**************************************************************************** * IBM Color Flatbed Scanner MT 0275-011 * * (c) 1998, 1999 IBM Corp. * * Read Me * * (README.TXT) * **************************************************************************** Second Edition (May 1999) ------------------------------ This document contains information supplementary to the online Help and the Users Guide; it includes such things as hints, tips, limitations and corrections. This publication could include technical inaccuracies or typographical errors. Changes are periodically made to the information herein; these changes will be incorporated in new editions of the publication. IBM may make improvements and/or changes in the product(s) and/or the programs(s) described in this publication at any time. Thank you for choosing the IBM IdeaScan. ====================================================================== CONTENTS ====================================================================== 1.0 BEFORE YOU CALL FOR HELP 2.0 INSTALLATION NOTES 3.0 FREQUENTLY-ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs) 4.0 HINTS & TIPS 5.0 COMPATIBILITY 6.0 OTHER TECHNICAL NOTES ====================================================================== 1.0 BEFORE YOU CALL FOR HELP ====================================================================== Before you call the technical support group, please read this entire document for any installation, configuration, or compatibility information. Also, the FAQs provide a good basis for answering most common questions. Also, visit the IBM Support web page on the Internet at http://www.pc.ibm.com/support/ for the latest tips & hints and any software revisions. ====================================================================== 2.0 INSTALLATION NOTES ====================================================================== No installation errors have been reported. ====================================================================== 3.0 FREQUENTLY-ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs) ====================================================================== This section contains answers to questions about certain features and capabilities. Q: When I click on the IBM logo in the TWAIN program it doesn't match the parallel port mode I selected in the system BIOS. Why? A: The TWAIN program for the scanner only works in two modes; SPP and EPP mode. System BIOS settings differ from brand to brand so the TWAIN program will select the mode which most closely represents the system BIOS setting. It may not match to your BIOS setting exactly. Q: Can TextBridge Classic 2.0 recognize more languages that the one I selected as the installed language? A: Yes. You can add or remove languages. Refer to installing a language pack in the TextBridge Help. This will tell you more about how to enable or remove languages. 1. Insert the IBM Color Flatbed Scanner Installation CD into your CD ROM drive. 2. Click on Start/Run/then type in "X:\Textbridge\TBCL20.95\ENGLISH\CLASSIC2.0\Install.exe", where "X" represents the CD ROM drive for your computer or browse the TBCL20.95 folder for the language that matches your version of TextBridge Classic 2.0. 3. When you get the install message panel, click on Add/Remove to add or remove recognition language packs. Follow the on-screen instructions. Q: What if my buttons are not working? A: Check the Windows taskbar for a small scanner like icon, normally in the lower right corner of your screen. If the icon has a red circle with a diagonal line across it, the buttons are disabled or the scanner has no power. Power on the scanner or click on the icon to show the EZ Station application. If the buttons are disabled click on "Enable Buttons" to activate the buttons. Q: Why don't the scanner buttons react sometimes when I push them? A: The buttons are "Optical Buttons", which receive commands from the lamp rather than electronic circuit, therefore requiring a little bit longer time (0.5 second) to sense the command. Firmly press and hold the button for approximately one second. Q: Why is the scanning image in 24-bit file format while the scanner is set to 36-bit color mode? A: The scanner can process 36-bit scanning mode, but most Windows applications can only support 24 bit color (R/G/B 8 bit each) mode. That's why the scanning result is under 24-bit file format. However, 36-bit scanners provide more choices for image color and tones than do 24-bit scanners. They can even enhance shadowy areas. Q: What can I use to remove the adhesive left by the marketing label? A: WD-40 will successfully remove the adhesive. Rubbing alcohol, vegetable oil, butter and nail polish remover will not remove the adhesive. Q: Why is it that the parallel port mode selected in the system BIOS does not match the mode shown when clicking on the IBM logo in the TWAIN program? A: The TWAIN program for the scanner only works in two modes; SPP and EPP mode. System BIOS settings differ from system to system so the TWAIN program will select the mode, which most closely represents the system BIOS setting. It may not match to your BIOS setting exactly. Q: Why is it taking so long for my PC to start? A: Your system's parallel port is probably set to Standard Parallel Port (SPP) mode. Change the parallel port mode to Enhanced Parallel Port (EPP) mode. Contact the manufacturer of your system, for assistance in entering the BIOS of your system and changing the parallel port setting to EPP. Q: How do you connect the printer to the scanner? A: Your printer cable can be connected to the printer pass-through port located in the rear of the scanner. Q: Is it possible to scan a 3D object? A: It's definitely possible to scan a 3D object by using our scanner as long as the object to be scanned is thinner than the height of the hinges. If the object is too thick, it will affect this scanning light, the depth of field and of course the image quality. Q: What is Optical Resolution? What is Enhanced Resolution? A: Optical Resolution is the original resolution provided by the scanner's optics and mechanical design. Enhanced resolution takes the optical resolution and uses software to convert it to a higher resolution. Q: When does the scanner need calibration? A: After using the scanner for a long period, it is advise to use the "Calibrate" button