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 Guide

Using Video software

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Using DVgate

DVgate is a software application that enables you to capture and then edit images taken with digital video 
devices (DV devices), such as digital video camera recorders, on your personal computer. It also gives you the 
ability to output the edited material for recording on a DV device.
With DVgate, you can easily perform image editing with your computer and a DV device.

DVgate consists of 3 applications:

DVgate Motion;

DVgate Still;

DVgate Assemble.

Depending on the computer settings, frames may be lost during video capture and frame duplication when recording edited video. Please make sure 
you configure your computer according to the recommended settings to prevent this from happening. To configure your computer to use DVgate, refer 
to the Online help of DVgate.

Summary of Contents for PCG-GRX616MP

Page 1: ...N Software Guide P C G G R X s e r i e s ...

Page 2: ...d under Japanese Law the manufacturer of your Sony computer system the SONY HARDWARE Please read this EULA carefully before installing or using the software distributed together with this EULA the SONY SOFTWARE By installing or using the SONY SOFTWARE you agree to be bound by the terms of this EULA You may use the SONY SOFTWARE only in connection with the use of the SONY HARDWARE SONY SOFTWARE is ...

Page 3: ...media damaged by accident abuse or misapplication The above limited warranty replaces all other representations conditions and warranties whether express or implied by statute or otherwise and Sony expressly disclaims all other warranties and all conditions including but not limited to the implied warranties and or conditions of satisfactory quality and fitness for a particular purpose The terms o...

Page 4: ...gy saving through the use of computers and their office equipment The program backs the development and dissemination of products with functions that effectively reduce energy consumption It is an open system in which business proprietors can participate voluntarily The targeted products are office equipment such as computers displays printers facsimiles and copiers Their standards and logos are u...

Page 5: ...t contains an IEEE1394 connection EverQuest is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc Adobe Adobe Acrobat Reader Adobe Photoshop Elements and Adobe Premiere are trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated QuickTime and the QuickTime logo are trademarks used under licence QuickTime is registered in the U S and other countries RealOne Player is a registered trademark of RealN...

Page 6: ...re information To register your Sony VAIO computer proceed as follows 1 Set up an Internet connection see also Configuring your modem page 113 2 Double click the VAIO Online Registration icon on the desktop You can also find the link on the Start menu 3 Change your language if necessary and click Next 4 Click Register Now and then click Next This brings you to the website https registration sonyst...

Page 7: ...le mouse click away from creating a Hollywood style DVD masterpiece By simply connecting a Sony Digital Handycam to this Sony computer via an i LINK cable you can turn your family memories into a DVD for all to share Click to DVD will even guide you through a simple 4 step procedure so you can create DVD menus packed with actively moving chapter icons Using Click To DVD page 54 Depending on the mo...

Page 8: ... popular software game that can be played simultaneously by multiple people on the Internet The link placed on your Windows desktop brings you to the EverQuest website where you can find out more http everquest station sony com ISP Selector Sony Electronics With the ISP Selector you can easily install the Internet Service Provider you want to use Just choose your country and your language in the d...

Page 9: ...twork Smart Capture Sony Electronics Network Smart Capture is an application for capturing still and moving pictures using either a digital camera or a USB webcam connected to your computer This software allows you to view the photos you capture and send them to various destinations It includes a web camera feature which you can set up to capture images at timed intervals without you being in the ...

Page 10: ...vironment in which larger quantities of high quality music can be distributed without subsequent unauthorised distribution of the music files The SonicStage software encrypts and manages music files either downloaded to a personal computer by using the EMD services or adopted or created from your own CD or the Internet To use the CD R functions you will need to install the CD R module from the sup...

Page 11: ...ging com UI Design Selector Sony Electronics You can change the window design of the Sony software compatible with UI Design Selector See Customizing your computer page 100 VAIO Edit Components Designed as a plug in for Adobe Premiere VAIO Edit Components includes special features to support your i LINK DV devices so you can produce superior quality home movies even after editing Now you can contr...

Page 12: ...ivers if they are corrupted or accidentally erased Reinstalling an individual device driver may correct a problem you are experiencing with your computer without you having to recover the entire system The final product recovery disc is also referred to as the Application Disc You can only use the Recovery Discs on the Sony computer you purchased and not on any other Sony PC or other manufacturer ...

Page 13: ... XP Professional also keeps your data secure and maintains your privacy For questions and technical assistance go online to http support microsoft com directory Internet Explorer 6 0 Microsoft Corporation Internet Explorer is the Microsoft Internet browser allowing you to surf the World Wide Web The Setup Wizard configures your computer to connect automatically to your service provider A full e ma...

Page 14: ...clicking a PDF file embedded in an HTML file You quickly see the first page while the rest of the document is being downloaded For questions and technical assistance go online to http www adobe com Adobe Photoshop Elements Adobe Systems Incorporated Adobe Photoshop Elements introduces the next generation of image editing with powerful new features that offer something for every user Delivering the...

Page 15: ...output in a product that s easy to use and versatile For questions and technical and technical assistance go online to http www adobe com Depending on the model you purchased Drag n Drop CD DVD DigiOn Easy Systems Japan Drag n Drop CD DVD is designed to be the most simple software to make your own DVDs or CDs Users can create their own audio CDs data CDs data DVDs or backup their favorite CDs and ...

Page 16: ... many features allow you to access over 3000 radio stations with music news and sports play and save audio files and create your own audio CDs and organise your audio and video clips locally before transferring them to portable storage devices For further information see the website at http www real com PowerPanel Phoenix Technologies The PowerPanel utility controls the power management of your co...

