Dell VOSTRO 1000 PP23LB User manual

www.dell.com | support.dell.com
Dell™ Vostro™ 1000 Owner’s Manual
Model PP23LB
book.book Page 1 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

Notes, Notices, and Cautions
NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of
your computer.
NOTICE: A NOTICE indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of data
and tells you how to avoid the problem.
CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury,
or death.
Abbreviations and Acronyms
For a complete list of abbreviations and acronyms, see "Glossary" on page 185.
____________________
Information in this document is subject to change without notice.
© 2007 Dell Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of Dell Inc. is strictly
forbidden.
Trademarks used in this text: Dell, the DELL logo, Vostro, and Strike Zone are trademarks of Dell Inc.;
Microsoft, Outlook, Vista, and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation; AMD,
Sempron, Turion, and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.; ENERGY
STAR is a registered trademark of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming
the marks and names or their products. Dell Inc. disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and
trade names other than its own.
Model PP23LB
October 2007 P/N WY122 Rev. A01
book.book Page 2 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

Contents 3
Contents
1 Finding Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2 About Your Computer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Determining Your Computer’s Configuration . . . . . . 19
Front View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Left Side View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Right Side View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Back View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Bottom View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
3 Setting Up Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Connecting to the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Setting Up Your Internet Connection . . . . . . . . 31
Transferring Information to a New Computer . . . . . . 33
Microsoft®Windows®XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Microsoft Windows Vista®. . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Setting Up a Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Printer Cable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Connecting a USB Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Power Protection Devices. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
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4Contents
Surge Protectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Line Conditioners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Uninterruptible Power Supplies . . . . . . . . . . 39
4 Using the Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Adjusting Brightness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Using a Projector. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Making Images and Text Look Bigger or Sharper. . . . 41
Microsoft®Windows®XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Windows Vista®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Using Both a Monitor and Your Computer Display . . . 43
Microsoft®Windows®XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Windows Vista®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Using a Monitor as Your Primary Display . . . . . . . . 44
Microsoft Windows XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Windows Vista . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Using Catalyst®Control Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Launching Catalyst Control Center . . . . . . . . . 46
5 Using the Keyboard and Touch Pad. . . . 47
Numeric Keypad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Key Combinations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
System Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
CD or DVD Tray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Display Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Power Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
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Contents 5
Speaker Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Microsoft®Windows®Logo Key Functions . . . . 49
Adjusting Keyboard Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Touch Pad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Customizing the Touch Pad . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
6 Using a Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Battery Performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Checking the Battery Charge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Dell™ QuickSet Battery Meter . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Microsoft®Windows®Power Meter . . . . . . . 55
Charge Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Low-Battery Warning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Conserving Battery Power. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Power Management Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Configuring Power Management Settings . . . . . 58
Accessing Power Options Properties . . . . . . . 58
Charging the Battery. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Replacing the Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Storing a Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
7 Using Multimedia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Playing a CD or DVD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Adjusting the Volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Adjusting the Picture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
book.book Page 5 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

6Contents
Copying CDs and DVDs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
How to Copy a CD or DVD. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Using Blank CDs and DVDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Helpful Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Adjusting the Volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Adjusting the Picture. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
8 Using Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
ExpressCards. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
ExpressCard Blanks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Installing an ExpressCard. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Removing an ExpressCard or Blank . . . . . . . . 71
Media Memory Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Installing a Media Memory Card . . . . . . . . . . 72
Removing a Media Memory Card. . . . . . . . . . 73
9 Setting Up and Using Networks . . . . . . 75
Physically Connecting to a Network or Broadband Modem 75
Connecting a Network or Broadband Modem Cable . . 75
Setting Up a Network in the Microsoft®Windows®XP Operating
System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Setting Up a Network in the Microsoft Windows Vista®Operating
System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) . . . . . . . . . 77
What You Need to Establish a WLAN Connection . 77
Checking Your Wireless Network Card . . . . . . . 77
Setting Up a New WLAN Using a Wireless Router and a
Broadband Modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
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Contents 7
Connecting to a WLAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Enabling/Disabling the Wireless Network Card . . 81
Mobile Broadband/Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN) 82
What You Need to Establish a Mobile Broadband Network
Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Checking Your Dell Mobile Broadband Card . . . . 83
Microsoft®Windows®Firewall . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
10 Securing Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Security Cable Lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Passwords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Computer Tracking Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
If Your Computer Is Lost or Stolen . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
11 Adding and Replacing Parts . . . . . . . . . . 89
Before You Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Recommended Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Turning Off Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Before Working Inside Your Computer . . . . . . . 90
Optical Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Hard Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Returning a Hard Drive to Dell . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Hinge Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
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8Contents
Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Wireless Mini-Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Coin-Cell Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
12 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Dell Technical Update Service . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Dell Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Dell Support Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Dell Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Dell PC TuneUp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Dell PC Checkup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Dell Network Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
DellConnect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Drive Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Optical drive problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Hard drive problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
E-Mail, Modem, and Internet Problems . . . . . . . . 121
Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
ExpressCard Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
IEEE 1394 Device Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Keyboard Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
External Keyboard problems . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Unexpected characters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Lockups and Software Problems . . . . . . . . . . . 130
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Contents 9
The computer does not start . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
The computer stops responding . . . . . . . . . . 131
A program stops responding or crashes repeatedly 131
A program is designed for an earlier Microsoft®Windows®
operating system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
A solid blue screen appears . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Dell MediaDirect problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Other software problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Memory Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Network Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Mobile Broadband (Wireless Wide Area Network [WWAN]) 135
Power Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Printer Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Scanner Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Sound and Speaker Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
No sound from integrated speakers . . . . . . . . 139
No sound from external speakers . . . . . . . . . 139
No sound from headphones . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Remote Control Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Touch Pad or Mouse Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Video and Display Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
If the display is blank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
If the display is difficult to read. . . . . . . . . . . 142
If only part of the display is readable. . . . . . . . 143
Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
What Is a Driver? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Identifying Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
book.book Page 9 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

