O.K., I have givin it alot of thought and I am going to do it now. Being a Network Technician, I find myself wasting way too much time thinking of different things to do with all of my computer parts laying around. So I am thinking, scratch that, PLANNING on putting a PC in the X. Here is what I want to accomplish:

- Huge Hard Disk for all my Gigs of MP3's
- DVD ROM - No explanation needed
- Networked with my home domain when I am in the garage. Probably won't go wireless I want full 100Mbps
- 5" LCD screen
- This mouse -
http://www.x10.com/products/x10_mk19a.htm
- Audio outputs to my in dash MP3 player
- OS - Win 2k or Linux, haven't decided (probably 2k since winamp is so easy)

I want to hide everything and mount the display in a custom center console. I have two ideas for the actuall PC.

1) I am building a raised floor in the back for two subs, it could get built into there

or

2) Build the custom center console around the PC so the DVD rom can be easily accessed from the drivers seat.

Alright, I realy haven't done anything yet, but I thought I would get the post started so people can start throwing comments (good and bad) my way!

well thinking more on the mouse, since I will have to build a custom center console, I might go and flush mount a trackball right in the center instead of the remote.

That has got to be the coolest thing I ever heard. I am also a Network Tech but I have never thought of anything like this. Good luck. Will an inverter power the PC without having to many power fluctuations?

sounds pretty cool ;) why not scratch the mouse idea and get a touch screen? (could you even use a touch screen with win2k?) i saw another guy on here write his own software and stuff and has a 10" touch screen, his whole setup is awesome. he doesnt have a computer, but hes got a dvd player, gps, and some other cool crap.

As for the power I am still trying to figure that out. If I invert the power to 110 and then use a PC power suply that might be overkill. If I can get this old laptop motherboard with the fried bios (won't do anything) to do something then I can use that and use the battery as a backup, or better yet, why not use the laptop power supply with the other motherboard? I will have to look at specs tonight to see if that is possible.

I thought about a touch screen but my whole reason for doing this is because I have everything but the screen and it would be cheep, plus some wood and upolstry. I may still do that and yes they work with Win 2K.

This is probably a BIG :D waste of my time, but it gives me something to do and if I can pull it off it will be just plain COOL!

Before I get too far I am going to get a screen and just sit the box in the front seat for a day or two and see how it works. I would hate to get it all together to find out it was a horrible idea.

Good news for you! It can be done. I have personally succesfully built a mocup using old laptop parts myself using a voltage inveter to power it. I would personally pount the pc itself in the cargo area for simplicity. GL

Len

Yes I aggree, I am putting it in the cargo area, much easier.

This sounds like a damn good idea. My question is how hard is it to connect those LCDs to a computer. Do you have to redo the wiring or does it use the same cable?

I have seen several descriprions on the web about the LCD screens and I think that it looks pretty easy. However, I have an All-In-Wonder card not currently in use with an RCA output on it that I am going to use to connect to a 5" color screen.

Oh ok so they are just RCA plug thing-a-majigs?

(Note the Technical Name:D)

OK it is on it's way. I am incorporating it in my sub enclosure (see: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=41663 )

Here are the specs:
8 gig HD (for now)
ATI Rage All in wonder 128 pro
Creative 12x DVD
5 inch LCD
500 Mhz AMD K6-2
Other misc crap.

I got it all in the X and encountered a couple bumps..
First bump: In the X the video feed was horible. Reason: used a borrowed inverter for the testing, only 140 watt... didn't have enough clean power.

Second Bump: Mother board is a piece of crap. Not ACPI complient, no matter what video setup the dvd playback is jumpy (that is if it doesn't freeze)
Solution: in the process of swaping with a different board, will have new status this weekend. That PC is going back to being my Linux/Apahce webserver, almost as important as the X, I need to get my fishing message board web site back up since it is a new season (year).

STOP!

