Dell LATITUDE D400: Connecting External Devices: Dell™Latitude™CS/CS

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Connecting External Devices: Dell™Latitude™CS/CS

Portable Computers User's

Guide

About the I/O Connectors

You can connect external devices to the input/output (I/O) connectors. The computer's basic input/output system (BIOS) detects the presence of

external devices when you boot (start) or reboot your computer. Figure 1 shows the I/O connectors on the back of your computer; Figure 2 shows

the external media bay and audio connectors on the right side of the computer.

Figure 1. I/O Connectors On the Back of the Computer

Figure 2. I/O Connectors On the Right Side of the Computer

Mouse, Keyboard, and External Numeric Keypad

You can attach a PS/2-compatible device such as a mouse, 101- or 102-key keyboard, or external numeric keypad to the mini-Deutsche Industrie

Norm (DIN) PS/2 connector.

You can also connect these devices to the C/Port Family APR or the C/Dock Family Expansion Station.

Mouse

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.

Keyboard

You can use the computer's 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 keyboard (if the External Hot Key option is

enabled in the System Setup program).

External Numeric Keypad

When you attach an external numeric keypad to the computer, the numeric keypad on the computer keyboard is automatically disabled. The

indicators on the integrated keyboard track the operation of an external numeric keypad.

USB Devices

You can attach a USB hub device to the USB connector. The USB hub device can support multiple USB devices (typically low-speed peripherals

such as mice, keyboards, printers, and computer speakers). The C/Port APR Family and the C/Dock Expansion Station Family docking solutions

have two USB connectors.

Parallel Devices

You can attach a parallel device (usually a printer) to the 25-hole parallel connector. You can also connect the diskette drive to the parallel

connector.

The parallel port sends and receives data in parallel format, where eight data bits (one byte) are sent simultaneously over eight separate lines. The

port can be configured as a unidirectional (output-only) port for devices such as a printer or as a bidirectional port for devices such as a network

adapter.

The computer's integrated parallel port is designated as LPT1. The Microsoft®Windows®95 and Windows 98 operating systems automatically

recognize the parallel device and configure it correctly. The parallel port can also be configured for compatibility with the PS/2 standard.

Connecting a Diskette Drive to the Parallel Connector

You can use the the diskette drive as a second external device if you already have a device connected to the media bay connector. The diskette

drive letter is A, unless a diskette drive is already installed in the external media bay, in which case the drive connected to the parallel connector is