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Microsoft Windows 98 README
for Infrared Communications Driver, Version 2.0
July 1997
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(c) Copyright Microsoft Corporation, 1997
This document provides complementary or late-breaking information to
supplement any other existing documentation.
HOW TO USE THIS DOCUMENT
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CONTENTS
OVERVIEW OF THE INFRARED COMMUNICATIONS DRIVER, VERSION 2.0
USING THE INFRARED COMMUNICATIONS DRIVER Notebook Computers Infrared Adapters Programs Printers IrLan Access Points
INSTALLING AND USING THE IR COMMUNICATIONS DRIVER Installing the IR Communications Driver Validating the IR Communications Driver Installation Running Other IR-Capable Programs An Optional Step: Removing the IR Communications Drive Notes on Running Direct Cable Connection Over an IR Link Preparing to Use DCC
IR COMMUNICATIONS DRIVER COMPONENTS
IR ADAPTER MANUFACTURER NAMES AND ADDRESSES
OVERVIEW OF THE INFRARED COMMUNICATIONS DRIVER, VERSION 2.0
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The Infrared Communications Driver, version 2.0, is an optional component of the Windows 98 operating system. The Infrared Communications Driver supports hardware devices that enable networking and communications over infrared media. The hardware device can be either an infrared port built into the platform or an infrared adapter connected to one of the platform's serial or parallel ports.
Users might want to install the infrared (IR) hardware device and version 2.0 of the Infrared Communications Driver for the following reasons:
- They can use wireless infrared links instead of serial and
parallel cables. For example, files can be exchanged wirelessly between two computers that have an IR device and the version 2.0 driver installed, instead of using a serial or parallel cable.
- Files can also be printed wirelessly on IR-capable printers.
- If the user has an IR-capable LAN access point product connected
to the network, wireless IR links can be used instead of LAN cabling. For a list of LAN access point products the version 2.0 IR driver has been tested with, see "Using the IR Communications Driver."
- The version 2.0 IR communications driver supports IR communications
links running at speeds up to 115.2 kbps.
USING THE INFRARED COMMUNICATIONS DRIVER
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The following sections list the hardware and software components on which version 2.0 of the Infrared Communications Driver has been tested.
Notebook Computers
This product has been successfully tested on the following Windows 98 notebook computers that have built-in IR ports:
Gateway(R) 2000 Liberty
HP(R)Omnibook(TM)600CT
HP Omnibook 4000C
IBM(R) ThinkPad(R) 701C (Butterfly)
Sharp(R) PC 3050
TI(R) TravelMate(TM) 5000
Some testing was also done on these Windows 98 notebook computers:
Digital(R) HiNote Ultra CT475
TI(R) TravelMate(TM) 5000
Infrared Adapters
This product has been successfully tested on Windows 98 platforms with the following IR adapters connected to serial ports:
ACTiSYS ACT-200L Infrared Wireless Interface
ACTiSYS ACT-220L Infrared Wireless Interface
Adaptec(TM) AIRport APA-9320 External Infrared Adapter
(also called the Adaptec AIRport 2000)
AMP PhasIR Serial Adapter
Extended Systems JetEye PC Infrared PC Interface (ESI-9680)
Parallax IR Adapter LiteLink PRA9500A
To obtain any of the IR adapters listed above, contact the adapter manufacturer. For the addresses of these manufacturers, see "IR Adapter Manufacturer Names and Addresses" at the end of this document.
Programs
The following programs have been run successfully over an IR communications link using the IR communications driver and the hardware listed above:
- Windows 98 Direct Cable Connection (DCC) - Various Windows communications programs, including HyperTerminal
and DynaComm.
Because the IR link simulates a serial communications link, some communications programs might not perform as expected after they connect over the IR link. For more information, see "Troubleshooting." For instructions on running DCC over an IR link, see "Notes on Running Direct Cable Connection Over an IR Link" later in this document.
Printers
Numerous Windows 98 programs have successfully printed over an IR link to an HP Laserjet 5P or 5MP printer, which have built-in IR ports. Numerous Windows 98 programs have also printed successfully over an IR link to other printers with an Extended Systems JetEye Infrared Printer Port ESI-9580 infrared adapter connected to the printer parallel port.
