and click Control Panel.
3. In the Control Panel, double-click the Display Properties window.
4. Click the Settings tab, and then click Advanced.
5. Click the Adapter tab, and then click the Change button.
6. In the Update Device Driver wizard, click Next>.
7. C l i ck Next> again.
8. Click the Specify a Location checkbox.
9. Click Browse.
10. Double-click the CD-ROM or DVD-ROM icon.
11. Double-click the Video folder.
12. Click <Enter>, and then click Next>.
13. After the driver has been located, click Next>.
14. Click Finish to restart the computer.
NOTE: After the computer restarts, you may change the video resolution.
Continue with the installation procedure by installing the internal modem driver as
described in the next section, “Installing the Internal Modem Driver.”
,QVWDOOLQJWKH,QWHUQDO0RGHP'ULYHU
The modem driver allows you to customize the operation of your internal modem. To
install the internal modem driver, follow these steps:
1. From the desktop, double-click the My Computer icon, and then double-click the
CD-ROM or DVD-ROM icon.
2. Double-click the Modem folder.
3. Double-click setup.exe.
4. At the Welcome screen, click Next>.
The internal modem files are copied to your hard-disk drive.
5. At the Setup Complete window, click Yes, I want to restart my computer now,
and then click Finish.
6. After the computer restarts, click the Start button, point to Settings, and click
Control Panel.

4 Dell Inspiron 3500 Portable Computer — Installing System Software
7. At the Control Panel, double-click the System icon.
8. Click the Device Manager tab. Be sure that View devices by type (default) is
selected.
9. In the device list, double-click Other devices, and then click PCI multimedia
audio device.
10. Click Remove and then click OK at the Confirm Device Removal window.
11. In the device list, double-click Other devices, and then double-click Unknown
Device.
12. Click Remove and then click OK at the Confirm Device Removal window.
13. In the device list, double-click Other devices and then double-click Unknown
Device.
14. Click Remove and then click OK at the Confirm Device Removal window.
15. Click Close.
16. Exit the Control Panel window, and shut down and then restart the computer.
Continue with the installation procedure by installing the audio driver as described in
the next section, “Installing the Audio Driver.”
,QVWDOOLQJWKH$XGLR'ULYHU
The audio driver allows you to customize the sound features of your computer.
To install the audio driver, follow these steps:
1. After Windows 98 restarts, the New Hardware Wizard appears.
2. Click Next>.
3. Click Search for the best driver for your device, and then click Next>.
4. Click Specify a location, and specify the Audio folder on your CD-ROM or
optional DVD-ROM drive.
5. Click Next>.
6. When the drive has been detected, click Next>.
Messages indicating that files are being copied and driver information is being
built appear on your screen.
7. When prompted, click Finish.
The New Hardware Wizard appears again.

Dell Inspiron 3500 Portable Computer — Installing System Software 5
8. Click Next>.
9. Click Search for the best driver for your device, and then click Next>.
10. Click Specify a location, and specify the Audio folder on your CD-ROM or
optional DVD-ROM drive.
11. Click Next>.
12. When the drivers have been detected, click Next>.
Messages indicating that files are being copied and driver information is being
built appear.
13. When prompted, click Finish.
Continue with the installation procedure by installing the touch pad driver as
described in the next section, “Installing the Touch Pad Driver.”
,QVWDOOLQJWKH7RXFK3DG'ULYHU
The touch pad driver and associated utilities allow you to customize the operation of
your touch pad and cursor features. To install the touch pad driver, follow these steps:
1. From the desktop, double-click the My Computer icon, and then double-click the
CD-ROM or DVD-ROM icon.
2. Double-click the Touchpad folder.
3. Double-click the Setup icon.
4. At the Welcome screen, click Next>.
5. Click Location, then click Next>.
6. At the Start Copying Files window, click Next>.
The touch pad files are copied to your hard-disk drive.
7. At the Setup Complete window, click Yes, I want to restart my computer now,
and then click Finish to restart the computer.
All of the device drivers are now installed. You may now install the
System User’s
Guide
.
,QVWDOOLQJWKH6\VWHP8VHU·V*XLGH
You can download the Dell Inspiron online
System User’s Guide
, if needed, from Dell’s
World Wide Web site (www.dell.com) as follows:
1. On the Dell home page, click the Support icon.
The Dell Support main menu appears.

