Acer Aspire 3620 Service Guide

							Chapter 113
NOTE: 1. Charging: The light shows amber when the battery is charging. 2. Fully charged: The light shows 
green when in AC mode.
Easy-Launch Buttons
Located above the keyboard are four buttons. These buttons are called easy-launch buttons. They are: mail 
Web browser, Empowering Key “ “and one user-programmable button.
Press “  “ to run the Acer Empowering Technology. The mail and Web browser buttons are pre-set to email 
and Internet programs, but can be reset by users. To set the Web browser, mail and programmable buttons, 
run the Acer Launch Manager. 
IconFunctionDescription
Cap lock Lights when Cap Lock is activated
Num lock Lights when Num Lock is activated.
HDD Indicates when the hard disc or optical 
drive is active.
Bluetooth Indicates the status of Bluetooth 
communication.
Wireless LAN Indicates the status of wireless LAN 
communication.
Battery Lights up when the battery is being 
charged.
Power Lights up when the computer is on.
Icon Function Description 
						

							14Chapter 1
Touchpad Basics
The following teaches you how to use the touchpad:
Aspire 3620:
TravelMate 2420:
Launch keyDefault application
P User-programmable
P User-programmable
Acer Empowering Technology (user-programmable)
Web browser Internet browser (user-programmable)
Mail Email application (user-programmable) 
						

							Chapter 115
TMove your finger across the touchpad (2) to move the cursor. 
TPress the left (1) and right (4) buttons located beneath the touchpad to perform selection and 
execution functions. These two buttons are similar to the left and right buttons on a mouse. 
Tapping on the touchpad is the same as clicking the left button.
TUse the 4-way scroll (3) button to scroll up or down and move left or right a page. This button 
mimics your cursor pressing on the right scroll bar of Windows applications.
NOTE: Keep your fingers dry and clean when using the touchpad. Also keep the touchpad dry and clean. The 
touchpad is sensitive to finger movements. Hence, the lighter the touch, the better the response. 
Tapping too hard will not increase the touchpad’s responsiveness.
FunctionLeft Button (1)Right Button 
(4)Main touchpad 
(2)Center button (3)
Execute Click twice 
quicklyTap twice (at 
the same speed 
as double-
clicking the 
mouse button)
Select Click once Tap once
Drag Click and hold, 
then use finger 
to drag the 
cursor on the 
touchpadTap twice (at 
the same speed 
as double-
clicking a 
mouse button) 
then hold finger 
to the touchpad 
on the second 
tap to drag the 
cursor.
Access context 
menuClick once
ScrollClick and hold to move 
up/down/left/right. 
						

							16Chapter 1
Using the Keyboard
The keyboard has full-sized keys and an embedded keypad, separate cursor keys, two Windows keys and 
twelve function keys.
Lock Keys and embedded numeric keypad
The keyboard has three lock keys which you can toggle on and off.
Aspire 3620:
TravelMate 2420:
The embedded numeric keypad functions like a desktop numeric keypad. It is indicated by small characters 
located on the upper right corner of the keycaps. To simplify the keyboard legend, cursor-control key symbols 
are not printed on the keys.
Lock KeyDescription
Caps  Lock When Caps Lock is on, all alphabetic characters typed 
are in uppercase.
Num lock   
+When Num Lock is on, the embedded keypad is in 
numeric mode. The keys function as a calculator 
(complete with the arithmetic operators +, -, *, and /). 
Use this mode when you need to do a lot of numeric 
data entry. A better solution would be to connect an 
external keypad. 
Scroll lock   
+When Scroll Lock is on, the screen moves one line up 
or down when you press the up or down arrow keys 
respectively. Scroll Lock does not work with some 
applications.
Desired AccessNum Lock OnNum Lock Off
Number keys on embedded 
keypadType numbers in a normal 
manner.
Cursor-control keys on 
embedded keypadHold  while using 
cursor-control keys.Hold  while using 
cursor-control keys. 
						

							Chapter 117
Windows Keys
The keyboard has two keys that perform Windows-specific functions.
Hot Keys
The computer employs hotkeys or key combinations to access most of the computer’s controls like sreen 
brightness, volume output and the BIOS utility.
To activate hot keys, press and hold the  key before pressing the other key in the hotkey combination.
Aspire 3620:
TravelMate 2420:
Main keyboard keys Hold  while typing 
letters on embedded 
keypad.Type the letters in a normal 
manner.
KeyIconDescription
Windows key Pressed alone, this key has the same effect as 
clicking on the Windows Start button; it launches the 
Start menu. It can also be used with other keys to 
provide a variety of function:
   +  Activates next taskbar button.
  +   Opens the My Computer window
  +   Opens Help and Support.
  +   Opens the Find: All Files dialog box.
  +  Opens the Run dialog box.
+  M Minimizes all windows.
+  +  Undoes the minimize all windows 
action.
Applicati
on keyThis key has the same effect as clicking the right 
mouse button; it opens the application’s context 
menu.
Desired AccessNum Lock OnNum Lock Off 
						