to adjust color tone to enhance your scanning image to be close to the true color. The "Calibrate" button is located in Advance Settings of the TWAIN program. Q: What if the user interface on the computer screen shows some kind of mosaic patterns or the colors seem wrong? A: Please follow these procedures: Click Start, Settings, Control Panel, Display, and Settings then change the Color Palette to High Color (16 bit) or True Color (32 bit), then restart your computer. Q: What if the preview result is an incomplete image? A: When you preview an image, you may have to adjust the length of the preview bar. Use your mouse to adjust the red line on the ruler of the preview area for the preview range. Q: What if my scanning results are spotty? A: Check the glass surface of the scanner. The image quality will be affected if there's dust or marks on the glass. If you find the glass surface dirty, you can clean it by lightly spraying a non-abrasive glass cleaner on a lint-free cloth. Be sure to wipe up all excess liquid before scanning. Q: What if the color of my scanning images shift toward one of the RGB color (Red, Green, or Blue)? A: You can adjust the settings for the RGB channel under the Advanced Settings interface in the TWAIN program before scanning. Q: What if my scanning result a completely black image? A: Ensure that the original document is placed under the scanner lid and the lamp is on. Q: What if I feel that the scanning speed is too slow while scanning in high resolution? A: The higher the resolution, the longer it takes to scan. For example, when you scan under 4800 dpi resolution there are 4800 scanned pixels for each scanned inch and it takes the computer a large amount of time to process and transfer the image. If you are not already using the "Speed mode" setting in the TWAIN program try using this setting when scanning in high resolutions. Q: What if there are unknown linear lines in my scanning image? A: If you find unknown lines in your scanning image after changing the settings under Advanced Settings, please click the "Reset" button and try scanning again. ====================================================================== 4.0 HINTS & TIPS ====================================================================== 1. When scanning each image, monitor the image size before beginning your scan. Combinations of large image sizes and high resolution (high dpi) will drastically increase the file size required for the image. Large file sizes will take much longer to scan and they will fill up your hard file very quickly. 2. PhotoStudio Suite applications limit the size of each image to 256 MB in Windows 95 and Windows 98. You may find that scanning large images in high resolution (like 9600 dpi) will exceed this limitation. In high resolution scanning you may have to reduce the image size in the TWAIN program until the file size drops below 256 MB. Use the TWAIN program zoom function to select smaller areas. 3. When using the Copy function use a sheet of white paper behind the document. This will minimize dark areas around small documents and use less black ink from your printer. 4. Some white paper may scan in with a blue tint. This may be caused by two factors. First, if the paper is a thin paper it may appear translucent to the scanner and it will see the dark background of the inside of the scanner lid. The dark background may give the white areas on your paper a dark tint. To correct this try placing several blank sheets of white paper behind the image you want to scan. Another possible cause for an off white scan is the color settings for the TWAIN program. Click on the Advanced Settings button in the main TWAIN program to show the Advanced Settings controls. At the bottom of the Advanced Settings control panel click on the Reset button. The Reset button will reset all of the color controls back to their original factory settings. 5. The main TWAIN program shows 6 small windows located around the main preview screen. There are 3 small windows to the left and to the right of the main preview screen. Each of these windows represent a pre-defined color and brightness setting that you can select with your mouse. When you select one of these windows you will change the color settings for all of your scans. It is easy to click on these windows, but you can inadvertently click on one of these windows. This may cause the color of your scans to look washed out or with poor color. It you find this happens you can easily reset your TWAIN setting by using the Reset button in the Advanced Setting controls. Click on the Advanced Settings button in the main TWAIN program to show the Advanced Settings controls. At the bottom of the Advanced Settings control panel click on the Reset button. The Reset button will reset all of the color controls back to their original factory settings. 6. Don't spray liquid glass cleaner directly on the scanner glass. Excess liquid can seep into the edges and cause temporary image discoloration. Instead, wipe off the glass with a clean lint-free cloth lightly dampen with glass cleaner. 7. If the buttons don't seem to respond, try the power switch. Turn the scanner off and then back on. Make sure that the buttons are enabled on the EZ Station program. 8. Here are some steps you can use to E-mail a photo if you don't use MS Exchange. If you use Netscape Communicator for your email you can use the Settings button in EZ Station to set the Email button to automatically open your email program. Setting up the E-mail button to launch your E-mail program 1. Before you begin you must know which program file or .exe file you must open to start your E-mail program. Locate this file and note the folder it is located in. You will need this information for step 6. 2. Click on the Settings button on EZ Station. 3. From the Buttons tab on the pull-down menu select Scan Button 6. 4. Beside the E-mail icon you should see a check mark in the box. 5. Click the Add button to popup a browser window. 6. Locate the folder which holds our E-mail program file or .exe file. 7. Click on the file, then click the Open button. 8. Your E-mail program should now be displayed in the window list to the left. Click on the empty box next to the program to insert a check mark into the box. Click Ok. 9. EZ Station should now display the E-mail icon of your favorite E-mail program. 