Follett Panther User manual

Getting Started with the Panther

Overview

The Follett Panther™ is a hand-held wireless device; it comes with a self-contained application, Remote Circulation,

which allows you to collect barcode scans offline for many maintenance tasks such as, circulation, inventory, and so on.

If you have Destiny® and a wireless network, the Panther's customized browser communicates directly with Destiny,

letting you perform real-time transactions. When you are out of range of your wireless network or when your Destiny

server is not available, you can use Follett Remote.

This document guides you through charging and setting up your Panther, and communicating with your workstation or

wireless network.

Before you begin

Before you begin using the Panther:

make sure your package contains everything on the enclosed packing list

charge the batteries. The Panther has two types of battery power: The main battery pack on the back panel, and the

backup battery located inside the device. Both batteries work together to prevent data loss when you use the

Panther over long periods of time.

IMPORTANT You must charge both batteries to full capacity before using the Panther for the first time.

To insert a battery pack

Place the end of the battery without the locking tab into the bottom of the charging pocket, then

snap the battery into place with a hinging motion.

IMPORTANT If you are removing or re-installing a battery pack, make sure the Panther is turned off.

To turn off the Panther

Simultaneously press the Blue and the Backlight keys.

Figure 1

To remove a battery pack, push the locking tab down and pull the battery away from the charging

slot with a hinging motion.

Getting Started with the Panther

charge the main battery pack for a minimum of four hours.

Figure 2

WARNING Use only the peripherals, power cables, and power adapters from the manufacturer. Use of

these items from other manufacturers will void the warranty and could damage the Panther.

1Attach the appropriate plug adapter to the plug of the power cable.

2Plug the Panther power cable into the DC power jack on the left side of the Panther.

3Insert the plug into an appropriate power source.

Manage main battery power

You can store data and files on the Follett Panther in RAM. Make sure to maintain a continuous power supply to the

Panther to help prevent data loss. When you remove a battery pack, insert another charged battery pack in the Panther. If

the main battery pack is low, either connect the Panther to the power cable or insert the Panther into a HomeBase. Either

action powers the Panther and begins recharging the battery.

NOTE If the main battery is low and the Panther is in Suspend mode, pressing the SCAN button does not wake the Panther; you must

replace the discharged battery with a fully charged battery.

Internal backup battery

Located inside the Panther, the backup battery is a 2.4V nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery.

The internal backup battery prevents the Panther from resetting when you remove the main battery pack. This battery

retains RAM data and allows the real-time clock to remain operational for up to 30 minutes. If the Panther is left without

the main battery pack for more than 30 minutes, the internal backup battery discharges and must be recharged to

function properly.

IMPORTANT Even if the internal backup battery fails, data and programs stored in Flash memory (IPSM) or an optional SD card are

not lost.

However, the Panther automatically cold boots when you install a fully charged battery pack. If this happens, you need to

re-configure your wireless network settings and reset the real-time clock.

Getting Started with the Panther

Charging the backup battery

The internal backup battery charges off the main battery pack and requires eight hours charge time to back up RAM data

for 30 minutes. You can begin using the Panther after charging the main battery for four hours. If you do so, the internal

backup battery will continue to charge off the main battery.

To ensure that the internal backup battery functions properly, maintain a consistent power supply for the first eight hours

of operation. This power supply can be external power (using a charging peripheral) or an installed, charged battery

pack, or a combination of both.

Getting Started with the Panther

Start the Panther

IMPORTANT Always power off when you change the battery pack.

What do you want to do?

If you want to… Then…

Power on Simultaneously press the Blue and the Backlight

keys.

Power off Simultaneously press the Blue and the Backlight

keys.

Getting Started with the Panther

Panther Features

This section provides illustrations with callouts for the keyboard and the LCD, as well as feature details.

Keyboard Features

Figure 3

Scanning and

decoding LEDs

The Scan LED turns red when you press the Scan key when scanning.

The Decode LED turns green when the Panther successfully decodes a

barcode scan.

Touchscreen

display

The Panther comes with a stylus, located in the stylus slot on the back of

the unit. Use this stylus (or your finger) to select or enter information on the

touch screen. The stylus functions like a mouse; generally, a tap is the

same as a click.

Tap Tap the touch screen once to open menu items and select

options.

Drag Hold the stylus on the screen and drag across the screen to

select text and images.

Tap & hold Tap and hold the stylus on an item, and a pop-up menu

appears. On the pop-up menu, tap the action of the task you want to

perform.

IMPORTANT Use of objects other than the stylus, such as paper clips,

pencils, or ink pens, can damage the touch screen and will void the warranty.

Care and cleaning When needed, clean the scanning lens and the LCD

display with a clean, non-abrasive, lint-free cloth. You can clean the

Panther case with a damp cloth.

