Power Management Block Diagram - Acer 390 Series Service Manual

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1.5.1.2

MultiBoot

The system can boot from the FDD, External FDD, HDD, CD-ROM. The user can select the

desired booting process to boot the system. If the CD-ROM is bootable, the BIOS will override the

other process to boot the system directly.

1.5.1.3

Power Management

This computer has a built-in power management unit that monitors system activity. System activity

refers to any activity involving one or more of the following devices: keyboard, mouse, floppy drive,

hard disk, peripherals connected to the serial and parallel ports, and video memory. If no activity is

detected for a period of time (called an inactivity time-out), the computer stops some or all of these

devices in order to conserve energy.

This computer employs an innovative power management technique called Heuristic Power

Management or HPM. HPM allows the computer to provide maximum power conservation and

maximum performance at the same time.

Power management methods used by most computers are timer-based. You set inactivity time-out

values for the display, hard disk, and other devices. The computer then "sleeps" when these time-

outs elapse. The problem with this is that no two users are alike. Each of us has his or her own

habits when using the computer, which makes timer-based power management ineffective.

With HPM, your computer manages its power according to the way you use your computer. This

means the computer delivers maximum power when you need it, and saves power when you don't

need the maximum — all without your intervention. There are no timers to set, because the HPM

system figures out everything for you.

Figure 1-11