IrLan Access Points
Local area network access over an IR link has been tested with the following IrLan access point devices:
- Extended Systems ESI-9910 JetEye Net Plus - Hewlett-Packard NetBeam IR Infrared LAN Adapter
INSTALLING AND USING THE IR COMMUNICATIONS DRIVER
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The following three-step process is recommended:
1. Install the Windows 98 IR Communications Driver. 2. Validate the installation by printing over the IR link, using a
program to transfer data over the IR link, and/or using a local area network (LAN) over the IR link.
3. Start using the IR link on a daily basis.
After you install the driver, it can be removed at any time (for more information, see "An Optional Step: Removing the IR Communications Driver").
Procedures for carrying out each of the recommended steps, including the driver removal step, are presented in detail below.
Installing the IR Communications Driver
NOTE: If any version of the IR communications driver has been installed on your computer before, you must remove it before carrying out the following steps. To check whether an IR communications driver is currently installed on your computer, open Control Panel. If Control Panel displays an Infrared icon, there is a previously installed version of the IR communications driver on your computer.
For a procedure you can use to remove a previously installed version of the driver, see "An Optional Step: Removing the IR Communications Driver" later in this document.
To install the IR communications driver, carry out the following procedure:
1. In Control Panel, click the Add New Hardware icon, and
then click Next.
2. When the Add New Hardware wizard prompts you "Do you want Windows
to search for your new hardware?", click No, and then click Next.
3. In the list of hardware types, click Infrared, and then click
Next.
4. When the Add Infrared Device Wizard prompts you to choose a
manufacturer's name for the IR device:
- If the computer has a built-in device, choose Standard Infrared
Devices)
- If an IR adapter is attached to the computer, choose the name
of the manufacturer and the model of the adapter.
Then click Next.
5. When the Add Infrared Device Wizard prompts you to choose the
communications port that the IR device is physically connected to, click the port in the list. If you are uncertain which physical communications port the IR device is using, select the first COM port in the list (for example, COM1). Then click Next.
6. When the Add Infrared Device Wizard prompts you to select the
virtual COM and LPT ports, accept the default values by clicking Next. After the wizard copies the IR communications driver files to the hard disk, watch for the wizard to display two New Hardware Found messages.
7. When you are prompted by the Add Infrared Device Wizard, click
Finish to complete the IR device installation. If the wizard did not display New Hardware Found messages as it carried out step 4, then restart the computer. (If the New Hardware Found messages were displayed, there is no need to restart the computer).
8. Activate the IR device by clicking the Infrared icon in
Control Panel. If there is no Infrared icon in Control Panel, then either click the View menu and then click Refresh, or press F5 to make the Infrared icon appear.
For general information about how to use the Infrared Monitor, click the Help button in the lower-right corner of the Infrared Monitor screen. For information about specific items in a dialog box, such as check boxes, right-click the item, and then click the "What's this?" command.
The Options tab of the Infrared Monitor interface contains the following two particularly useful items:
- The Enable Infrared Communication On check box, which enables and
disables the IR device.
- The Limit Connection Speed To option, which limits the link speed
the IR device can negotiate.
The Limit Connection Speed To option might be used if an adapter is attached to a COM port that is using an 8250 UART instead of a 16550 UART, or if an adapter is connected to a relatively slow computer (such as a 386 running at 20 MHz). In these cases, this option can be used to limit the connection speed to 19.2 kbps.
Validating the IR Communications Driver Installation
You can use any of the following methods to validate the IR communications driver installation:
- Print from a program over an IR link to the printer (if an IR-capable
printer is available),
- Exchange data between two IR-capable computers over an IR link, using
a communications program.
- View the computer's Network Neighborhood over an IR link (if an IrLan
access point device is available).
Printing to an IR-Capable Printer:
To test the printing capability of a Windows 98 program over an IR link to an IrDA-compliant printer, carry out the following steps:
- Make sure the IR communications driver is installed on the computer. - Make sure the printer driver for the IR-capable printer is installed
on the computer.
- Try the Print option in a program.
Printers without built-in IR ports can be made IR-capable by connecting an IR adapter made for printers into the printer's parallel port. An example of an IR adapter for printers is the Extended Systems JetEye Infrared Printer Port ESI-9580. If a parallel cable is also used to connect the computer to the IR printer adapter, you can use either the IR link or the parallel cable to print. The IR link is used when you select the virtual parallel port; the cable is used when you select the physical parallel port.
To validate the IR link to the printer, make sure the correct printer driver is installed for the IR-capable printer. (Most printers with built-in IR ports are Plug and Play devices, which are installed automatically.) Then use a program to print over the IR link.