OK. This has wasted WAY too much of my time. The older parts make one heck of a computer, but I cannot seem to get the DVD playback to work well. In win 98 it freezes and in win 2k it is choppy. I tried a hardware decoder, and it was great, but with the decoder I must use it's outputs for display. THe decoder has tv out but it only puts images out there when the dvd is playing, in other works I need two displays, one from the ATI for everything and one from the decoder for the movies. I could do that with two RCA cables and a switch box, but what a pain? and oh yeah, at 5 inches you cannot read squat on the display, but the picture is awsome, so for use as GPS, forget about it! The other issue is, I have enough on my mind while driving anyway... Maybe I will just make a mount for the laptop goming out of the glove box for the passengers and mount the display somewhere for use with the laptop??

I think where I am now is here....

- I already have an in dash MP3 player, that solves the music issue.
- I have a laptop with DVD, I can run the sound through the Head Unit

I need some time to give it thought but I might just set up a mount for the laptop in the rear and mount everything else and just hook it in while I drive?

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=48810&highlight=laptop+mount

Those little X10 cameras that always pop up every where on the net would be cool for a back up screen. Just a goofy thought!

What about taking out the dvd rom and uploading divx compressed movies to & playing off the hard drive?

i have an 80GB external HD that is mounted under the backseat. It is full of movies and part of the largest music collection on the east coast. 12,000 songs. DVD's look and sound gerat in the the car though, not to mention they are in dolby-digital 5.1 ;-)

About 6 months ago I installed a full computer setup in my S-10 Xtreme, DVD,GPS,Wireless Internet, motion detecting security cameras, remote access. It was a long planned out project, a good place to start getting good solid ideas is www.mp3car.com and there is an excellent bulletin board on that . Here is a link to my old install , I'm currently planning my next install in my Explorer this summer.

Pictures of S-10 Xtreme Install (http://photos.yahoo.com/bc/freznosmooth2b/lst?.dir=/MobileMediaPhase%231&.view=t)

Link to Des Moines Registers article about my setup (http://desmoinesregister.com/news/stories/c4780940/15846784.html)

www.mobiletech.tk Personal Site (http://www.mobiletech.tk)

I had an 87 Merkur xr4ti about 6 yrs ago. Had the system and everything. Installed my first computer in that car with a 3600watt stereo, 18" rims... back in the ricer days. Hehe, looks good man. Believe it or not, that stuff will come in handy one day... it might not have anything to do with stereo's but it will help. Enjoy!

PS, a trackball works a hell of alot better than a mouse... i tried the whole cordless thing but I could mount the trackball to the car. Just a thought.

I would have to disagree with the trackball working better than a mouse. Tried both trackball and touchpad and X10 remote. Get yourself a good RF Logitech wireless mouse and it will more than impress you. After months of testing and experience with all kinds of control , I think this worked best for my situation. Taxman, If you have any questions about setting anything like this up in a vehicle, let me know Id like to chat .... Cheers

I'm a Software developer working under contract with the Army. I've been toying with the idea and I think when the time comes I'll me using one of these, and write my own programs to do what I want. Its got everything, USB, type 2 PCMCIA slot, Compact Flash slot, 2 PS2 connections for mouse and/or keyboard, audio in and out.

http://www.rlc.com/Images/rlc_arm_highres.jpg
http://www.rlc.com/Images/rlc_arm_back_side_highres.jpg

Development Unit:
RLC-ARM-Plus Development Package. Includes.
RLC-ARM-Plus Single Board Computer, With VGA TFT Color LCD Display (640x480, 64K Colors), Touch Screen, Max Memory, PCMCIA Ethernet Card, Power Supply (PWR-2500), I/O Extension Ribbon Cables (2), RS232 Cable, Mounting Bezel, Demonstration Programs, Documentation and Recovery Files.
Includes Windows CE 3.0 Pre-Installed.
Microsoft Embedded Visual Tools 3.0 also Included.
$1323

Standard Unit:
RLC-ARM-Plus Single Board Computer, With VGA TFT Color LCD Display (640x480, 64K Colors), and Touch Screen.
Includes Microsoft Windows CE 3.0 Pre-Installed.
$1174

bigtig, thats one of the coolest things ive ever seen! :D if i cared about computers anymore, and had the motivation (and the money) to learn about installing something like that and hooking it up to everything in the world, i'd do it too, but i think im just gonna hold off and get a touch screen navigation system ;) kenwood makes a really nice one i was playing with a few weeks ago when i went to go buy all the wires for my system.