Page 17: ...e per week and monitor your computer for any activity that might indicate the work of a virus in action It can also scan files you download from the Internet and check floppy disks for boot viruses when you use them You must launch the Norton AntiVirus installation and you will then be prompted to update the virus definitions This is normal as new viruses have come out since your VAIO left the fac...

Page 18: ... standard consumer DVD player in addition to some very advanced functionalities full precision video decoding a choice of user interfaces and video display options You can play DVD movies interactive DVD titles MPEG video content video and audio CDs WinDVD for VAIO automatically determines the type of disc in the DVD drive and uses the correct playback method For questions and technical assistance...

Page 19: ...tware applications are delivered with your VAIO Check the printed Specifications sheet to see whether they are preinstalled Then read the printed Application CD Guide for installation details if applicable Using DVgate page 19 Using MovieShaker page 35 Using Network Smart Capture page 41 ...

Page 20: ...l for recording on a DV device With DVgate you can easily perform image editing with your computer and a DV device DVgate consists of 3 applications DVgate Motion DVgate Still DVgate Assemble Depending on the computer settings frames may be lost during video capture and frame duplication when recording edited video Please make sure you configure your computer according to the recommended settings ...

Page 21: ... choose to save the selected scenes as separate files or as one file Recording edited video on a DV device You can record the edited video on tape using a DV device such as a digital video camera recorder connected to the computer With DVgate you are not limited to recording single clips but you can record a series of clips on the DV device at one time To launch DVgate Motion proceed as follows 1 ...

Page 22: ... mark the beginning of the first segment The first frame of the segment to be captured is displayed in the In Out list window Click Mark again to mark the end of the segment to capture The last frame of the segment to be captured is displayed in the In Out list window Continue to mark as many segments as you want 5 Click Capture to import the selected video segment or click Capture All to import t...

Page 23: ...orrection values To ensure accuracy in the recording you can specify recording correction values Adjustment of the recording correction values is especially important when performing splice recording You can choose to specify the values yourself or to have them automatically adjusted by using the automatic calibration feature The values generated by the automatic calibration feature are usually co...

Page 24: ...the list You can drag multiple files at one time however the order in which they are added is unpredictable You can record AVI files with different sound modes on a DV device but about one second of no sound depending on the DV device may occur at the point where the sound modes change You can only add AVI files using DV Codec as video compression MPEG files are not supported When recording a vide...

Page 25: ...e a Record List for future use Record List files can only be used in DVgate Motion To preview a clip proceed as follows 1 Select the file you want to preview in the DVgate Motion AVI file list window 2 Click Preview The Monitor window and the Preview window appear The Monitor window shows the first frame of the file Click on the Previous File button or on the Next File button to select the file yo...

Page 26: ...f you select the Append option button in the Output dialog box Blank frame s can be placed in the following locations Head A blank image is placed before the start of the video sequence during recording Tail A blank image is placed after the end of the video sequence during recording Both Blank images are placed before the start and after the end of the video sequence during recording You can spec...

Page 27: ...n it off while DVgate Motion is recording Never switch the input sources when recording on a digital videocassette recorder as this might prevent recording If you want to export manually videos from your computer to a DV device refer to the DVgate online help file Using DVgate Still DVgate Still is an application that displays digital video images sent from DV devices such as a digital videocasset...

Page 28: ... DV device pauses This is normal Single Frame Capture mode You can capture one frame of a still picture The captured result is the same even if you capture during Play or Pause mode Capturing 30 frames in Continuous Capture mode replaces all 30 frames Capturing only one frame overwrites the first frame of the still picture capturing the next frame overwrites the second frame and so on To toggle be...

Page 29: ... Monitor window 4 Click the Capture button The video image in the Monitor window is being captured Dragging the slider in the Capture window to the left or right lets you display the still picture before or after the current one If you exit DVgate Still without saving the captured still picture it is cleared Even if you attempt to capture continuous pictures you may not be able to capture some fra...

Page 30: ...PG GIF or DVF To save the captured pictures proceed as follows 1 Launch DVgate Still and capture images 2 In the DVgate Still Still window select a still picture you want to save 3 Click the Save button The Save As dialog box appears Use the Location to Save drop down list to select a folder Select a file format from the File Format drop down list 4 Click Save The captured picture is saved ...

Page 31: ... You can create an Assemble List with files you want to splice together Afterwards you can always edit the Assemble List by changing the order of the files and adding or deleting files To add files to an Assemble List proceed as follows 1 Launch DVgate Assemble 2 Click the Add button The Add dialog box appears 3 Choose AVI file in the Files of type drop down box If you select Add all divided files...

Page 32: ...ere is no need to recapture files even if you only want to use one particular scene from a longer video sequence originally captured with DVgate Motion Note that the process of removing the exact scene is only enabled when one AVI file is selected from the Assemble List However this command is disabled when more than one file are selected To edit the AVI files in the Assemble List for the exact sc...

Page 33: ...file type from the Files of type drop down list 4 Select your image file and click Open The image is added to the Assemble List 5 Choose Edit a clip from the Edit menu in the main window The DVgate Assemble Clip dialog box appears 6 Enter the insertion time in seconds or frames 7 Turn the Wide TV mode on or off 8 Select the screen size 9 Adjust the height and width of still images when they are ou...

Page 34: ...ttings window appears 11 Select the final format of the combined file choosing from AVI MPEG1 or MPEG2 if available 12 Click OK The Assemble List appears 13 Click OK The still and video images are combined Choosing MPEG1 as the format will reduce the size of the file considerably ...

