Sony VAIO manual

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A good user manual

The rules should oblige the seller to give the purchaser an operating instrucion of Sony VAIO, along with an item. The lack of an instruction or false information given to customer shall constitute grounds to apply for a complaint because of nonconformity of goods with the contract. In accordance with the law, a customer can receive an instruction in non-paper form; lately graphic and electronic forms of the manuals, as well as instructional videos have been majorly used. A necessary precondition for this is the unmistakable, legible character of an instruction.

What is an instruction?

The term originates from the Latin word „instructio”, which means organizing. Therefore, in an instruction of Sony VAIO one could find a process description. An instruction's purpose is to teach, to ease the start-up and an item's use or performance of certain activities. An instruction is a compilation of information about an item/a service, it is a clue.

Unfortunately, only a few customers devote their time to read an instruction of Sony VAIO. A good user manual introduces us to a number of additional functionalities of the purchased item, and also helps us to avoid the formation of most of the defects.

What should a perfect user manual contain?

First and foremost, an user manual of Sony VAIO should contain:
- informations concerning technical data of Sony VAIO
- name of the manufacturer and a year of construction of the Sony VAIO item
- rules of operation, control and maintenance of the Sony VAIO item
- safety signs and mark certificates which confirm compatibility with appropriate standards

Why don't we read the manuals?

Usually it results from the lack of time and certainty about functionalities of purchased items. Unfortunately, networking and start-up of Sony VAIO alone are not enough. An instruction contains a number of clues concerning respective functionalities, safety rules, maintenance methods (what means should be used), eventual defects of Sony VAIO, and methods of problem resolution. Eventually, when one still can't find the answer to his problems, he will be directed to the Sony service. Lately animated manuals and instructional videos are quite popular among customers. These kinds of user manuals are effective; they assure that a customer will familiarize himself with the whole material, and won't skip complicated, technical information of Sony VAIO.

Why one should read the manuals?

It is mostly in the manuals where we will find the details concerning construction and possibility of the Sony VAIO item, and its use of respective accessory, as well as information concerning all the functions and facilities.

After a successful purchase of an item one should find a moment and get to know with every part of an instruction. Currently the manuals are carefully prearranged and translated, so they could be fully understood by its users. The manuals will serve as an informational aid.

Table of contents for the manual

  • Page 1

    V AIO® User Guide[...]

  • Page 2

    V AIO® User Guide 2 Notice to Users © 2000 Sony E lectronics In c. Re production in whole or in part wit hou t written permi ssion is prohibit ed. All rights reserv ed. This manu al and the softwa re de scribed here in , in whole or in part, may n ot be rep roduced, tra nsl ated, or reduce d to a ny m ac hi ne-read abl e form without prior writte[...]

  • Page 3

    Notice to Users 3 ❑ Never ins tall modem or telephone wiring d uring a ligh tn ing st or m. ❑ Never install telephone jacks in wet locations unless the jack is specifically designed for wet locations. ❑ Never t ouch uni nsulated telephone wir e or terminals unless the telepho ne line has been disconnected at the network interface. ❑ Use cau[...]

  • Page 4

    V AIO® User Guide 4 ❑ N'utilisez pas le modem ni le télépho ne pour pré venir d'une fuite de gaz vous êtes p rès de la fuite. ❑ L ’appareil doit être le plus près possibl e d’un e prise mural e pour en faciliter l’accès. For ques ti o ns rega rd i ng y our pr odu ct or fo r t h e Sony Se rvice C enter neares t you, cal [...]

  • Page 5

    Notice to Users 5 ❑ Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna. ❑ Increase the separ ation between the equipment an d the receiver . ❑ Connect the equipmen t into an outlet on a circuit dif ferent fr om that to which the receiver is connected. ❑ Consult the dealer or an experienced rad io/TV technician for help. Y o u are caution ed that an[...]

  • Page 6

    V AIO® User Guide 6 T elephone Consumer Pr otection Act of 1991 (United St ates) The T e lephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 makes it unlawful for any person to use a computer or other electronic device to send any message via a t elephone facsimile machine unless such message clearly contains, in a margin at the top or bottom of each transmit[...]