							18Chapter 1
Hot KeyIconFunctionDescription
Fn-F1 Hot key help Displays help on hot keys.
Fn-F2 Acer eSetting Launches the Acer eSettings in Acer eManager.
Fn-F3 Acer 
ePowerManagementLaunches the Acer ePowerManagement in Acer 
eManager.
Fn-F4 Sleep Puts the computer in Sleep mode.
Fn-F5 Display toggle Switches display output between the display screen, 
external monitor (if connected) and both.
Fn-F6 Screen blank Turns the display screen backlight off to save power. 
Press any key to return.
Fn-F7 Touchpad toggle Turns the internal touchpad on and off.
Fn-F8 Speaker toggle Turns the speakers on and off.
Fn-wVolume up Increases the speaker volume.
Fn-yVolume down Decreases the speaker volume.
Fn-xBrightness up Increases the screen brightness. 
						

							Chapter 119
Special Key
You can locate the Euro symbol and US dollar sign at the upper-center and/or bottom-right of your keyboard. 
To  t y p e :
Aspire 3620:
TravelMate 2420:
The Euro symbol
1.Open a text editor or word processor.
2.Either directly press the  symbol at the bottom-right of the keyboard, or hold  and then 
press the symbol at the upper-center of the keyboard.
The US dollar sign
1.Open a text editor or word processor.
2.Either directly press the  key at the bottom-right of the keyboard, or hold  and then press 
the  key at the upper-center of the keyboard.
NOTE:  This function varies by the operating system version.
NOTE: Some fonts and software do not support the Euro symbol. Please refer to www.microsoft.com/
typography/faq/faq12.htm for more information.
Fn-zBrightness down Decreases the screen brightness
Hot KeyIconFunctionDescription 
						

							20Chapter 1
Acer Empowering Technology
Acer’s innovative Empowering Technology makes it easy for you to access frequently used functions and 
manage your new Acer notebook. It features the following handy utilities: 
TAcer eDataSecurity Management protects data with passwords and advanced encryption algorithms.
TAcer eLock Management limits access to external storage media.
TAcer ePerformance Management improves system performance by optimizing disk space, memory and 
registry settings.
TAcer eRecovery Management backs up/recovers data flexibly, reliably and completely.
TAcer eSettings Management accesses system information and adjusts settings easily.
TAcer ePower Management extends battery power via versatile usage profiles.
TAcer ePresentation Management connects to a projector and adjusts display settings conveniently.
For more information, press the < > key to launch the Empowering Technology menu, then click on the 
appropriate utility and select the Help function.
Acer eDataSecurity Management
Acer eDataSecurity Management is handy file encryption utility that protexts your files from being accessed by 
unauthorized persons. It is conveniently integrated with Windows explorer as a shell extension for quick and  
						

							Chapter 121
easy data encryption/decryption and also supports on-the-fly file encryption for MSN Messager and Microsoft 
Outlook. 
There are two passwords that can be used to encrypt/decrypt a file; the supervisor passowrd and the file-
specific password. The supervisor passwork is a “master” password that cna decrypt any file on your system; 
the file-specific password will be used to encrypt files by default, or you cna choose to enter your own file-
specific password when encrypting a file.
NOTE: The password used encrypt a file is the unique key that the system needs to decrypt it. If you lose the 
password, the supervisor password is the only other key capable of decrypting the file. If you lose both 
passwords, there will be no way to decrypt your encryped file! Be sure to safeguard all related 
passwords! 
						

							22Chapter 1
Acer eLock Management
Acer eLock Management is  a security utility that allows you to lock up your removable data, optical and floppy 
drives to ensure that data can’t be stolen while your notebook is unattended.
TRemovable data devices - includes USB disk drives, USB pen drives, USB flash drives, USB MP3 drives, 
USB memory card readers, IEEE 1394 disk drives and any other removable disk drives that can be 
mounted as a file system when plugged into the system.
TOptical drive deivces - includes any kind of CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drives.
TFloppy disk drives - 3.5-inch disks only.
To activate Acer eLock Management, a password must be set first. Once set, you may apply lock to any of the 
three kinds of devices. Lock(s) will immediately be set without any reboot necessary, and will remain locked 
after rebooting, until unlocked.
If you do not set a password, Acer eLock Management will reset back to the initial status with all locks 
removed.
NOTE: If you lose your password, there is no method to reset it except by reformatting your notebook or taking 
your notebook to anAcer Customer Serivce Center. Be sure to remember or write down your password.