If the program prints on an IR-capable printer, the IR driver installation is validated. If there is trouble printing, see "Troubleshooting" for more information.
Exchanging Data Between Two Computers:
To validate a link between two computers running Windows 98, install the IR communications driver on both computers. To do this, carry out the procedure in "Step 1. Installing the IR Communications Driver" earlier in this document.
Note that the IR devices on the two computers do not have to be made by the same manufacturer as long as both devices are IrDA-compliant. For example, the IR link will work with a JetEye PC Infrared PC Interface (ESI-9680) attached to one desktop computer and an Adaptec AIRport APA-9320 External Infrared Adapter attached to the other desktop computer.
One way to validate an IR link is to run HyperTerminal on both computers and send characters from the keyboard of each computer over the IR link. HyperTerminal is installed on a Windows 98 computer as part of the typical installation recommended for most computers. To validate the IR driver installation of the IR driver on both computers, carry out the following procedure.
1. On both computers, click the Start button, point to Settings,
and then click Control Panel. Click the Infrared icon.
2. Move the IR devices within three feet of each other, and make
sure they're pointing at each other. When the two IR devices discover each other, the message "Available infrared devices in range" appears on the Status tab of the Infrared Monitor interface screen. Make sure Infrared Monitor reports both IR devices have the appropriate infrared device within range before proceeding. It might be necessary to realign the IR devices so they point right at each other, move them closer together, and/or change the batteries in an IR adapter or plug the AC power into an IR adapter. For more information, see "Troubleshooting" earlier in the document.
3. On one of the computers, click the Options tab in the Infrared
Monitor interface and find the information that starts with "Providing application support on ...". Write down the name of the COM port found there. This is the name of the virtual serial port that the IR link is using. The name of this virtual serial port might be COM4 or COM5, and it will differ from the name of the physical communications port the IR device is running on (which is typically named COM1 or COM2).
4. Run HyperTerminal on the computer with the virtual serial port
name by clicking the Start button, pointing to Programs, pointing to Accessories, and then clicking the HyperTerminal folder. In the window that appears, click the Hypertrm.exe icon.
5. In the Connection Description dialog box, type a descriptive name
(such as "Direct IR") for the new connection, and then click OK.
6. In the Phone Number dialog box, use the Connect Using drop-down list
to click the "Direct to Comx" entry, where x is the number of the virtual COM port written down in step 2. Then click OK. It is now possible to start using HyperTerminal on one of the computers.
7. Repeat steps 2 through 5 for the other computer.
8. In HyperTerminal on either computer, type any characters at the
keyboard. If the typed characters appear in the HyperTerminal window on the other computer, then it is confirmed that the IR link works in that direction. Repeat this step on the other computer. If the IR link works in both directions using HyperTerminal, the IR communications driver has been successfully installed on both computers.
NOTE: When you type characters in HyperTerminal, status changes are displayed in the Status tab of the Infrared Monitor interface.
9. Disconnect the HyperTerminal direct IR connection by exiting
HyperTerminal on both computers. When you are prompted to save the session, click Yes. This saves the direct IR connection setup information as an icon in the HyperTerminal main folder, enabling you to click this icon to restart one side of the HyperTerminal direct IR connection.
Viewing Network Neighborhood Over an IR Link:
The version 2.0 IR communications driver enables a computer with an IR device either a built-in device or an adapter) to connect to a local area network LAN) through an IrLan access point device acting as the network adapter for the computer. An IrLan access point device is hardware that supports both a LAN network interface controller (NIC) and an infrared transceiver. Local area network access over an IR link has been tested with the following IrLan access point devices: the Extended Systems ESI-9910 JetEye Net Plus and the Hewlett-Packard NetBeam IR Infrared LAN Adapter.
To test a computer's ability to use a local area network (LAN) over an IR link, first install the IR communications driver on the computer. Then carry out the following steps:
1. Run IR Monitor.
2. Turn on the IrLan access point device, such as the Extended
Systems ESI-9910 JetEye Net Plus, and place the infrared receiver/transmitter of the IrLan access point device within range of the computer's infrared device.
3. When the computer infrared device and the IrLan access point
infrared device discover each other, the Infrared Monitor interface indicates "Infrared communication in progress."