  • Page 7

    Notice to Users 7 INDUSTRY CANADA NOTICE NOTICE: The Industry Canada label identifies certified eq uipment. This certif ication mea ns that the equipment meets c ertain telecommunications network protective, operational and sa fety requirements as prescribed in the appropriate T er- minal Equipment T echnic al Requirements docu- ment(s). The Depart[...]

  • Page 8

    V AIO® User Guide 8 installat i ons él ec triques, ou à un él ectricie n, selon le cas . A VIS: L ’indic e d ’éq uivale nce de la sonnerie (IES) ass igné à chaqu e di sposi tif termin al indique le nom bre maximal de term inaux qui peuvent êt re ra ccordés à une interface. La ter minais on d’un e inter face télép honique peut con [...]

  • Page 9

    9 Contents Notice to Users 2 Contents 9 Welcome 1 1 Choosin g an Ergonomi c Location 1 1 Front Pan el Overview 12 Back Panel Overvi ew 14 VAIO® Action Setup 17 Presetting i.LINK® devices 18 Sony Digital Media Park Applic ations 21 Movie S hak er 22 Pictur eGear™ 25 Using a D igital Video Camera Recorder 26 Configuring y our VAIO® Computer 29 H[...]

  • Page 10

    V AIO® User Guide 10 System and Application Recovery CD(s) 33 Using th e System Recover y CD(s) 33 Using the Applic ation R ecover y CD(s) 3 5 Troubleshooting 37 Topics 37 Notes on Use 47 For Answers to Yo ur Software Questio ns 52 Resources 54 Specifications 57 Ind ex 59[...]

  • Page 11

    11 We l c o m e Thank you for purchasin g your So ny V AIO® computer! Y our new computer is a superb b lend of hig h technolog y and easy- to-use funct ionality . This User Guid e contains information about the applications included with your system, contact informatio n for soft ware vend ors, and the specif ications for your co mputer . Choosing[...]

  • Page 12

    V AIO® User Guide 12 ❑ Light ing — Choose a location where windows and lights do n ot create glare and r efle c tion o n the di spla y . Use i ndi re ct li ghtin g to av oid br i ght sp ots on the display . Y ou can also purch ase accessories fo r your display that help reduce glare. Prop er lighting adds to yo ur comfo rt and work ef fectiven[...]

  • Page 13

    Fr ont Panel Overview 13 1 Floppy disk drive Reads and writes d ata from and to a 3. 5 -inch floppy disk. 2 Floppy di sk drive access ind icator ligh t Lights in green whi le readin g/writing d ata from/t o a flop py disk. 3 Power s witch a nd indica tor light T urns t he c o mput er on /o f f. The ind ic ator light is g re en wh ile th e p ower is[...]

  • Page 14

    V AIO® User Guide 14 Back Panel Overview The back panel of y our comput er contains the connecto rs for su pplied and optional accessories. The icons on the back pan el help locate and identify the connectors on y our computer . Back Controls and Connectors (PCV-J120) 1 PS/2 Mouse 2 Keyboar d 3 USB 4 Serial 5 Printer/Parallel 6 Monitor 9 Games/MID[...]

  • Page 15

    Back Pa nel Over view 15 1 PS/2® mous e conn ector Connects a PS/2 mouse. 2 PS/2 Ke yboar d conn ector Connects a k eyboard. 3 Universal Serial Bus (USB) connectors (2) Connects a USB dev ic e. 4 Serial conn ector Connects a compa tible serial device, such as a di gital still cam era. 5 Pri nter connec tor Con ne c ts a para lle l de vi ce , s uc [...]

  • Page 16

    V AIO® User Guide 16[...]

