Which software have you chosen to use?
not sure what im going to use yet havnt really thought about it. Not needed yet. Got the screen mounted in the dash today.
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I'll use either Windows Media 2005, Vista Ultimate or a Linux disttibution for this purpose. I imagine, given the size of the drives these days, I'll dual boot it. One version of windows to allow Evoscan, etc to run and a linux media station for the music keg.
VR-4 #1 : Ernie, Pyreness Black, 98 Legnum Type-S, Leather, Moonroof & Stainless Sills, Fujitsubo cat back, Apexi RSM - Sold under duress
VR-4 #2 : Wallie, Finesse Green, 96 Legnum Type-S, Erebuni CF bonnet, Profec E-01 & EMB, TRE fuel pump, RPW Downpipes, De-Cat, Fujitsubo Super Legalis R, LC-1, NGK Iridium Plugs, SARD Radiator, Greddy Hard Rad Pipe, ATF Cooler, FMIC, Forge Recirc BOV, KAD 6 Pot 330x28 Brakes, HEL Braided Lines, 17"X8.0 Rota Torques with Wintrac Xtremes, Fully Synth Oils, Ultimate 102RON Fuel, Stainless Sills - Sold after 4 great years
there are a few that will allow to run them all i think,
I have mused about the CarPC route and using Evoscan for gauge outputs etc. But as far as I can figure out whenever you connect to the ECU using the OpenPort cables/Evoscan etc you will always get the flashy dash effect when stationary?
Can diagnostics mode be disabled whilst still getting info from the ECU?
i dont know, i think there is a way.
right so the carnetix is wired in, looked to be a simple job, i didnt do it.
to explain,
1. you need to run a length of wire trailer wire 7 core is probably the best, i used 12, bit excessive. from the boot to the armrest, its fiddly, to get it under the carpets and into the arm rest.
2.now you will need to run a 12v power cable from your battery to your arm rest, easier said than done. if you pop the bonnet, look straight up from your battery to the bulkhead, get to the bulkhead. and you will see, down there is a like an L shaped gromet. i put a little slit in mine, and fed the cable through there.
3. now you have fed a bit of your cable through, go into the car, open the glovebox, and let it go past its stops, so it emptys all your crap on the floor. infront of you, you will see 2 units, a grey one and a black one, with a space inbetween. you should see your wire poking out right down the back, i suggest seriously long nosed pliers to grab the wire and pull it through.
4. now you need to remove your centere console, this is relativly easy but be prepared to break a clip or 2. first remove your cd player out of the din slot, reach your hand in, and unclip the 2 clips, on the back of the fan control unit.
now with a screwdriver or your fingers, you need to pull up the the bottom of the center console where the gear stick is. mine lifted up and then pulled up out over the gearstick. now you should be able to give the stubborn center console a tug, and it should come out. however there are a few more things to disconnect. the ciggerate lighter, the bulb for it, and the ash tray bulb. and make sure your car is in neutral, so you can pull it out past the gearstick
5.now thread your power cable to your armrest, pick a route which wont interfere with any of the linkages under there. i went down the left side.
6. now wire up your carnetix, i will find the instruction manual online, for this, looks simple enough.
7. find an ignition feed, i used my cd player, the redwire on the mitsi harness is an ignition feed, this will turn your carnetix on, with the ignition.
will post up some pics to go with this, soon, i need to go and reassemble my car now
I was confused when I saw that happen on my first run. My cable has an extra earthing wire on a second plug, that goes next to the OBD port and earths it, didn;t really make a difference though.Originally Posted by phosty
On the second point I was just intending on disconnecting the cable when not logging so not to big a problem.
Guys, with the best will in the world, software is really important..more so than the hardware! If you're just playing back audio & video, and using diagnostics, then yes, okay, use a media player with a big skin. But as you're dealing with something you need to be able to use safely with pudgy fingers when driving, try using it without looking before it goes in the car.
Also, if you thinking of Sat Nav, and possibly bluetooth, you need to have a long look at one of the integrated solutions: Sat Nav needs to work quickly and seamlessly, and the menus for the off the shelf products generally tie you to a specific sat-nav vendor. Likewise, if you're wanting bluetooth functionality, you're going to need a common API that will pause audio / video playback for a call, whilst muting it for SatNav. I've tried XP on it's own with a "quick and dirty" html front end, and it was truly awful, especially as I relied on the PC controlling the output volume, which admittedly compounded how frustrating the whole thing was.
I tried lot's of software 2 years ago on a system I fitted for someone else (against my advice) and at the time there was nothing on the market that I would contemplate having in my dashboard safely.
Manufacturers are still struggling with this: Blaupunkt, Pioneer and Mercedes seem to have the only decent solutions. Audi's multimedia interface is basic and a bit clunky & restrictive. BMW's i-Drive is just totally dsitracting and frustrating in equal measures.
My experience has been that the hardware is the easy bit, and I wouldn't jump into the deep end without trying it extensively at home first, or better still on someone elses! Sorry guys, I don't want to seem like a party pooper, I've just not been impressed to date.
just run windows in the background, with tomtom loaded onto it with a gps reciever in the back.
theres lots of software out there, that will do what i want, i just have to decide which i like and what im going to use
Kyle, that's fine, but if you (for example) use Tom Tom, then you can't use (for example) a reversing camera whilst it's running, as Windows won't natively pop-up a video window in front of Tom tom.
In the same way, Tom Tom won't be able to mute your music, and neither will your phone. Also, going to start, programs, tom-tom or whatever when driving is dangerous.
If there is a decent, free / cheap piece of integration software out there, I totally want to try it out, but of the one's I have tried, and that support Tom Tom integration at the time were expensive (>£100).
to be fair its the last thing on my mind at the moment. software is the last thing to think about
Keep up the good work Pitslayer your doing well.
Post some pics keen to check it out.
Cheers
got a few to load up later for everyone
pics PICS PIIICCCS
Looking good, there
good find galantonly, might look into that one, i just dont want to be paying a subscription fee for the package. but then again i hate sat nav anyways, give me a map anyday
Try here
Take a look at roadrunner that seemed like a reasonable solution to me when i was looking into this a year ago. but it's fiddly to set up if your not confident with PCs
Mp3car.com is a good site for the information you'll need
RoadRunner seemed the best free solution to me too, but I couldn't find a "shuffle" option.
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