dell inspiron 8000 User Manual

							Solving Problems : Dell Inspiron 8000 
Check the power light— When the power light is lit or 
blinking, the computer has power. If the power light is 
blinking, the computer is in standby mode—press the power 
button to exit standby mode. If the power light is off, press the 
power button.
Check the battery— If you are using a battery to power your 
computer, the battery charge may be depleted. Connect the 
computer to an electrical outlet using the AC adapter, and turn 
on the computer.
Test the electrical outlet— Ensure that the electrical outlet 
is working by testing it with another device, such as a lamp.
Check the AC adapter— Be sure that the power cable is 
firmly inserted into the electrical outlet and the green light on 
the AC adapter is on.
Adjust the power properties— Search for the keyword 
standby in 
Windows Help.
If the display is difficult to read 
Adjust the brightness— See the Tell Me How help file for 
instructions on adjusting the brightness.
Move the subwoofer away from the computer or 
monitor— If your external speaker system includes a 
subwoofer, ensure that the subwoofer is at least 60 cm (2 ft) 
away from the computer or external monitor.
Eliminate possible interference— Turn off nearby fans, 
fluorescent lights, or halogen lamps to check for interference.
Rotate the computer to face a different direction— 
Eliminate sunlight glare, which can cause poor picture quality.
Restore the recommended settings— Restore the original 
resolution and refresh rate settings. For more information, see 
the 
Tell Me How help file for instructions.
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							Solving Problems : Dell Inspiron 8000 
Adjust the Windows display settings— 1.  Click the Start button, point to Settings, and then click  Control Panel. 
2.  Double-click the Display icon and then click the  Settings tab. 
3.  Try different settings for Colors and Screen area. 
Sound and Speaker Problems
Integrated Speakers 
Adjust the Windows volume control— Double-click the 
yellow speaker icon in the lower-right corner of your screen. 
Be sure that the volume is turned up and that the sound is not 
muted.
Check the volume control buttons— Press both volume 
control buttons simultaneously or press  to disable 
(mute) or reenable the integrated speakers.
Reinstall the sound (audio) driver— See 
Reinstalling 
Drivers and Utilities.
External Speakers 
HINT: The volume control in some MP3 players overrides the Windows volume 
setting. If you have been listening to MP3 songs, make sure that you did\
 not 
turn the player volume down or off. 
Verify the speaker cable connections— Ensure that the 
speakers are connected as shown on the setup diagram 
supplied with the speakers.
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							Solving Problems : Dell Inspiron 8000 
Test the electrical outlet— Ensure that the electrical outlet 
is working by testing it with another device, such as a lamp.
Ensure that the speakers are turned on— See the setup 
diagram supplied with the speakers.
Adjust the speaker controls— Adjust the volume, bass, or 
treble controls to eliminate distortion.
Adjust the Windows volume control— Double-click the 
yellow speaker icon in the lower-right corner of your screen. 
Be sure that the volume is turned up and that the sound is not 
muted.
Test the speakers— Plug the speaker audio cable into the 
headphone connector on the side of the computer. Ensure that 
the headphone volume control is turned up. Play a music CD.
Run the speaker self-test— Some speaker systems have a 
self-test button on the subwoofer. See the speaker 
documentation for self-test instructions. 
Move the subwoofer away from the computer or 
monitor— If your external speaker system includes a 
subwoofer, ensure that the subwoofer is at least 60 m (2 ft) 
away from the computer or external monitor.
Eliminate possible interference— Turn off nearby fans, 
fluorescent lights, or halogen lamps to check for interference.
Reinstall the sound (audio) driver— See 
Reinstalling 
Drivers and Utilities.
Printer Problems
If you cannot print to a parallel port printer 
Verify the printer cable connections— Ensure that the 
printer cable is connected (see Connecting a Printer in the 
Dell Solutions Guide that came with your computer).
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							Solving Problems : Dell Inspiron 8000 
Test the electrical outlet— Ensure that the electrical outlet 
is working by testing it with another device, such as a lamp.
Ensure that the printer is turned on— See the 
documentation supplied with the printer.
Verify that the printer is recognized by Windows— 1.  Click the Start button, point to Settings, and then click  Printers. 
If the printer is listed, right-click the printer icon, click 
Properties, and then select the Details tab.
2.  Ensure that the Print to the following port: setting is  LPT1 (Printer Port). 
Reinstall the printer driver— See Installing the Printer 
Driver in the Dell Solutions Guide that came with your 
computer.
If you cannot print to a USB printer 
Verify the printer cable connections— Ensure that the 
printer cable is connected correctly.
Test the electrical outlet— Ensure that the electrical outlet 
is working by testing it with another device, such as a lamp.
Ensure that the printer is turned on— See the 
documentation supplied with the printer.
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							Solving Problems : Dell Inspiron 8000 
Verify that the printer is recognized by Windows— 1.  Click the Start button, point to Settings, and then click  Printers. 
If the printer is listed, right-click the printer icon, click 
Properties, and then select the Details tab.
2.  Ensure that the Print to the following port: setting is  USB. 
Reinstall the printer driver— See Installing the Printer 
Driver in the Dell Solutions Guide that came with your 
computer.
Modem Problems
NOTICE: Connect the modem to an analog telephone wall jack only. Connecting 
the modem to a digital telephone network damages the modem. 
Check the telephone jack— Disconnect the telephone line 
from the modem and connect it to a telephone. Listen for a 
dial tone.
Connect the modem directly to the telephone wall jack— 
If you have other telephone devices sharing the line, such as 
an answering machine, fax machine, surge protector, or line 
splitter, then bypass them and connect the modem directly to 
the telephone wall jack with the telephone line.
Check the connection— Verify that the telephone line is 
connected to the modem.
Check the telephone line— Try using a different telephone 
line. If you are using a line that is 3 m (10 ft) or more in 
length, try a shorter one.
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							Solving Problems : Dell Inspiron 8000 
Verify that the modem is communicating with 
Windows— 1.  Click the Start button, point to Settings, and click  Control Panel. 
2.  In the Control Panel window, double-click Modems. 
If there are multiple entries for the same modem or 
modems listed that are not installed, delete the entries 
and restart the computer.
3.  Click the Diagnostics tab. 
4.  Click the COM port for your modem. 
5.  Click More Info to verify that the modem is  communicating with Windows. 
If all commands receive responses, the modem is 
operating properly.
Scanner Problems
Check the power cable connection— Ensure that the 
scanner power cable is firmly connected to a working electrical 
power source and that the scanner is turned on.
Check the scanner cable connection— Ensure that the 
scanner cable is firmly connected to the computer and to the 
scanner.
Unlock the scanner— Ensure that your scanner is unlocked if 
it has a locking tab or button.
Reinstall the scanner driver— See the scanner 
documentation for instructions.
Touch Pad Problems
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							Solving Problems : Dell Inspiron 8000 
Check the touch pad settings— Click the Start button, 
point to Settings, click Control Panel, and then double-click 
the Mouse icon. Try adjusting the settings.
External Keyboard Problems
HINT: If you connect an external PS/2 keyboard or keypad to the computer, the \
numeric keypad on the integrated keyboard is disabled. If you connect an\
 