Table 1. Panther Features - Details

Getting Started with the Panther

Keyboard

Color-coding The keyboard overlays are color-coded to indicate the

functions performed, or characters typed, when you press a color-coded

key and the red or blue modifier key.

Hardware application buttons The application buttons (P1, P2, P3, P4)

are programmed to launch software applications from the desktop.

Key functions:

P1 Launches Internet Explorer P3Launches Scan Wedge

P2Launch WordPad P4Launches Follett Remote

Function Keys Function keys perform specific functions and usually

display the name of the function they perform.

Backlight Toggles the keyboard backlight on and off.

Backspace Moves the cursor back one space and deletes each

time you press the key. If you are typing text, a character is deleted

each time you backspace.

Backtab Red circle plus Tab moves the cursor back to the previous

tab stop or field.

Escape Cancels an action.

Enter Functions as an Enter key.

Power Blue circle plus Backspace key suspends or resumes oper-

ation.

Scan Activates the scanning LED to scan a barcode or take an

image.

Shift Provides shift functionality for application windows and func-

tions as a Caps Backlight Lock key in Alpha mode.

SpaceMoves the cursor one space forward. If you are typing text, it

moves the text one space forward as well.

Tab Moves the cursor to the next tab stop or field (on a form or

application window).

Getting Started with the Panther

Navigation Keys

Moves the cursor up one

row or line.

and = Scroll up

and = Volume

Moves the cursor

one character to the

left.

and = Back-

space

Moves the cursor

one character to

the right.

Press and

= Space

Moves the cursor down

one row or line.

and = Volume

down

and = Scroll

page down

Other Red Key Com-

binations/ Special

Characters

* Warning: This procedure deletes WLAN configurations.

and (hold) = warm

boot

and (hold) = cold

boot *and 1 = F1

and 2 = F2 and 3 = F3 and 4 = F4

and 5 = F5 and 6 = F6 and 7 = F7

and 8 = F8 and 9 = F9 and 0 = F10

and = * and = #

Getting Started with the Panther

LCDFeatures

Located at the bottom of the Panther LCD, the command bar includes application menus and buttons, and provides

access to the Input Panel (on-screen keyboard).

Figure 4

Opens the Windows® Start menu. Indicates that the USB communication cable is

connected.

Battery status. Indicates that the bat-

tery is low.

Double-tap to open the Power control

panel setting.

Tap to open the Bluetooth Manager.

Indicates that barcode scanning is

enabled. Indicates keyboard mode (alpha or numeric).

Radio status. Tap to open the network

manager.

802.11b/g radio signal strength. If the radio is

not transmitting, an "x" appears over the bars.

Displays the current time. Double-

tap to change the time/date. Tap to open the soft input panel (onscreen key-

board).

Tap to return to the desktop or toggle

between the open applications

Getting Started with the Panther

Communication options

Follett Panthers offer the following communication options: wireless radios, Microsoft® ActiveSync® with a

communication cable, and infrared.

Wireless radios (wireless communication) Follett Panthers have an 802.11b/g and a Bluetooth® radio.

Once you configure the Panther for your network, you can communicate wirelessly:

If you are a Destiny customer, you can communicate directly with Destiny.

If you are a Circulation Plus/Catalog Plus or InfoCentre customer, you can connect to the Internet.

Establishing the Panther on a wireless network depends heavily on your network infrastructure. You will need specific

information from your network administrator.

Before you can communicate with your wireless network, you need to do the following:

Enable the on-board radio so that the Panther can transmit signals.

Configure the settings for the radio you are using. Each radio has its own configuration program.

I/O connector (wired communication) The mechanical connector on the bottom panel lets you connect the Panther to a

host workstation through a USB (1.1 or higher) connection using ActiveSync communication.

IrDA port (wireless communication) The IrDA port enables the Panther to transmit data via pulses of infrared light to

and from other IrDA-compliant devices, such as printers, workstations, and even other Panthers.

To configure the Panther to communicate with your workstation, follow the "Connect to ActiveSync using infrared"

instructions in the ActiveSync Help on your workstation.

Connecting to a wireless network using 802.11b/g The Panther contains an integral Network manager for the on-board

802.11b/g radio. The Panther v2.0 supports the following protocols:

IEEE 802.1X (WEP)

WPA-Personal (PSK)

WPA2-Personal (PSK)

WPA-Enterprise (EAP)

WPA2-Enterprise (EAP)

For the above protocols that support EAP authentication, the Panther supports the following methods:

LEAP

PEAPv0-MSCHAPV2

PEAPv1-MSCHAPV2

FAST-TLS

TLS

PEAPv1-GTC

PEAPv1-TLS

FAST-MSCHAPV2

FAST-GTC

TTLS-MD5

TTLS-MSCHAPV2

TTLS-GTC

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Follett Panther User manual

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