Page 35: ...dialog box appears and splicing begins 5 The DVassemble window appears and displays the Exporting Save to an AVI file complete message The set time and the size that the file is split into are displayed when outputting an AVI file 6 Click OK The edited video is saved When you click the Output button only the files on the Assemble List that have been selected are connected and output as a file Clic...

Page 36: ...knowledge of film editing In a few steps motion pictures can be combined with special effects still images pictures and music files and then saved in a format most computers can play To open MovieShaker proceed as follows 1 Click the Start button on the Windows taskbar 2 Point to All Programs and then MovieShaker 3 Click MovieShaker ...

Page 37: ...ly when a MICROMV device has been connected to your computer and MICROMV Device has been selected from the Device menu the Index tray appears while the Capture tray is displayed on the monitor panel The Effect tray contains various effects to be applied to a scene The Text tray provides a tool for creating a text effect to be applied to a scene The Transition tray contains various transition effec...

Page 38: ... MovieShaker to stop responding To remove a clip from the Clip tray drag it from the Clip tray and drop it on the trash icon This only removes the clip from the tray the original file is not deleted Creating a movie After adding clip s to the Clip tray you can create a short movie using the Shaker feature Shaker randomly selects clips from the Clip tray to create a 30 second scene To create a movi...

Page 39: ... with Shaker begin with a black frame After processing they are placed in the first available slot on the Product tray Limit the number of scenes in the Product tray to 5 or less MovieShaker may stop responding if there are too many scenes in the Product tray ...

Page 40: ...d contrast and modifying the length of the clip 1 Shake tab 2 Capture tab 3 Edit tab 4 Speed control slider 5 Volume control slider 6 Effect palette 7 Fade in fade out 8 Trash 9 Full screen preview button 10 Play trimming range 11 Repeat play 12 Play control buttons 13 Trimming range 14 Save as still image button 15 Time adjustment 16 Monitor ...

Page 41: ... can preview and check them before saving them Your final movie products can be saved as files exported to a DV device MICROMV device To save your movie proceed as follows 1 Click the Export button The Export dialog box appears 2 Select the format in which you want the document to be saved 3 Click Next 4 Select the folder in which you want to save the file 5 Name the file 6 Click Save Your movie i...

Page 42: ...rd disk drive make sure they are compatible with your computer s Microsoft Windows operating system and check the required operating conditions of the devices Launching Network Smart Capture To launch Network Smart Capture proceed as follows 1 Make sure you have installed the software from the application disc if necessary see the printed Application CD Guide 2 In the Start menu select All Program...

Page 43: ...ion 3 Data list Displays thumbnails of captured images 4 Display Image Opens captured images in the Finder Window 5 Task bar See Managing your images and movies page 53 for details 6 Select Capture Menu Enables you to customise an image and add effects 7 Change Setting Enables you to set preferences 8 Capture button Records the image in the Finder window This button changes to Record in Movie mode...

Page 44: ...n it on The viewfinder image appears in the main window 3 Click Still near the top left hand corner of the screen Making settings for Still mode Before you capture a still image you can set your own preferences To make your settings for Still mode proceed as follows 1 Click the Select Capture Menu icon near the bottom of the screen to view capture options for your still image capture For more on t...

Page 45: ...ree tabs Basic Select a folder destination for your images Capturing Format Select the image size in pixels and adjust the image quality Common Enable or disable the shutter and animation sound effects 3 Click each tab to view the options and set preferences 4 Click OK when you have finished If using a web cam a further tab allowing Camera Adjustment is available ...

Page 46: ... to capture 2 When you see the image you want in the Finder window click Capture You can capture a single image or several images at once 3 Your captured images are stored as thumbnail images in the Display List to the right of the Finder window 4 Click the thumbnail images or arrows to the right of the Finder window to view your captured images As each image is captured it appears in the Finder w...

Page 47: ...e viewfinder image appears in the main window 3 Click Movie to activate Movie mode Making settings for Movie mode Before you capture a moving image you can set your own preferences To make your settings for Movie mode proceed as follows 1 Click the Select Capture Menu icon near the bottom of the screen to view setting options for your moving image capture For more on the Effect option see Applying...

Page 48: ... a folder destination for your movies when recording video clips Capturing Format Adjust the image quality reduce noise and set the maximum recording time for your movie capture Common Enable or disable the shutter and animation sound effects 3 Click each tab to view the options and set preferences and click OK when you have finished If using a web cam a further tab allowing Camera Adjustment is a...

Page 49: ...r in the camcorder s viewfinder click Record to begin recording your movie The Movie Player icon appears Click Stop when you have finished recording your movie The first frame of your movie appears in the data list to the right of the Finder window Network Smart Capture automatically stops recording according to the recording time you set in the Movie Clip Setting window 3 You can preview your mov...

Page 50: ...era proceed as follows 1 Launch Network Smart Capture 2 Connect your i LINK compatible digital camera or USB Web camera to your computer and turn it on The viewfinder image appears in the main window 3 Click Web camera to activate Web camera mode Making settings for Web camera mode Before you capture a Web camera image you can set your own preferences To make your settings for Web camera mode proc...

Page 51: ...destination to store your images set your maximum observation time and choose your dial up setting Capturing Interval Set your Web camera to capture images at intervals or whenever there is movement Send Set your upload options You can make FTP and Web page settings here too Capturing Format Select the image size in pixels and adjust the image quality Common Enable or disable the shutter and anima...