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    17 V AIO® Action Setup V AIO Action Setup manages the settin gs for you r compu ter ’ s Shortcut key s (S Keys) and i.LINK® interface. The programmable S Keys come with the following applications as their default setti ngs: ❑ S1 — Outlook E xpress ❑ S2 — Internet E xplorer ❑ S3 — Media Bar ❑ S4 — Picture Gear ❑ S5 — DVGate M[...]

  • Page 18

    V AIO® User Guide 18 Pres etti ng i. LINK® devi ces Y ou can preset your i.LINK-equipped devices to perform des ired functions, such as automatically starting DVgate™ applications or conn ecting t wo V AIO computers. T o pr eset your i.LI NK dev ice to perf orm a desir ed fu ncti on 1 From the Start menu, sel ect Programs > V AIO Action Setu[...]

  • Page 19

    Pr esetting i .LI NK® devi ce s 19 Changing the W indow Design of Sony So ftware T o change the wi ndow desi gn 1 Click the Start button > Settin gs > Control Pan e l. 2 Click UI D esign Sel ector . 3 Click << or >> and select th e desired des ign. 4 Click Apply . 5 The “UI Des ign Selector” window d esign changes . The windo[...]

  • Page 20

    V AIO® User Guide 20[...]

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    21 Sony Digital Medi a Park Applications Y our V AIO® computer comes with a collection of applications that make it easy to use advanced multimedia formats. This section describes the Digital Media Park applications and the digital video capabili ties. Medi a B ar™ Media Bar so ftware is your a ll-in-one solution for a udio/video playba ck. Medi[...]

  • Page 22

    V AIO® User Guide 22 Movie Shaker This application can be u sed to create fun and innov ative movies without any knowledge of film editing. In a few simple steps , motion pictures can be combined with special effects, still images (pictures), and music files and then saved in a fo rmat most compu ters can play . Importing Images and Sound Clips 1 [...]

  • Page 23

    Movie Sh aker 23 1 Click the Shake tab. 2 Select a mood by clicking a f ace in the Shaker tr ay . 3 Click . A thirty second scene is automatically generated and save d t o th e Produc t tra y . 4 T o preview , switch the W ork Panel to Product tray mode and pres s play . Editing Cl ips an d Scenes Y ou can edit your movie by adding ef fects and tex[...]

  • Page 24

    V AIO® User Guide 24 Adding e ffects to a scene or a cl ip 1 Double-click the clip or scene to move it to the W orking Panel. 2 Select the Effects tab from the Editing tray . 3 Drag and drop the Ef fect yo u want to add from the Ef fects tray to the Ef fects palette on the W orking Panel. 4 See help for instructions on adjustin g effect duration a[...]

  • Page 25

    Pict ur eGea r™ 25 PictureGear™ PictureGear is a digital image m anagement application that allows you to see all the images sto red in any director y on your computer . Thumbnail views provide quick r eminders of y our pict ures. Brigh ten, contras t, enhance, r esize, crop, and color-correct y our pictures. C reate panoramic views, animation [...]

  • Page 26

    V AIO® User Guide 26 1 Gather the sour ce images into the s ame folder or collection. 2 Select the images you wan t to use. 3 From the Utilities men u sel ect Panoram a Maker . 4 Select the correct lens and click Okay . (If 35mm lens is selected the prompt, does not appear; to select a diff erent lens, click the lens icon.) 5 Click t he panoramic [...]

  • Page 27

    Using a Digi tal V ide o Camera Reco rder 27 ❑ Y ou cannot use dif ferent audio modes on the same tape. Y ou should perform a separate captur e for each au dio mode you wish to use. ❑ DVgate does not su pport har d disk co mpressi on. Y ou should not us e disk comp ressi on if yo u are pl ann i ng to w ork w i th DV ga te. ❑ T itle data is sa[...]

  • Page 28

    V AIO® User Guide 28[...]

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    29 Configur ing your V AIO® Comp uter Hard Drive Part iti on In order t o improve t he perform ance of the DV gate softwar e, the hard disk dr ive on your computer has been formatted with two partitions, C and D. The DVgate software saves files to the D partition. This prevents large video captures from consuming the available space on your C part[...]

