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Connecting External Devices: Dell^™ Latitude^™ CPi A-Series System User's Guide

Connector Illustration |  Audio | Keyboard |  Keypad | Mouse | Diskette Drive | Connecting an External Monitor | Using an External Monitor

Connector Illustration

Use Figure 1 to locate the connectors on the back of the computer.

Figure 1. Connector Illustration

Audio

You can connect audio devices such as speakers, microphones, headphones, and record/playback devices to your computer. The following information tells you how to connect the cables. Figure 2 shows the locations of the audio jacks.

• Connect the audio cable from a microphone to the microphone jack, also called the MIC IN jack.
• Connect the audio cable from the speakers to the headphones/speakers jack, also called the line-out/speaker-out jack.
• Connect the line-out cable from a record/playback device to the line-in/audio-in jack. Cassette players, CD players, radios, stereo systems, and tape players are all record/playback devices.

Figure 2. Connecting Audio Devices

NOTE: The C/Port Advanced Port Replicator (APR) also has a headphones/speaker jack. The C/Dock Expansion Station has all three jacks.

You can control the sound on your computer through the Dell Control Center Speaker window, the System Setup program, and key combinations.

Keyboard

You can attach a Personal System/2 (PS/2)-compatible external 101- or 102-key keyboard to the computer's mini-Deutsche Industrie Norm (DIN) connector, as shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3. Attaching an External Keyboard

NOTE: If the computer is in suspend mode or suspend-to-disk mode when you attach an external keyboard, the device is recognized immediately by the computer when it resumes normal operation.

You can use the internal keyboard and an external keyboard at the same time. When you attach a keyboard to the computer, the embedded numeric keypad is automatically disabled.

On an external keyboard, the <Scroll Lock>  key acts the same way as the <FN>  key on the computer’s built-in keyboard (if the External Hot Key option is enabled in the System Setup program).

You can also connect an external keyboard to the C/Port APR or the C/Dock Expansion Station.

Keypad

You can attach a PS/2-compatible external numeric keypad to the computer's mini-DIN keypad connector.

NOTE: If the computer is in suspend mode or suspend-to-disk mode when you attach an external keypad, the device is recognized immediately by the computer when it resumes normal operation.

When you attach a numeric keypad to the computer, the embedded numeric keypad is automatically disabled. The indicators on the built-in keyboard track the operation of an external numeric keypad.

You can also connect an external keypad to the C/Port APR or C/Dock Expansion Station.

Mouse

You can attach a PS/2-compatible mouse to the computer's mini-DIN mouse connector, as shown in Figure 4.

Figure 4. Connecting an External Mouse

NOTE: If the computer is in suspend mode or suspend-to-disk mode when you attach an external mouse, the device is recognized immediately by the computer when it resumes normal operation. However, programs that were already running may need to be restarted in order to recognize the mouse.

The touch pad/mouse device drivers that Dell installed on your hard-disk drive work with a PS/2 mouse from Dell. If you did not receive your mouse from Dell, you must install device drivers in order to use the mouse. This software is usually included with mouse upgrade kits.

When you attach a PS/2 mouse to the computer, the touch pad is automatically disabled. If you disconnect the mouse, you must shut down the computer or enter suspend or standby mode and then resume from it before the touch pad is operational. If you do not do this, the touch pad resumes operation in standard PS/2 mode, which means that many of the configuration features are disabled.

If you are using a PS/2-compatible mouse that is not made by Microsoft and the mouse does not work properly, reboot the computer. If the mouse still does not work, install the drivers from the diskette that came with the mouse and reboot the computer.

You can also connect an external mouse to the C/Port APR or the C/Dock Expansion Station.

Diskette Drive

The diskette drive can be used as an external device if you have a CD-ROM drive, battery, or travel module in the modular bay. The external diskette drive letter is A. If there is a diskette drive in the modular bay, the external diskette drive letter is B.

Use the parallel diskette drive cable that came with the computer to connect the drive to the parallel connector on the input/output (I/O) panel, as shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5. Using the Diskette Drive As an External Device

CAUTION: When the diskette drive is not being used externally, remove the parallel diskette drive cable from the parallel connector.

CAUTION: Use the parallel diskette drive cable only with the diskette drive. Do not try to connect any other device to the computer with this cable.

If the Diskette Reconfig option is enabled in the System Setup program, you do not have to turn the computer off when you connect the diskette drive to the parallel connector. For more information see Diskette Reconfig.

The drive access indicator does not blink when data is being accessed from the diskette drive connected to the parallel connector.

CAUTION: Protect the diskette drive when it is not in the modular bay. Do not squeeze the drive or place objects on top of it; doing so could damage the drive motor.

Connecting an External Monitor

The computer's video connector is used to connect an external monitor to the computer. To attach an external monitor, perform the following steps:

1. Make sure that the external monitor is turned off. Set the monitor on a monitor stand, desk top, or other level surface near your computer.

CAUTION:  Do not place the monitor directly on top of your portable computer, even if it is closed. Doing so can crack the computer case, the display, or both.

2. Connect the external monitor's video cable to the computer.

Plug the video cable connector into the matching video connector on the back of the computer, as shown in Figure 6. If the video cable is not permanently attached to the monitor, connect it to the monitor also.

Figure 6. Connecting an External Monitor

Be sure to tighten all the screws on the video cable connector(s) to eliminate radio frequency interference (RFI).

3. Connect your external monitor to a grounded AC power source.

Plug the three-prong connector on one end of the monitor's power cable into a grounded power strip or some other grounded power source. If the cable is not permanently attached to the monitor, connect it to the monitor also.

You can also connect an external monitor to the C/Port APR or C/Dock Expansion Station.

NOTE: If you are using the Microsoft® Windows® 98 operating system, you can use an external monitor as an extension of your built-in display. For more information, see the Windows 98 documentation or Dual-Display Mode.

Using an External Monitor

When an external monitor is connected to the computer, the video image automatically appears on the external monitor's screen when you boot your computer.

To toggle the video image between the built-in display, an external monitor, or both simultaneously, press <FN><F8> on the built-in keyboard. Press <Scroll Lock><F8> on an external keyboard if the External Hot Key option is enabled in the System Setup program.

If the external monitor is turned off when you boot your computer, the computer still sends the video image to the external monitor. In this case, you will not see an image on either the computer's display or the external monitor. To see an image, turn on the external monitor or switch the video image to the computer’s display by pressing <FN><F8> on the built-in keyboard or <Scroll Lock><F8> on an external keyboard if the External Hot Key option is enabled in the System Setup program.

NOTE: If you are using your external monitor at a resolution greater than the display supports, the simultaneous display feature is disabled. To use the display, switch to a resolution that the system supports, or disconnect the external monitor and restart your computer.

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