Page 52: ...capture an image in Web camera mode proceed as follows 1 Use your digital camera or camcorder to locate the moving image you want to capture 2 When you see the image you want in the Finder window or in the camcorder s viewfinder click Start to begin The Web Camera Reservation Wizard appears guiding you through the initial settings 3 Click Finish in the final screen The automatic function is set up...

Page 53: ...t for each picture To add effects proceed as follows 1 Click the Select Capture Menu icon at the bottom of the screen 2 Select the Effect option from the list The Effect Selection window appears 3 Choose from the range of effects and animations 4 Click Properties to select the level of each effect To remove an effect select No Effect from the Select Capture Menu list or from the Effect Selection w...

Page 54: ...ut Network Smart Capture see the application s online Help files To view the online help proceed as follows From the Start menu click All Programs Network Smart Capture and click Help from the submenu Alternatively Click the Help icon in Network Smart Capture s main window Save As Saves still images in JPEG format and movie images in MPEG format to your required location Send attached Image by E m...

Page 55: ...l Recommended settings To use Click to DVD and Click to DVD automatic mode you should define some settings on your computer To do so you must log on to your computer as a user with Administrator rights Here are some recommended settings to prevent frame dropout occurring Please see the online Help files for more details Disconnect USB peripheral devices Some USB peripheral devices and their driver...

Page 56: ... settings Optimise the system s performance settings Power supply and processor performance settings when using a notebook computer keep it plugged into an AC outlet while using Click to DVD Also set the processor to operate at its maximum clock speed Notes on creating DVDs Use the Click to DVD Project Administration Tool to help you manage your files see Managing project files with Click to DVD P...

Page 57: ...depends on a variety of factors including length of the video that you are recording processing speed of your computer DVD writing speed of your DVD RW DVD RW drive number of chapter thumbnails that must be created for the DVD menu type of media used recording to a DVD or R disc is always faster than recording to a DVD RW disc When loading images from a device loading is automatically cancelled un...

Page 58: ...video segments that are less than one second long Depending on your computer s settings frame drop out may occur when using Click to DVD to load video from DV devices If this occurs read Recommended settings page 54 and adjust settings as appropriate The original photography date is being carried over from video tapes that are recorded using DVgate Motion Loading by Click to DVD and Click to DVD A...

Page 59: ...ed onto digital videotape By clicking a few buttons the software automatically transfers the video to your computer and creates the DVD Your digital video camera recorder must have a DV OUT connector to use this mode To launch Click to DVD Automatic Mode proceed as follows 1 Make sure Click to DVD has been installed from the separate Click to DVD disc if necessary before you continue 2 Connect you...

Page 60: ...way 4 Confirm by clicking OK 5 If you want the software to rewind the tape in your camera recorder and start capturing from the beginning of the tape check the Capture from start of tape check box Otherwise the software will start capturing the tape at its present position 6 Click the Settings icon to define how many chapters and thumbnail images you want in the DVD menu 7 In Settings you can also...

Page 61: ...a DVD photo album or slide show You can edit videos as well as create a menu screen You can save your DVD projects and edit them later To launch Click to DVD proceed as follows 1 Make sure Click to DVD has been installed from the separate Click to DVD disc if necessary before you continue 2 Connect your digital video camera to your computer with the i LINK cable not supplied turn the device on and...

Page 62: ...oose any available predesigned theme in the Select a theme menu 6 If you do not want to hear any background music select the Muting check box If you do not select the Muting check box you will hear a musical theme to match the DVD s menu background 7 Select the type of content video pictures or both you want to record on the DVD in the Select Type area of the Start window Select the Video check bo...

Page 63: ...the video quality settings Recording videos When capturing video from a digital video device you can either Automatically capture all the video on the tape from the beginning of the tape automatic capture or Select and download a portion of the video manual control Recording videos automatically automatic capture To record videos automatically proceed as follows 1 Connect an i LINK cable not suppl...

Page 64: ...ice to VCR VTR or CAMERA mode 2 Click Capture Video in the step guide The Capture Video screen appears 3 Select Manual Control in the Capture Selection box Use the on screen digital video device control button to fast forward or rewind the tape to the segment of video you want to capture Make sure that an image from the start of the segment appears in the preview monitor 4 Click Capture Click to D...

Page 65: ...porting video files On your DVDs you can include video files stored on your computer s hard disk drive You can also load MPEG files and DV AVI files that were created by DVgate and MovieShaker depending on the software bundled with your computer ...

Page 66: ...les in a format other than MPEG1 Editing videos The Clip Editing screen enables you to edit videos You can divide videos into clips delete unnecessary scenes and change the order in which clips are played To edit your video before creating the DVD proceed as follows 1 Click Edit Video on the step guide The Edit Video window appears 2 Select your options as follows To divide a clip into two separat...

Page 67: ...d to the Recycle Bin To restore a clip click the Recover clips from Recycle Bin task and then select the clip to be restored to the clip tray in the dialog box that appears Previewing videos You can play back a clip by using the Clip Playback Control buttons The video clip that is currently being played appears in the monitor To play all clips in order click Play All You can also play only selecte...

Page 68: ...mbnails Up to four thumbnails can be displayed at once To display all of the pictures in a folder click the Open Folder button 3 Click Import All of the pictures in the selected folder are imported and displayed in the clip tray Importing pictures from an external device To import pictures from an external device proceed as follows 1 Connect the device digital still camera or Memory Stick to your ...