external USB keyboard or keypad to the computer, the numeric keypad rema\
ins 
enabled. 
Disconnect the keyboard cable— Shut down the computer. 
Disconnect the keyboard cable and check the cable connector 
for bent or broken pins.
Unexpected Characters
Disable the numeric keypad— Press the  key to 
disable the numeric keypad. Verify that the numbers lock light 
is not lit.
Drive Problems
HINT: For information on saving files to a floppy disk, see the Tell Me How help 
file. 
If you cannot save a file to a floppy disk 
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							Solving Problems : Dell Inspiron 8000 
Ensure that Windows recognizes the drive— Double-click 
the My Computer icon. If the floppy drive is not listed, 
perform a full scan with your antivirus software to check for 
and remove viruses. Viruses can sometimes prevent Windows 
from recognizing the drive.
Cannot save files to a floppy disk— Ensure that the floppy 
disk is not full or write-protected (locked). See the following 
figure.
Test the drive with another floppy disk— Insert another 
floppy disk to eliminate the possibility that the original floppy 
disk is defective.
 
If you cannot play a music CD or install a 
program from a CD 
HINT: High-speed CD drive vibration is normal and may cause noise. This noise \
does not indicate a defect in the drive or the CD. 
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							Solving Problems : Dell Inspiron 8000 
Ensure that Windows recognizes the drive— Double-click 
the My Computer icon. If the CD drive is not listed, perform a 
full scan with your antivirus software to check for and remove 
viruses. Viruses can sometimes prevent Windows from 
recognizing the drive.
Test the drive with another CD— Insert another CD to 
eliminate the possibility that the original CD is defective.
Clean the disc— See the 
Tell Me How help file for 
instructions.
Adjust the Windows volume control— Double-click the 
yellow speaker icon in the lower-right corner of your screen. 
Be sure that the volume is turned up and that the sound is not 
muted. 
If you have one CD in the fixed optical drive and one CD 
in the media bay drive— Identify which CD is not playing: 
1.  Double-click the My Computer icon on your desktop. 
2.  Double-click the drive letter of the device the you are  verifying. 
If you cannot play a DVD movie 
HINT: Because of different worldwide file types, not all DVD titles work in al\
l 
DVD drives. 
Ensure that Windows recognizes the drive— Double-click 
the My Computer icon. If the DVD drive is not listed, perform 
a full scan with your antivirus software to check for and 
remove viruses. Viruses can sometimes prevent Windows from 
recognizing the drive.
Test the drive with another DVD— Insert another DVD to 
eliminate the possibility that the original DVD is defective.
Clean the disc— See the 
Tell Me How help file for 
instructions.
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							Solving Problems : Dell Inspiron 8000 
If the CD-RW drive stops writing 
HINT: If you must disable standby mode to write to a CD-RW drive, remember 
to enable standby mode again when you finish writing the CD. 
Disable standby mode in Windows before writing to a 
CD-RW disk— Search for the keyword standby in 
Windows 
Help.
Change the write speed to a slower rate— The CD-RW 
drive must receive a steady stream of data when writing. If 
the stream is interrupted, an error occurs. Closing all programs 
before writing to the CD-RW may also alleviate the problem.
If you have a hard drive problem 
Check the hard drive for errors— 
Windows Me:
Click the Start button, point to Programs—> 
Accessories—> System Tools, and then click ScanDisk.
Windows 2000: 1.  Double-click the My Computer icon. 
2.  Right-click the Local Disk icon and then click  Properties. 
3.  Click the Tools tab. 
4.  Click Check Now. 
Network Problems
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