  • Page 30

    V AIO® User Guide 30 The following Sony i.LINK 400 Mbps cables are available and recommended fo r use with your compu t er: VMC -IL4 615 , VMC-IL4 63 5, VM C-I L661 5, and VMC - IL6635. Son y computer supplies , accessories, and peripheral equipmen t can be purchased from yo ur local retai ler , th rough th e Sony V AIO Direct W eb site (http:/ //[...]

  • Page 31

    Enabli ng Et hern et 31 T o connect a n i.LIN K (IEEE139 4) device 1 Use the symbol to locate the i.LINK co nnector . 2 Plug the i.LINK cable into this connector . Enabl ing Ether net Y our computer comes with a prein stalled Ethernet interface. T o enable faster start u p, you r comp uter sh ips wi t h thi s f uncti on dis able d. Y ou m ay ena bl[...]

  • Page 32

    V AIO® User Guide 32 3 Select “Realt ek R TL8139 (A/B/C/8130 ) PCI Fast Ethernet NIC ” under the Network Adapters category . 4 Click Prope rti es. 5 Click Enable Device and then click OK. 6 Click Close. ! Warning: Y o ur compu ter ha s a protect ive stick er coveri ng the Ethe rnet port locat ed on the re ar pane l. Conne ct only 1 0Base-T an [...]

  • Page 33

    33 System and Application Rec overy CD(s) System Recovery CD(s) Sony Elect r onics The Syste m Recovery CD p rogram a llows you to re store the software title s that ship ped with your com pu ter if they become co rrupted or are erased. It can b e used only to rest ore the har d di sk of th e So ny comp ut er you p ur c h ased. Application Recov er[...]

  • Page 34

    V AIO® User Guide 34 the computer will of fer you the option to reformat the drive into a s ingle partition. T o use the S ystem Recove ry CD(s) 1 Insert the Sony System Recovery CD in the CD-R W drive. 2 Shut dow n your com puter . 3 W ait 30 second s and tur n on your computer . 4 Click OK to signify yo u have read and accept the Microsoft En d-[...]

  • Page 35

    Using the Ap plication Recovery CD(s) 35 Using the Appli cation Recovery CD(s) The Application Recovery CDs allow you to reinstall individua l applications and device drivers if they become cor rupted or are accid entally erased. Reinstalling an individual device driver or software title may correct a pr oblem you are experiencing with your compute[...]

  • Page 36

    V AIO® User Guide 36[...]

  • Page 37

    37 T r oubleshooting This sectio n des c ribes how t o so lve commo n pro blems you may encou nt er w hen using yo ur comput er . Many problems have simp le sol utions, s o try thes e suggestio ns before yo u call Sony C ustomer Suppo rt. To p i c s T opic: My computer does not start ❑ Check that the compu ter is plugged into a power sour ce and [...]

  • Page 38

    V AIO® User Guide 38 3 Select this application and click End T ask. W indows attempts to close the application. If the attemp t is unsuccessful, a s econd dialog bo x appears. 4 Select End T ask again. ❑ If you are u nable to “unlock” th e application, repeat the ab ove steps bu t select Shut Down when the Close Program dialog box appear s. [...]

  • Page 39

    To p i c s 39 1 From the Start menu, select Shut Dow n. From the drop-down list, select Restart. 2 When the S ony screen d isplays, press th e F2 key on yo ur keyb oard. 3 Select the Advanced tab from the Setup Utility screen. 4 Select “I/O D evice Conf iguration” an d use the arrow keys to h ighlight Parallel Port Mode. 5 When the des ired set[...]

  • Page 40

    V AIO® User Guide 40 T opic: I want to pl ay a CD wi th Microsoft W indo ws Media Pla yer When you inser t a music CD, the Media B ar™ software automatically launch es to play y our CD. When the Media Bar i s running , the W indows Media Pl ayer does not have acces s to the CD. C lose Media Bar to use Micro soft W indo ws Media Player . If you d[...]