Page 69: ...otate the images change your content setup or make slide show settings To create an album proceed as follows 1 Clicking the Create Album button in the step guide The Create Album window appears 2 Choose your album settings as follows Change the order in which pictures are displayed when the DVD is played by dragging pictures to the appropriate position Alternatively click the Arrange button The Ar...

Page 70: ...kground music You can use WAV and MP3 format audio files If the background music does not allow the Match slide show length with the length of the Background Music setting to display the pictures for more than 3 seconds the background music is automatically repeated to allow a display time longer than 3 seconds per picture Creating menu screens Before writing to the DVD you can create or edit the ...

Page 71: ...ers depending on the type of computer you are using and the amount of data included in your project but it usually takes about three hours to create a one hour long DVD To create a DVD proceed as follows 1 Click Write DVD in the step guide The DVD writing window appears 2 Place a blank disc in your computer s DVD RW DVD RW drive 3 Click Write Your DVD is being created and the progress is displayed...

Page 72: ...k to DVD Project Administration Tool The Click to DVD Project Administration Tool has the following functions to help you manage your temporary files Searches for video files that are not used by any existing Click to DVD projects and asks for your confirmation to delete them Searches for video files that are still used by existing Click to DVD projects and asks you to confirm if you want to delet...

Page 73: ... start screen click the Open Project task The Open File dialog box appears 2 Select the project file to be used You can resume work from the point where you left off the last time you saved the project file Playing back DVDs created with Click to DVD You can play DVDs that you have created with Click to DVD on most home DVD players or on computers that have a DVD drive and DVD playing software For...

Page 74: ... enough free space Use the Project Administration Tool to help you delete the unused temporary files I cannot write to DVD Videos cannot be written to a DVD R disc if data was already written to that disc Use either a blank DVD R disc or else use a DVD RW disc The Hardware Overlay Error message appears If another application is using the hardware overlay this means it is temporarily overriding you...

Page 75: ...can be played on your computer or transferred to external devices or media SonicStage converts your existing MP3 WMA and WAV format audio files into the default ATRAC3 format To open SonicStage proceed as follows 1 Click the Start button on the Windows taskbar 2 Point to All Programs SonicStage and then click SonicStage 3 The Please confirm setup dialog box appears You can set SonicStage as the de...

Page 76: ...Software Guide Managing audio files with SonicStage 75 n N ...

Page 77: ...evice 3 Import button Displays the Import window You can use this window to import audio files stored on the computer into the Music Drive and register them to a Playlist 4 Simple Mode button Switches the Main window to Simple Mode You can also switch to Simple Mode by clicking the shortcut key F11 5 Close button Closes SonicStage 6 Help button Displays the help file 7 Operation area The Playback ...

Page 78: ...ding CDDB2 registration click the Help button Only possible when you have this slot built in on your machine 11 Sound Effect button You have the choice between Vocal Canceller the Vocal Canceller cannot be applied to songs on a MiniDisc Sounds Effects Off 12 Visualizer button The Visualizer window shows various visual effects while playing an audio file 13 Internet button Opens or closes the Inter...

Page 79: ...for example record songs from audio CDs and import them to playlists in SonicStage To record a CD proceed as follows 1 Insert an audio CD into your system s optical disc drive 2 Click the Recording button 1 3 Click the CD icon as your source 2 4 Click the Music Drive icon as your target 3 ...

Page 80: ...can select specific tracks on your CD by deselecting the check boxes from the tracks you do not want to record You can clear all selected tracks by selecting the empty Select All check box and then selecting the tracks you want to record For each song you can determine the song title the artist and the genre 9 Click the Rec Selection button to begin recording When you want to record all the songs ...

Page 81: ...your optical disc drive for the first time the CD Drive Optimization dialog box appears Click Start to verify your optical disc drive Once the verification is performed recording begins You can display the name of the CD and its songs by clicking the CD Info button and after registering with CDDB ...

Page 82: ...omputer automatically recognises the connected external device or media and the Check In Out window appears 2 Click the Show List button to see which songs you have in the Music Drive 3 In the Tree view on the left select the playlist containing the song s to check out 4 In the List view on the left select the track to check out To check out more than one song at a time hold down the Ctrl key and ...

Page 83: ...he MagicGate Memory Stick into your computer Your computer automatically recognises the connected external device or media and the Check In Out window appears 2 Click the Show List button to see which songs you have on your Memory Stick 3 Select on the right hand side the track to check in To check in more than one song at a time hold down the Ctrl key and select additional songs 4 If necessary se...

Page 84: ...ster your imported songs through the Playlist feature of SonicStage You can manage your music by creating your own list of songs categorised by genre or artist displaying your song list in the Playlist feature and arranging your songs in a customised order using the Playlist folders Edit your music by combining multiples songs into a single one or divide one song into two by using the Combine and ...

Page 85: ...nd family To share a PictureGear Studio creation over the Internet or by using another computer use the Export feature See Using the Export feature page 95 Launching PictureGear Studio To launch PictureGear Studio proceed as follows 1 Make sure you have installed the software from the application disc if necessary see the printed Application CD Guide 2 In the Start menu select All Programs Picture...

Page 86: ...ecognise the device or media In this case an identification window appears in which you have to select the device Using the Import feature with a USB device To use the Import feature with a USB device proceed as follows 1 Connect your digital camera camcorder to your computer or insert the Memory Stick you are using 2 In the PictureGear Studio main window click Import Photo The PhotoCollection Imp...