10 Contents
Reinstalling Drivers and Utilities . . . . . . . . . 144
Troubleshooting Software and Hardware Problems . 147
Restoring Your Microsoft®Windows Vista®Operating System 148
Using Windows Vista System Restore . . . . . . 149
Restoring the Computer to the Default Factory Configuration 151
Using the Operating System Media. . . . . . . . 152
Restoring Your Microsoft®Windows®XP Operating System 153
Using Microsoft Windows System Restore. . . . 154
Using Dell™ PC Restore . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Using the Operating System Media. . . . . . . . 157
13 Dell™ QuickSet Features . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
14 Traveling With Your Computer . . . . . . . . 161
Identifying Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Packing the Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Travel Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Traveling by Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
15 Contacting Dell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
16 Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
17 Appendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Using the System Setup Program . . . . . . . . . . . 175
book.book Page 10 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

Contents 11
Viewing the System Setup Screens . . . . . . . . 176
Commonly Used Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Cleaning Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Computer, Keyboard, and Display . . . . . . . . . 179
Touch Pad. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Mouse. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Floppy Drive. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
CDs and DVDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
FCC Notice (U.S. Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
FCC Class B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Macrovision Product Notice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
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12 Contents
book.book Page 12 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

Finding Information 13
1
Finding Information
NOTE: Some features or media may be optional and may not ship with your
computer. Some features or media may not be available in certain countries.
NOTE: Additional information may ship with your computer.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here
• A diagnostic program for my computer
• Drivers for my computer
• My computer documentation
• My device documentation
• Notebook System Software (NSS)
Drivers and Utilities Media
Documentation and drivers are already
installed on your computer. You can use
the media to reinstall drivers (see
"Reinstalling Drivers and Utilities" on
page 144). To run the Dell Diagnostics,
see "Dell Diagnostics" on page 111.
Readme files may be included on your
media to provide last-minute updates
about technical changes to your computer
or advanced technical-reference material
for technicians or experienced users.
NOTE: Drivers and documentation updates
can be found at support.dell.com.
book.book Page 13 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

14 Finding Information
•Warrantyinformation
• Terms and Conditions (U.S. only)
•Safetyinstructions
•Regulatoryinformation
• Ergonomics information
• End User License Agreement
Dell™ Product Information Guide
• How to set up my computer Setup Diagram
NOTE: See the setup diagram that came
with your computer.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here
book.book Page 14 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

Finding Information 15
• Service Tag and Express Service Code
• Microsoft Windows License Label
Service Tag and Microsoft
®
Windows
®
License
NOTE: Your computer’s Service Tag and
Microsoft
®
Windows
®
License labels are
located on your computer.
Your computer’s Service Tag contains
both a Service Tag number and an
Express Service Code.
• Use the Service Tag to identify your
computer when you use
support.dell.com or contact support.
• Enter the Express Service Code to direct
your call when contacting support.
• Use the product key on the License
Label if you need to reinstall your
operating system.
NOTE: As an increased security measure,
the newly designed Microsoft Windows
license label incorporates a missing portion
or "hole" to discourage removal of the label.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here
book.book Page 15 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