4. When the Infrared Monitor interface shows that the IR link
has been established, click the Network Neighborhood icon to display the icons of the remote computers that can be accessed through the IrLan access point device. There can be a delay of some seconds before the remote computer icons are displayed.
If you have trouble accessing the LAN, see "Troubleshooting" for more information.
Running Other IR-Capable Programs
Most programs that can communicate over a null modem cable that connects serial ports on two Windows 98 computers should also be able to communicate over an IR link. The procedure for setting up and using the IR link with these other communicating programs will probably be similar to the procedure used in "Exchanging Data Between Two Computers," which uses HyperTerminal to validate the installation of the IR communications driver. The procedure for running the Windows 98 Direct Cable Connection is provided in detail in "Notes on Running Direct Cable Connection Over an IR Link."
An Optional Step: Removing the IR Communications Driver
The IR communications driver can be removed either by using Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel or by using the Device Manager. Both methods are documented in this file, but using Add/Remove Programs is the preferred method.
To remove the IR communications driver by using Control Panel:
1. Click the Start button, point to Settings, and then click Control
Panel.
2. Click the Add/Remove Programs icon. 3. Click Infrared Support for Windows 98, and then click Add/Remove. 4. When you are prompted to do so, restart your computer.
To remove the IR communications driver by using Device Manager:
1. Right-click the My Computer icon, click Properties, and then click
the Device Manager tab.
2. Make sure that View Devices By Type is selected, then click the
plus sign at the left of the Infrared device class label.
3. Click the infrared device name, and then click Remove. 4. When you are prompted to do so, click OK to confirm the device
removal.
After Device Manager successfully removes the infrared device installation information from the computer, the Infrared device class label disappears from the System Properties dialog box.
NOTE: The Infrared Monitor icon might still be displayed in the Windows 98 toolbar, even after the infrared device is removed. You can ignore it; the Infrared Monitor cannot be used to establish an IR link after the infrared device is removed.
Notes on Running Direct Cable Connection Over an IR Link
With Direct Cable Connection (DCC), a direct serial or parallel cable connection can be established between two computers to share the resources of the computer designated as the host. DCC can also be used over an IR link connecting the host and a guest computer. If the host is connected to a LAN, the host can also be used as a gateway to the LAN for the guest.
Preparing to Use DCC
The computer that contains the folder to be shared is the host, and the other computer is the guest. To share a folder on the host, granting access rights to anyone using the guest computer, carry out the following procedure.
NOTE: The following procedure is just one of many that could be used to share files in a folder on the host computer. For example, there is user-level access control as well as share-level access control. The following procedure is one of the simplest access control procedures, which is all that is needed to get started using DCC. To get information about all the ways files, folders, and printers can be shared, use the Windows 98 Help.
1. Click the My Computer icon. 2. Click the icon for the drive that contains the folder you
want to share (for example, click the icon for the C drive).
3. Right-click the icon for the folder you want to share, and then
click Properties.
4. Click the Sharing tab, and then click Shared As. 5. Enter a share name, enter a comment, and then add user access
rights (Full or Read-Only).
The folder icon now changes to a folder held in a hand, indicating that this folder is now a shared resource.
Making Sure DCC Is Installed on Both Computers:
DCC is not installed with the typical Windows 98 installation recommended for most computers. Check whether DCC is installed on both of the two computers that will be using the IR link. To do this, click the Start button, point to Programs, and then point to Accessories. Direct Cable Connection appears on this menu if it is installed.
If DCC is installed on both the host computer and the guest computer, then skip the next step.
An Optional Step: Installing DCC:
Before establishing a DCC connection, DCC must be installed on both the host computer and the guest computer. Carry out the following procedure on each computer that does not have DCC already installed.
1. Click the Start button, point to Settings, and then click Control
Panel.
2. Click the Add/Remove Programs icon, and then click the
Windows Setup tab.
3. Click Communications, and then click the Details button. 4. Make sure that the Direct Cable Connection check box is selected,
and then click OK.
Establishing and Using the DCC IR Link Between Host and Guest:
To run DCC over an IR link, carry out the following procedure:
1. Make sure the IR communications driver is properly installed and
the IR devices are enabled by carrying out the procedures in "Step 1. Installing the IR Communications Driver" and "Step 2. Validating the IR Communications Driver Installation" earlier in this document.
NOTE: To increase the likelihood of success with DCC over an IR link, use the Limit Connection Speed To option on the Infrared Monitor Options tab to limit the IR connection speed to 9600 bps for the first test of DCC over the IR link (and then increase the speed later).