Page 87: ...porting devices a scanner for example proceed as follows 1 Make sure the photo capture software delivered with the device is installed on your computer and connect your scanner or other TWAIN device to your computer 2 In the PictureGear Studio main window click Import Photo The PhotoCollection Import window appears and your connected device is displayed in the Select window 3 Click the Camera icon...

Page 88: ...ove the picture from the photo collection Click Rotate to change the picture s position Click Trim to crop the picture or capture a specific area 7 Click Finish Importing to save the imported pictures in a photo collection see Using the PhotoCollection feature page 88 ...

Page 89: ...PhotoCollection feature proceed as follows 1 In the PictureGear Studio main window click PhotoCollection Alternatively go to Start All Programs PictureGear Studio Tool and then click PhotoCollection The PhotoCollection window appears with a list of available photo sources displayed on the left and the selected source s contents displayed as thumbnail pictures on the right ...

Page 90: ...h these additional tools and features Click Rotate to change the picture s position Click View to enlarge a thumbnail view Click Slideshow to place the selected pictures into an organised slideshow Click Print to set up your photos and select paper to make prints Click Create to create an album binder postcard or label for example Click Export to send your collection by e mail or to convert the si...

Page 91: ...ove or change your designs to create your own unique photo art To use the Binder feature proceed as follows 1 In the PictureGear Studio main window click Binder Alternatively go to Start All Programs PictureGear Studio Tool and then click Binder The Binder window appears A list of binder styles is displayed on the left When you add your pictures to a binder they are displayed as thumbnails on the ...

Page 92: ...it An information form appears 4 Fill in your information and click OK An art palette window appears 5 To create an original page with art or stamps use the decoration features on the right by clicking on the required feature and applying it to your photo 6 Click Save to add the new page to your binder 7 You can create your own custom binder styles by clicking Create Title ...

Page 93: ...ctronic photo album to share with friends and family To use the PhotoAlbum feature proceed as follows 1 In the PictureGear Studio main window click PhotoAlbum Alternatively go to Start All Programs PictureGear Studio Tool and then click PhotoAlbum The PhotoAlbum window appears 2 Click New Album The Select Photo area appears ...

Page 94: ...um with the selected photo s after selecting your photos The Select Design window appears 5 Click to select a design layout for your album Use the scroll bar to view all available album designs The Select Layout window appears 6 Click to select a page layout for your album Use the scroll bar to view all available layout designs A preview of your selected design and page layout is displayed ...

Page 95: ...h your own drawings stamps or other decorations 11 Click Save The Save Album dialog box appears 12 Enter a name for your album and click OK If you want to work on a previously created album do not click Create New Album Instead select the required album from the AlbumCollection view on the right hand side of the window Photo albums can only be viewed or edited using the PictureGear Studio software...

Page 96: ... Explorer Export as a Light Package to create a compressed file that can be viewed on a computer Export as a Full Package to create an uncompressed file to be saved to recordable media such as a CD R CD RW or a Memory Stick Only Albums exported as Flash Files can be viewed on another computer on which PictureGear Studio is not installed To export a photo album proceed as follows 1 Create a photo a...

Page 97: ...elect Folder window appears 4 Click Browse and navigate to the destination folder 5 Enter a file name if necessary 6 Click Export A progress window appears briefly An export completion message window appears displaying the file name and file size 7 Click OK 8 Click Return to Edit Album Page ...

Page 98: ...n and print original postcards calendars art and labels using your favourite pictures To use PrintStudio proceed as follows 1 In the PictureGear Studio main window click PrintStudio Alternatively go to Start All Programs PictureGear Studio Tool and then click PrintStudio The PrintStudio window appears ...

Page 99: ...which varies depending on the item you are creating 3 Make selections for the picture s design layout and custom decoration for the item you want to create 4 Set the number of copies to be printed and select a connected printer 5 Click Print 6 Make sure you use the appropriate paper when creating items such as postcards labels or business cards ...

Page 100: ...9 n N Viewing the online Help For more information about PictureGear Studio see the application s online Help files To view the online help proceed as follows Click Help in PictureGear Studio s main window or in each PictureGear Studio element ...

Page 101: ...our modem for use how to use and customise the look of your Sony software and utilities etc Setting up your language page 101 Setting up your notebook with Sony Notebook Setup page 103 Managing power page 105 Selecting display modes page 112 Configuring your modem page 113 Changing your windows design with the UI Design Selector program page 115 Setting a Sony wallpaper page 116 Selecting a screen...

Page 102: ...ext 4 Continue your Windows setup until it is finished You can also change the country and language settings into your language as soon as Windows has been restarted or use the Language Selector To change the country and language settings proceed as follows 1 Click Start and then Control Panel 2 In the Control Panel window double click the Regional and Language Options icon If you do not see this ...

Page 103: ...og on again Only then the changes to the new language will take effect 7 Click Start and select Log Off 8 Click Log Off in the Log Off Windows window If necessary enter your password to log on again All the menus help files and icons are then displayed in your selected language However some parts may remain in English ...

Page 104: ...s system information including memory capacity serial number and BIOS version Initial Setting Selects the drive and device order you wish to use for loading the operating system You can specify the hard drive as well as other drives inserted into your computer You can change the volume of the sounds played while the operating system is loading Power On Password Sets the password to secure your com...

Page 105: ...ou want to change 4 Once finished click OK The item has been changed For more information about each option click Help on the Sony Notebook Setup screen to display the help file If you open Sony Notebook Setup as a limited user then only the About This Computer tab will be visible ...