  • Page 41

    To p i c s 41 T opic: Why is there no soun d in any application? There are indep endent cont rols for your sys tem volume. ❑ Check that the speakers are plugged into the HEADPHONES connector . ❑ If the speakers have a mute button, make sure it is off. ❑ If the speakers are power ed by b atteries, check that the batteries are inserted properly[...]

  • Page 42

    V AIO® User Guide 42 T opic: My mo dem does no t work ❑ Check that the phone line is plugg ed into the LINE jack. ❑ Check th at the phone line is working. Y ou can check t he line by plugging in an ordin ary phone an d listen ing for a di al tone. ❑ Check that the ph one number th e program is dialing is correct. ❑ V erify that the softwar[...]

  • Page 43

    To p i c s 43 T opic: My microphone is to o se nsit ive to background noise If you fi nd there i s too much b ackgroun d noise when y ou recor d sound, y ou should adjust the micro phone gain by following these st eps: 1 Right-cli ck the s peaker icon (V olume) in the lower -right W indows ® task tray . 2 Cl ick Open V olum e C ontr ol s. The V ol[...]

  • Page 44

    V AIO® User Guide 44 T opic: My mouse needs to b e set up for left-hand use 1 Clic k the M y Co mp ute r icon on you r d eskto p. 2 Click Co ntrol P anel, and then click Mouse. The Mouse P roperti es dialog box app ears. 3 In the Quick Setup tab, click Device Setup. 4 In the Device Setup W izard dialog box, click Next. 5 Selec t the r a dio b ut t[...]

  • Page 45

    To p i c s 45 T opic: My connected pr inter do esn't function after the co mputer resumes from a power sa ving mode When this occurs, f ollow the procedures b elow to reset the printer connection: 1 Right-cli ck the My C omputer ico n on the desk top, and then sel ect Properties. 2 Click the Dev ice Manager tab. 3 Select Refresh, and then clic[...]

  • Page 46

    V AIO® User Guide 46 5 Select the appropriate manu facturer and mo del and click Next. 6 Select LP T1 and click Next. 7 Click Y es to have W indows-based programs use this as the default printer . 8 Click Next. 9 Click No and then click Finish. T o Reach Sony For further assistance, call 1-888-4SONYPC (1-888-476-6972). ✍ If the print er is not i[...]

  • Page 47

    Notes on Use 47 Notes on Use On the Power S ource ❑ Y our computer operat es on 100 V–120V AC 50/60 Hz only . If you are operating this comp uter outside of North Ame rica or Japan, p lease verify that the local AC specifications match before plug ging in the comp uter . ❑ The total power dr aw of installed add-in cards must not exce ed the s[...]

  • Page 48

    V AIO® User Guide 48 ❑ Unplug your computer f rom t he wall outlet if you will not be using th e computer for a long time. ❑ Before touching anything inside the computer , turn the system of f and let it cool for ten minutes. This w ill ensure that the processor heat sink will not be hot. ❑ Do not attempt to open t he po wer supply . There a[...]

  • Page 49

    Notes on Use 49 materials (such as curtains or draperies) that may block its ventilation slots. Leave a space of at leas t 8 inches from the back panel of your computer . ❑ Clean the cabinet with a soft, dr y cloth or a s of t cloth lightly moistened with a mild dete rgen t solut ion. Do no t use any t ype of abrasiv e pad, s couring powder , or [...]

  • Page 50

    V AIO® User Guide 50 On Upgrading t he System ❑ The procedures described i n the onlin e manual, Upgrading and Maintaining Y ou r V AIO® Co mput er (P C V- J 120), assume familiarity with the general terminology asso ciated with personal computers and with the safety practices an d regulatory compliance req uired for using and m odifyi ng elect[...]

  • Page 51

    Notes on Use 51 On Using the Hard Disk Drive ❑ Do not place the co mputer in a location that is subject to vibration or shock. ❑ Do not m ove the comp uter durin g operation . ❑ Do not sub ject the computer to sudden ch anges in temperatur e. ❑ Do not turn o ff the p ower while the computer is acces sing the hard disk driv e. On Handling Di[...]