6 Dell Inspiron 3500 Portable Computer — Installing System Software
2. Click Troubleshoot Your Dell System, and then locate the link to the Inspiron
Notebooks page.
3. Click 3500.
The System Support page appears.
4. Under Technical Information, click Documentation.
5. Click
System User’s Guide
.
6. When prompted, save the file to your hard-disk drive.
&UHDWLQJWKH6DYHWR'LVN6XVSHQG)LOH
If you are installing a new hard-disk drive or if you are rebuilding a hard-disk drive with
corrupted software and you want to be able to use the save-to-disk suspend mode,
you must use the phdisk.exe utility on the
Dell Inspiron 3500 System Software
CD to
create a save-to-disk suspend file. When save-to-disk suspend mode is activated, all
system data is stored in this file.
To create the save-to-disk suspend file, follow these steps:
1. Insert the
Microsoft Boot Disk Windows 98 Series
diskette into the external
diskette drive.
2. Restart the system.
3. When the Microsoft Windows 98 Startup Menu appears, click Start computer
with CD-ROM Support and press <Enter>.
4. When the MS-DOS®prompt appears, insert the
Dell Inspiron 3500 System
Software
CD into the CD-ROM or optional DVD-ROM drive.
5. At the MS-DOS prompt, type x :, where x is the drive letter for your CD-ROM or
DVD-ROM drive, and press <Enter>.
The MS-DOS prompt changes to your CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive.
6. Type cd\utilities and press <Enter>.
7. Type PHDISK /CREATE /FILE and press <Enter>.
NOTE: Make sure there is a space between
PHDISK /CREATE
and
/FILE
.
The utility calculates the size of the file, in kilobytes, based on the amount of
system memory in your computer, plus 2 megabytes (MB) of video memory and
additional system requirements.

Dell Inspiron 3500 Portable Computer — Installing System Software 7
8. Follow the instructions on your screen to create the save-to-disk suspend file.
To check the size of the save-to-disk suspend file, type PHDISK /INFO at an
MS-DOS prompt and press <Enter>.
If you need to delete the save-to-disk suspend file, type PHDISK /DELETE /FILE at
an MS-DOS prompt and press <Enter>.
5HLQVWDOOLQJWKH'HYLFH'ULYHUV
If a driver and/or a utility that came with your computer is corrupted, you may wish to
reinstall it individually.
The reinstallation procedures for the video driver, the internal modem driver, and the
touch pad driver are the same as the installation procedures.
To reinstall the audio driver, see the next section, “Reinstalling the Audio Driver.”
5HLQVWDOOLQJWKH$XGLR'ULYHU
To reinstall the audio driver, follow these steps:
1. Save your work and exit all open application programs.
2. Insert the
Dell Inspiron 3500 System Software
CD into the CD-ROM or optional
DVD-ROM drive.
3. Click the Start button, point to Settings, and click Control Panel.
4. At the Control Panel, double-click the Systems icon.
5. Click the Device Manager tab. Be sure that View devices by type (default) is
selected.
6. In the device list, double-click NeoMagic Magic Media 256AV audio.
7. C l i ck Remove and then click OK at the Confirm Device Removal window.
8. In the device list, double-click NeoMagic Magic Wave 3DX sound system.
9. Click Remove and then click OK at the Confirm Device Removal window.
10. Click Close, and shut down and then restart the computer.
The New Hardware Wizard appears.
11. Click Next>.
12. Click Search for the best driver for your device, and then click Next>.
13. Click Specify a location, and specify the Audio folder on your CD-ROM or
optional DVD-ROM drive.
14. Click Next>.

8 Dell Inspiron 3500 Portable Computer — Installing System Software
15. When the driver has been detected, click Next>.
Messages indicating that files are being copied and driver information is being
built appear.
16. When prompted, click Finish.
The New Hardware Wizard appears again.
17. Click Next>.
18. Click Search for the best driver for your device, and then click Next>.
19. Click Specify a location, and specify the Audio folder on your CD-ROM or
optional DVD-ROM drive.
20. Click Next>.
21. When the drivers have been detected, click Next>.
Messages indicating that files are being copied and driver information is being
built appear.
22. When prompted, click Finish.
&RQWDFWLQJ'HOO
Dell’s Web site (www.dell.com) provides driver and utility updates, as well as
technical assistance with computer questions. In addition, if you have access to a
computer with a modem and/or fax capabilities, you can access Dell’s TechConnect
bulletin board service (BBS), Auto Tech service, and TechFax service. Dell’s Web site
also contains links to some of these services.