Page 106: ... the goal of extended battery life PowerPanel has the following features Automatic Profile Selection APS based on the currently active application Ability to select specific Power Profiles manually from the menu Ability to edit and create new profiles Ability to display detailed battery information It works in harmony with your Windows settings Support for Windows XP Theme ToolTips to signal Power...

Page 107: ...es proceed as follows 1 Right click the PowerPanel icon in the taskbar and select Profiles 2 In the Profiles menu select a profile The appropriate power settings are activated When you use the battery pack as power source your system selects the Maximum Battery Life power management profile by default If you select a different power management profile while using battery power the same profile wil...

Page 108: ...le unless you disable this feature Power Management Off Plugged in Turns off all power management features such as Standby and Hibernate modes Icon Description Maximum Battery Life Provides power saving features to give you maximum battery life and good performance It reduces the brightness of the display and puts the system into Standby mode after a specified time period Maximum Performance Provi...

Page 109: ...battery life by initiating a quick display time out You can also establish settings for LCD Video Standby Hard Disk Standby and Standby to optimise power management for your system Games Disables the display and the Hard Disk timer DVD Optimises performance and power requirements for DVD usage Camera Optimises performance and power requirements for camera usage Power Management Off Running on batt...

Page 110: ...d changes profiles as you switch between applications Power management lets your system enter energy saving modes by levelling some energy consuming parameters such as LCD brightness or hard disk activity To select automatic profiles proceed as follows 1 Right click the PowerPanel icon in the taskbar and select Profiles 2 Select Automatic Profile Selection The Automatic Profile Selection feature d...

Page 111: ...ation such as the estimated battery life remaining and charging time Display the Battery Information toolbar on the screen which shows the battery status icon the percentage of remaining capacity and the amount of running time left in the battery To display the Battery Information toolbar right click the PowerPanel icon in the taskbar and select Toolbars then Battery Information from the menu Batt...

Page 112: ... to edit existing profiles Users whose account type is Limited can only open the Power Profile tab in the Power Panel window in view mode To check your user account information select the User Accounts category in the Control Panel Your account type must be Computer administrator to be able to edit power profile Creating a power profile To create a power profile proceed as follows 1 Right click th...

Page 113: ...lick Control Panel The Control Panel appears 2 Double click Appearance and Themes and then select Display The Display Properties dialog box appears 3 Click the Settings tab 4 Click the Advanced button The Sony Notebook LCD and Mobility Radeon 7500 Properties dialog box appears 5 Click the Displays tab Select the Monitor Panel or TV icon It is possible to select two 6 Click Apply and then OK You ca...

Page 114: ...m Options The Phone and Modem Options dialog box appears If you do not see the Phone and Modem Options dialog box click Switch to Classic View on the left side 3 Select your location on the Dialling Rules tab 4 Click the Edit button to change the current configuration The Edit Location dialog box appears Or Click the New button to configure your modem The New Location dialog box appears 5 Check th...

Page 115: ...Printers and Other Hardware window appears 3 Click the Phone and Modem Options icon The Phone and Modem Options dialog box appears 4 Click the Modems tab and then click Properties to view the properties of your modem The Modem Properties dialog box appears 5 On the Driver tab click Update driver The Hardware Update Wizard window appears Follow the instructions that appear on your screen You can pe...

Page 116: ...itch to Classic View on the left side OR If you do not see UI Design Selector click Other Control Panel Options on the right side 2 Double click UI Design Selector The UI Design Selector dialog box appears 3 Click or and select the design you like 4 Click Apply The UI Design Selector window design changes to give you a preview of the design you chose for the Sony software 5 To try another design c...

Page 117: ...sktop tab A list of Windows and VAIO wallpapers is displayed 3 Select a wallpaper in the Background list You can see a preview of this wallpaper in the monitor above the Background list 4 Adjust the position of the wallpaper with the Position drop down list 5 Click Apply when you have found the appropriate wallpaper 6 Click OK to close the Display Properties dialog box The wallpaper is applied to ...

Page 118: ...tube after hours of the same image being rescanned In fact today s CRT display technology makes burn in unlikely except under extreme conditions Your computer comes with built in screen savers that you can select To change the built in screen saver proceed as follows 1 Right click on the desktop 2 Select Properties The Display Properties dialog box appears 3 Select the Screen Saver tab 4 In the Sc...

Page 119: ...ng and updating applications This section explains how to install run or uninstall a software Furthermore you will learn how to download the latest updates from our website Installing software page 119 Changing or removing software page 120 Downloading software page 123 ...

Page 120: ...ntrol Panel 2 Double click Add or Remove Programs The Add or Remove Programs dialog box appears 3 Click Add New Programs and then click CD or Floppy The Install Program From Floppy Disk or CD ROM window appears 4 Insert the first installation floppy disk or CD ROM and click Next The Run Installation Program appears 5 Click Browse to find the installation program The Browse window appears 6 Select ...

Page 121: ...ng close the application you want to change remove To change or remove software proceed as follows 1 From the Start menu click Control Panel The Control Panel window appears 2 Double click the Add Remove Programs icon The Add Remove Programs dialog box appears 3 Select the software you want to change or remove To change a program click Change Remove or Change and follow the on screen instructions ...

Page 122: ...urther warning Make sure you are certain you want to remove it beforehand You can sort programs by selecting different options in Sort by Add or Remove Programs will only remove programs that were written for Windows operating systems For other programs check the documentation to see if other files such as ini files should be removed ...

Page 123: ... Setup program Windows File Protection detects attempts by other programs to replace or move a protected system file It also checks the file s digital signature This is an operating system feature that allows executable routines generally serving a specific function or set of functions to be stored separately as files with DLL extensions These routines are loaded only when needed by the program th...