16 Finding Information
• Solutions — Troubleshooting hints and
tips; articles from technicians; online
courses; and frequently asked questions
• Community — Online discussion with
other Dell customers
• Upgrades — Upgrade information for
components, such as memory, the hard
drive, and the operating system
• Customer Care — Contact information,
service call and order status, warranty,
and repair information
• Service and support — Service call
status and support history, service
contract, online discussions with
technical support
• Reference — Computer
documentation, details on my computer
configuration, product specifications,
and white papers
• Downloads — Certified drivers,
patches, and software updates
Dell Support Website — support.dell.com
NOTE: Select your region or business
segment to view the appropriate support
site.
• How to find information about my
computer and its components
• How to connect to the Internet
• How to add user accounts for different
people
• How to transfer files and settings from
another computer
Windows Welcome Center (Microsoft
Windows Vista
®
)
The Windows Welcome Center
automatically appears when you use the
computer for the first time. You can
choose to have it appear every time you
start your computer by placing a check in
the Run at startup checkbox. Another
method of accessing the Welcome Center
is to click the Windows Vista Start button
, and then click Welcome Center.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here
book.book Page 16 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

Finding Information 17
• Notebook System Software (NSS)— If
you reinstall the operating system for
your computer, you should also reinstall
the NSS utility. NSS provides critical
updates for your operating system and
support for processors, optical drives,
USB devices, and so on. NSS is
necessary for correct operation of your
Dell computer. The software
automatically detects your computer
and operating system and installs the
updates appropriate for your
configuration.
To download Notebook System Software:
1 Go to support.dell.com and click
Drivers & Downloads.
2 Enter your Service Tag or Product Type
and Product Model, and click
Go .
3 Scroll to System and Configuration
Utilities
→ Dell Notebook System
Software and click Download Now .
4 Select Drivers & Downloads and
click Go .
NOTE: The support.dell.com user interface
may vary depending on your selections.
• How to use the Windows operating
system
• How to work with programs and files
• How to personalize my desktop
Windows Help and Support Center
Microsoft Windows XP:
1 Click the Start button and click Help
and Support .
2 Either select one of the topics listed, or
type a word or phrase that describes your
problem into the Search box, click the
arrow icon, and then click the topic that
describes your problem.
3 Follow the instructions on the screen.
Microsoft Windows Vista:
1 Click the Windows Vista Start button
, and then click
Help and Support .
2 In Search Help , type a word or phrase
that describes your problem, and then
press <Enter> or click the magnifying
glass.
3 Click the topic that describes your
problem.
4 Follow the instructions on the screen.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here
book.book Page 17 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

18 Finding Information
• How to reinstall my operating system Operating System Media
The operating system is already installed
on your computer. To reinstall your
operating system, use one of the following
methods:
• Microsoft Windows System Restore —
Microsoft Windows System Restore
returns your computer to an earlier
operating state without affecting data
files.
• Dell
PC Restore — Dell PC Restore
returns your computer to its original
operating state. Dell
PC Restore may not
ship with your computer.
•
Operating System media — If you
received an Operating System media
with your computer, you can use it to
restore your operating system.
For more information, see "Restoring Your
Microsoft® Windows Vista® Operating
System" on page 148 or "Restoring Your
Microsoft® Windows® XP Operating
System" on page 153.
After you reinstall your operating system,
use the Drivers and Utilities media (see
"Drivers" on page 143) to reinstall drivers
for the devices that came with your
computer.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here
book.book Page 18 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

About Your Computer 19
2
About Your Computer
Determining Your Computer’s Configuration
Based on selections that you made when purchasing your computer, your
computer has one of several different video controller configurations. To
determine your computer’s video controller configuration:
1
Access the Microsoft
®
Windows
®
Help and Support Center. For
instructions, see
"Windows Help and Support Center" on page 17 .
2 Under Pick a Task , click Use Tools to view your computer information
and diagnose problems.
3 Under My Computer Information , select Hardware .
From the My Computer Information - Hardware screen, you can view the
type of video controller installed in your computer, as well as the other
hardware components.
book.book Page 19 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM

20 About Your Computer
Front View
1 display latch release 2 display latches (2) 3 display
4 power button 5 device status lights 6 touch pad
7 speakers (2) 8 touch pad buttons 9 keyboard
10 keyboard and wireless
status lights
1
9
3
6
8
4
7
5
10
2
book.book Page 20 Wednesday, September 26, 2007 4:19 PM