  • Page 52

    V AIO® User Guide 52 For Answ ers t o Y our Soft ware Que stions Sony Servi ce Center For the Sony Service Center nearest you, call 1-888-4SONYPC (1-888-476- 6972). Th is service is free of char ge for 90 d ays after the original date o f purchase. Acrobat ® Reader , Adobe Ph otoDelux e ® ( Adobe Systems Incorporated) America Online ® (America [...]

  • Page 53

    For Answers to Y our Softwar e Questions 53 McAfee V iru sScan ® (Net work Associates, Inc.) PhotoPrin ter ™ 2000 Pr o (ArcSoft , Inc.) Quicke n ® 2000 Bas ic (Int uit, In c.) Sony Appli cat ions (Sony Electronics, Inc.) StarOffice™ (Sun Micro systems, Inc.) Windows ® Millennium Edition Operating System, Internet Expl orer , Outlook ® Ex pr[...]

  • Page 54

    V AIO® User Guide 54 Resources Sony pr ovides s everal support options for yo ur Sony co mputer . When yo u have questions about yo ur computer and the preins talled software, check these sources for answers , in the follo wing sequence: Quick Start Contai ns informat ion on how to set up your co mputer quickl y and easi ly. VA I O C o m p u t e r[...]

  • Page 55

    Resour ces 55 Sony Fax-o n-Deman d This servic e provides you with answers to commonly asked q uestions. Y ou can use this au tomated service to request a list of av ailable top i cs and then select the topics that yo u want to rec eive. T o contac t the Sony fax-on- demand service , call 1-888-4S ONYP C (1-888-476-6972 ). (Requires a fax machine o[...]

  • Page 56

    V AIO® User Guide 56[...]

  • Page 57

    Specifi cations 57 Specifications Mode l PCV -J120 Proc esso r 700 MHz In tel® Pentiu m® III Hard Disk Drive C/D Partitio n (Approximate) 20 GB * C = 8G / D = 12G Stan dard SDR AM 128 MB † PC-100 SDRAM, expandab le to 512 M B Vide o RAM Shared with system memory MPEG “Sony T uned ” M PEG D igital V ideo s uppor ts fu ll-scr een video pl ayb[...]

  • Page 58

    V AIO Digital Studio™ Comp uter User Gu ide 58 Spec if ic atio ns ar e s u bjec t to change with out no ti ce. Supplied A ccessories V AIO Sma rt™ Keyboa rd PS/2® Wheel Mous e Speakers Power cord Modem cabl e Service 90-day limited service. See W arranty Card. †† Limit ed Warranty 90-day parts/labor standard. See W arranty Card. ‡‡ Pow[...]

  • Page 59

    59 Index A AC input connector 15 adding additio nal hardware precaution 48 adjusting voltage settings 47 air circulation 48 Application Recovery CD 33, 35 applications launching problems with 40 B battery disposing 48 C cables 49 CD tr ay opening problems with 39 CD-ROM drive 13 CD-ROM drives troubleshooting 39 choosing locations 11, 48 cleaning mo[...]

  • Page 60

    V AIO® User Guide 60 European power settings 47 F floppy disk drive 13 Front Panel 12 G games/MIDI connector 15 glare 12 H handling diskettes 51 hard disk 50, 51 hardware adding additional precaution 48 troubleshooting 37, 44 headphones connector 15 help 54 I i.LINK devices, connecting 30 IEEE-1394 devices, connecting 30 input devices setting up 1[...]

  • Page 61

    Inde x 61 power indicator on system unit 13 power source, precautions 47– 48 power switch 13 printer connector 15 problem solving 37 R radio interference 49 reducing glare 12 removing computer cover 47 S screens, reducing glare 12 select ing locations 48 serial connector 15 setting up your computer precautions 48 Shaker 23 shutting down your comp[...]

  • Page 62

    V AIO® User Guide 62 Windows taskbar problems viewing 44 work surfaces 11[...]