2. On the host computer, click the Start button, point to Accessories,
and then click Direct Cable Connection.
3. Follow the steps in the Direct Cable Connection Wizard to set up
the host computer.
When the wizard prompts you for it, select the Host option.
When the wizard prompts you to choose a port, use the same virtual port used in the procedure "Step 2. Validating the IR Communications Driver Installation" earlier in this document.
The wizard also offers password protection. It is not necessary to establish password protection on the host computer for this test of the IR link. When you have finished the wizard, click the Finish button. DCC starts running on the IR link and displays the following message: "Status: Waiting to connect via Serial cable on Comx," where Comx is the name of the virtual port the IR link is using.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for the guest computer, except select the
Guest option instead of the Host option. When you have finished the wizard, click the Finish button.
The DCC connection is automatically made over the IR link, and all the shared folders on the host computer are displayed on the guest computer's screen.
If you are working on the guest computer, and you want to copy a shared folder from the host computer to the guest computer, select the folder's icon in the window that displays all the shared folders that are on the host computer, and drag the icon to the desktop.
To work on a shared folder on the host computer without copying it to the guest computer, click the folder in the display on the guest computer. Note that if the host computer is connected to a network, the guest computer can reach shared resources on the network through the DCC connection to the host.
IR COMMUNICATIONS DRIVER COMPONENTS
The following files make up the IR communications driver:
Filename Description
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ACT200L.VXD Support for the ACTiSYS ACT-IR200L IR adapter ACT220L.VXD Support for the ACTiSYS ACT-IR220L IR adapter ADAPTEC.VXD Support for Adaptec IR adapter CRYSTAL.VXD Support for AMP PhasIR Serial Adapter ESI.VXD Support for Extended Systems JetEye PC Infrared
Interface (ESI9680)
INFRARED.CPL Infrared device in the Windows 98 Control Panel INFRARED.DLL Infrared device class installer INFRARED.INF IR device information file for Windows 98 Setup INFRARED.HLP On-line help topics for Infrared Monitor IRCOMM.VXD Top layer of IR communications for Windows 98 IRDALAN.INF IrLan device information file for Windows 98 Setup IRDALAN.SYS IrLan driver IRENUM.VXD Enumerator for the "IR bus" IRLAMP.VXD IrDA protocol, middle layer of IR communications
for Windows 98
IRLAPFRM.VXD Generic infrared framer, lower layer of IR
communications for Windows 98
IRMON.EXE Infrared Monitor IRMONHLP.EXE IR Monitor on-line help utility IR_BEGIN.WAV Sound for Infrared Monitor user interface IR_END.WAV Sound for Infrared Monitor user interface IR_INTER.WAV Sound for Infrared Monitor user interface MSPORTS.INF IR port information file for Windows 98 Setup PARALLAX.VXD Support for Parallax IR Adapter, LiteLink PRA9500A W_IR.CNT Table of contents for Infrared Monitor on-line help
The documentation files supplied with the IR device driver are:
Filename Description
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Infrared.txt This document.
IR ADAPTER MANUFACTURER NAMES AND ADDRESSES
The following manufacturers supply IR adapters that have been tested successfully with the Windows 98 IR Communications driver:
ActiSys, Inc. 1507 Fulton Place Fremont CA 94539 Tel: (510) 490-8024 Fax: (510) 623-7268 E-mail: corp@actisys.com
Adaptec, Inc. 691 South Milpitas Blvd, Milpitas CA 95035 Tel: 1 (800) 959-7274 Fax: 1 (408) 957-7223
AMP Product Information Center AMP Incorporated Harrisburg PA 17105 Tel: 1 (800) 522-6752
Extended Systems, Inc. 5777 North Meeker Ave Boise ID 83704-1520 Tel: (208) 322-7575 Fax: (208) 377-1906
The Parallax IR adapter distributor in North America is:
TSC Electronics 1610 Lockness Place Torrance CA 90501 Tel: (310) 534-2738 Fax: (310) 534-3216 E-mail: dtsaitsc@aol.com Contact: Daniel Tsai
The Parallax IR adapter distributor outside North America is:
Parallax Research 201 Innovation Centre NTU Nanyang Drive Singapore 639798 Republic of Singapore Tel: +65 793-0855 Fax: +65 793-0775 E-mail: parallax@technet.sg