10. Press the E-mail button (button 6) to launch your E-mail program. Scan in your photo using PhotoStudio 1. Place your photo on the scanner bed. Press the Preview button. This will open PhotoStudio and begin the preview scan process. 2. After the preview, the photo will be automatically sized and selected for scanning. To limit your image size and make the photo easier to E-mail we recommend that you scan in photos for E-mail using the 75 dpi resolution setting. 3. After the photo has been scanned use the Save As command to save the image as either a .jpg or .gif file into a familiar folder so you can locate it later. (.gif and .jpg files are small in size and Internet friendly). Remember the image name and folder location so you can find it later. 4. Close PhotoStudio. Attaching the photo image to your E-mail 1. On the windows desktop return to your E-mail program. 2. Locate the command that will attach files to your E-mail. Execute the attachment command in your E-mail program to locate the folder and image you saved earlier. Follow the attachment process in your E-mail program to insert the image into your E-mail. Note: E-mail programs attach files with different steps. If you are not sure of the steps, refer to the Help command for your E-mail program to find more information. 9. The E-mail button can be set to launch Outlook Express which is common to Windows 98. 1. Go to Outlook Express. 2. On the Tools menu, click Options. 3. On the General tab, click the "Make Outlook Express my default Simple MAPI client" check box to select it. 4. Click Yes when you are prompted to set Outlook Express as your default Simple MAPI client. NOTE: If you use another MAPI-enabled E-mail program such as Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft Outlook 97, or Microsoft Windows Messaging, it is no longer your Simple MAPI client when you set Outlook Express as your default Simple MAPI client. To set your other E-mail program as the default Simple MAPI client, click the "Make Outlook Express my default Simple MAPI client" check box to clear it. 5. Click OK, and then click OK again when you are prompted to restart your computer. 6. Quit Outlook Express, and then restart your computer. 10. Several printers products now include multiple functions like faxing scanning, copying and printing. These types of products may not work with the scanner on the same parallel port connection. Normally only one scanner device can be supported on the same parallel port connection. It may be possible to support both devices if the computer has more than one parallel port. 11. For the best scanning performance set your computer's parallel port (or LPT1 port) to EPP (Enhanced Parallel Port) mode. Other modes will work, but the performance will be much less than if in EPP mode. Refer to your computer's user guide for more information on how to change your parallel port mode setting or contact your system manufacturer. 12. The scanner buttons require system resources to operate. If you find this impacts your system performance or mouse movement, click "Disable Buttons" in the EZ Station application. You can still use the mouse to launch the EZ Station on-screen buttons. Remember to click "Enable Buttons" when you want to activate the scanner buttons again. If you want to make "Disable Buttons" the default setting, close the EZ Station window to save this setting. Next time you start your system the buttons will be disabled as the default. 13. If you are having trouble attaching a parallel port device (i.e. Zip drive, tape drive, CD Rom, etc) to the scanner, other than a printer, try re-attaching the device between the scanner and the system. 14. The EZ Station program communicates with the scanner buttons. With some printers they can cause printing errors. If you have trouble with printing errors, try disabling the buttons in EZ Station. You can still use the mouse to launch the EZ Station on-screen buttons. ====================================================================== 5.0 COMPATIBILITY ====================================================================== 1. The Canon BJC-620 printer is not compatible with the scanner buttons. When the Enable Buttons feature is selected in EZ Station the printer will cycle the printer head. To work around the problem, disable the buttons by selecting the Disable Buttons feature in EZ Station. 2. The IBM ThinkPad 600 hibernate feature is not compatible with the scanner buttons. Using the hibernate feature when the Enable Buttons feature is selected in EZ Station may cause the system to lockup when waking up. To work around the problem disable the buttons by selecting the Disable Buttons feature in EZ Station before putting the system in hibernate mode or disable the IR port in device manager. 3. When the scanner is powered off it may cause the printer to print strange characters or eject blank sheets. If this happens turn the scanner on while you are using the printer. 4. IBM ThinkPad docking stations and replicators are not supported. 5. The Canon LBP-660 laser printer is not compatible with the scanner. ====================================================================== 6.0 OTHER TECHNICAL NOTES ====================================================================== 1. When attaching a printer to the scanner use an IEEE 1284 compliant parallel printer cable. 2. Added Email button support for Netscape Communicator. This CD Rom includes a new feature that will enable the Email button to automatically attach images from the scanner to a Netscape Communicator email message. Click on the Settings button in the EZ Station program, then click on the Email tab. Select the email program you want to use from the pull down menu. Then click OK to save this setting. ====================================================================== TRADEMARKS ====================================================================== Microsoft, Windows and Windows NT are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. PhotoStudio is a registered trademark of ArcSoft, Inc. TextBridge Classic is a registered trademark of ScanSoft, a Xerox Company. Other company, product and service names may be trademarks or service marks of others. ===================== End of this document =============================