Page 124: ... www vaio link com To download the latest upgrades proceed as follows 1 Go to www vaio link com and choose your language 2 Click the VAIO User button 3 Fill in the two codes and enter the site 4 Select Downloads and follow the procedure A list of available downloads appears 5 Choose the appropriate upgrade and follow the online instructions to download it To install your application see the Instal...

Page 125: ... the mouse driver come with the operating system This section explains how to install check update or uninstall a driver The Windows XP Rollback feature is also explained Finally you will learn how to download the latest drivers from our site Installing a driver page 125 Checking the driver s installation page 126 Updating a driver page 127 Uninstalling a driver page 128 Restoring a driver page 12...

Page 126: ...m the provided CD ROM or disk by using a CD ROM or disk drive connected to the computer select the Drivers folder on the disc drive 5 When installing a driver after having copied the contents of the provided CD ROM or disk to your hard disk browse to the appropriate subdirectory containing the driver The subdirectory should be found in the folder you copied from the CD ROM or disk 6 Click OK to be...

Page 127: ...6 Click OK Close all the opened windows your device is ready for use The device is not working properly in the following cases Your device is shown in Device Manager with a yellow question or exclamation mark Right click your device and click Uninstall Then repeat from step 2 in Installing a driver page 125 Double clicking the category of your device in the device manager list does not display you...

Page 128: ... restart the computer When the computer restarts repeat from step 2 in Installing a driver page 125 Updating a driver To update the driver proceed as follows 1 Click Start on the taskbar 2 Click Control Panel 3 Click the Printers and Other Hardware icon And then click the device you want to revert 4 On the Hardware tab click Properties 5 On the Driver tab click Update driver 6 Follow the instructi...

Page 129: ...le uninstalling the driver To uninstall the driver proceed as follows 1 Click Start on the taskbar 2 Click Control Panel 3 Click the Printers and Other Hardware icon And then click the device you want to revert 4 On the Hardware tab click Properties 5 On the Driver tab click Uninstall 6 If you are prompted to restart your computer click Yes The Uninstall button is unavailable if removing the drive...

Page 130: ...es System Restore monitors changes to the system and it automatically creates easily identified restore points These restore points allow you to revert the system to a previous time They are created daily and at the time of significant system events such as when an application or driver is installed To revert to your previous driver proceed as follows 1 Open the device that is not working correctl...

Page 131: ...ding to the device you installed then double click your device The Properties dialog box appears 6 Click the Driver tab 7 On the Driver tab click Roll Back Driver You have your previous driver back You must be logged on to your computer with an owner account in order to complete this procedure Restoring your computer does not affect or change your personal data files For more information about Sys...

Page 132: ...he latest drivers proceed as follows 1 Go to www vaio link com and choose your language 2 Click the VAIO User button 3 Fill in the two codes and enter the site 4 Select Downloads and follow the procedure A list of available downloads appears 5 Choose the appropriate driver and follow the online instructions to download it To install your driver follow the instructions you received with the device ...

Page 133: ...iver if a device is not functioning properly Reinstall an individual application if you have problems running it Perform a System Recovery in the following cases In the event of a serious system crash If you want to modify the size of the hard drive partitions You can only use these product recovery discs on the Sony computer they came with and not on any other Sony PC or other manufacturer s PC P...

Page 134: ...ling bundled applications Performing a system recovery The system recovery process allows you to 1 Reinstall an image of the hard disk as it was before you started using your computer In the event that your system is seriously damaged for example if Windows does not work as it should or your PC behaves abnormally the system recovery will completely reinstall the originally configured system on you...

Page 135: ...he docking station Depending on your model Using partitioned drives In My Computer you may have noticed the availability of two drive partitions C and D Your hard disk drive comes from the factory with 2 logical partitions This does not mean that your computer contains two physical hard disks When you start using your computer your C partition also referred to as C drive contains all the files req...

Page 136: ...recovery proceed as follows 1 Turn on your computer using AC power only and insert the first system recovery disc into the disc drive 2 If you are still able to access Windows shut down your computer Start Turn Off Computer Turn off 3 Wait 10 seconds then turn the computer back on 4 The system starts to read the disc automatically and you are asked to wait 5 Click Next in the window that appears 6...

Page 137: ...K 7 Click Next in the window that appears 8 Remove the disc from the drive and click Finish Your system is restored to its initial settings and reboots automatically Recovering the system with modified partition sizes To have the option of changing the partition sizes before completely restoring the original software drivers and settings on your computer choose Option Recovery Changing the partiti...

Page 138: ...tem recovery You should allow one hour for this process To manually change the partition sizes and perform a system recovery proceed as follows 1 Select the button next to Change Partition Size and Recover 2 Click Next 3 In the following screen set the size of your C drive in gigabytes or choose to restore the default size by pressing Default 4 Click Next 5 Read the summary of the recovery process...

Page 139: ...lick Next 3 Read the summary of the recovery process about to be performed and click Next to start the process 4 Click Yes to confirm 5 When asked to do so remove the disc and insert the next one 6 When the process is finished click OK 7 Click Next in the window that appears 8 Remove the disc from the drive and click Finish Your system is restored to its initial settings and reboots automatically ...

Page 140: ... process has started cancelling the job will delete all the current data on your C drive If you have made changes to the partition settings you will lose all data on both hard drive partitions If you do not remove the disc before pressing Cancel the system recovery will start again ...

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