DC 30U FAQ

A. The DC-30U digital camera offers users a quick and easy way to add the impact of real life pictures to their letters, reports, proposals, invitations, presentations, and much more. Because DC-30U digital camera images can be stored in variety image formats, they can be transmitted over the Internet or easily imported into a variety of software applications. Whatever the specific use, the DC-30U digital camera's high quality images make everything printed or displayed look great.

Q: How does the DC-30U digital camera capture images?

A. The DC-30U digital camera uses a charge coupled device (CCD) to "capture" an image. The CCD contains an array of light-sensitive cells and circuitry that convert the captured light into electronic signals which are then processed and digitized. The images are saved in the camera's 8mb of RAM memory until they are downloaded to the computer.

Q: How to setup digital camera to work with your Mac or PC?

A. Please follow these steps to complete the connection.

Connect the USB cable to the USB port on the back, front or side of the PC

Lift the rubber side cover and plug the other end of the USB cable into the data transmission port of the camera. ( If the personal computer is equipped with only the 25-pin or 9-pin serial port, then you need a USB adaptor card or USB to 25-pin or 9-pin female transmission adapter )

For device driver installation, please check the driver CD-ROM.

For application software, please refer to the included CD-ROM for detailed user's guide

Q: How to select TWAIN driver / source?

A. Once the TWAIN driver is installed, you can select the TWAIN driver in many image editing software programs to acquire the images. It is usually included in the pull-down-menu of File Import or you will see a “Get Pictures” button. You can also select the TWAIN driver by using our bundled software. If you have many TWAIN sources, please be sure to select the right device. The device is called "STV0680 Digital Camera" or "EZCAM". STV0680 refers to the chipset inside the DC-30U digital camera.

Q: How to get further information about bundled software?

A. All of our bundled software programs have complete °readme° files, user's manual, and on line help. In addition we recommend you go to each software application’s web site listed in the readme.html file on the CD ROM to learn more about the features of our bundled software.

Q: How to acquire image from digital camera?

A Via Twain Driver on a Windows PC

Once you have installed our bundled software and driver properly, you can call our twain driver from our bundled software, and download the images to your PC.

B Via the "STVO680 camera driver" on a Mac

There is an installation CD in the bottom of the box with the camera. If not, the driver is on our website in the support section. "DC30U Digital Camera USB Driver" is the file you want. Once the driver is installed the Mac will reboot and then it will be ready to receive your pictures.

Put some batteries in the camera and then just point and shoot as fast as you can fire the shutter, if you have enough light. If there isn't enough , the camera will not take a picture. Be sure to hold the camera nice and still.

When you are ready to put the pictures on your Mac, just plug in the USB cable that is also in the box. The Mac will beep and ask you where you want to save the pictures. Once you have chosen a location on your hard disk, the driver will save the pictures and then you can view them. You can also choose to empty the camera of all pictures at this time.

Be sure to turn off the switch on the side of the camera that disconnects the batteries once you have moved the pictures on to your Mac.

Q: What are fine resolution and standard resolution?

A. All pictures have 24-bit pixel depth, or 16 million colors at 72 dots per inch. The fine resolution setting produces photos at 640 x 480 pixels. A photo at 320 x 240 pixels is produced using the standard resolution setting.

Q: What type of image compression does the camera use?

A. The camera uses AEL proprietary image compression for the best image quality.

Q: How are the images stored in the DC-30U digital camera?

A. Images are stored in the camera's memory as a BMP or PICT format images.

Q: Will pictures be lost if the camera's batteries are exhausted?

A. Yes. Always keep good batteries in the camera. The batteries will last up to one year if you remember to turn off the battery switch on the side of the camera, when you are not storing pictures in the camera.

Q: What type of file does the camera transfer to the computer?

A. On a PC, images downloaded from digital camera can be saved in the format of application software you are using to capture the pictures. For example, BMP, TIFF, GIF, JPEG, PCX, PDF, PNG, or others. On a Mac the pictures are always saved in PICT format when using the camera driver to download the pictures. If you are using the supplied Photoshop compatible plug-in to download pictures, they can be saved in any format used by the application you are using to access the plug-in.

Q: How to download the images to your PC?

A. The camera uses an industry standard TWAIN driver software interface to allow you to easily download your pictures through your standard USB port. After downloading your pictures, you can save the files in BMP or JPEG format on your PC. For more details, please consult your user's manual.

Q: Does DC-30U digital Cameras Support MS-NetMeeting

A. Our digital cameras support Microsoft NetMeeting, Cuseeme, iVisit and many other video conferencing applications.

Q: What's the difference between "Picture Take" mode and “Picture Download” mode in the TWAIN driver?

A. In "Picture Take" mode, the digital camera can act as a PC camera to capture a Live Video image, and you are able to see it on the PC monitor instantly. In "Download° mode, you can download the images saved in memory that you had taken previously.

Q: Power Saving Features?

A. Our digital camera features a power saving mode. The DC-30U digital camera will automatically shut off when it is in stand-by for 30 seconds

Q: Why can't my software find the camera?

A. If the software does not find the DC-30U digital camera, the USB port you are using to connect the DC-30U digital camera may be disabled or may not be working properly. Try connecting the DC-30U digital camera to the port that is used for your mouse or any other USB device. If the software finds the DC-30U digital camera while connected to the USB mouse port, the other USB port should be looked at by a service technician. Another suggestion is to check your PC's CMOS settings to see if the port is disabled. If it is disabled, change the setting and enable the port.

Q: Why do I get an "Camera is not responding" message when I try to download my photos?

A. Your computer's USB port may be disabled or configured incorrectly. Make sure the port is enabled and there are no IRQ or device conflicts. If possible try the camera on a known working port, such as a USB mouse port.

Q: Why can't I connect the DC-30U digital camera to my Gateway computer?

A: Please consult our trouble shooting check list first. Some Gateway computers have their USB port disabled. For instructions on freeing and enabling the USB port, please check the user manual of your computer or contact Gateway's Technical Support at 1-800-846-2301(USA).

Q: Why don't the colors of my pictures look right?

A. When taking pictures under certain artificial lighting conditions, the colors may be slightly distorted. You can use our bundled software to adjust the colors.

Q: Why are my DC-30U digital camera pictures displaying so poorly on the screen or when I print them out?

A. The DC-30U digital camera captures images in 24-bit color (16.7 million colors). Your pictures will not display maximum image quality if your monitor or your computer's video controller does not support this color depth. You may need to upgrade your system to achieve the best possible image quality. The minimum recommended resolution is 640 x 480 with 16-bit high colors. 24-bit color is ideal.

Q: The problem check list

Make sure the cable connects properly and firmly between both ends

Make sure the camera memory is free before you try to take a picture

Make sure that the batteries are not low

Please make sure the computer USB CMOS setting is correct

Try to reinstall the driver and our bundled software again

Try to install your operating system, driver, and bundled software again.

If these solutions can not solve your problem, please email our technical support staff at info@hkael.com