A Big-Screen Mobile MP3 Console

psymaster writes: "I found the link to this mod over at hardocp.com; it's a car MP3 player mod, the guy ripped apart the whole center panel of the car to install it and did it all over again in fiberglass." This is dedication.

Comments

yes, dedication *sigh*

[thopo]

it may be a cool thing, it looks like crap! i cant believe he put more than 2 hours into this.

Re:yes, dedication *sigh*

[Cheeko]

Did you look at ALL the pictures. I dunno, personally in the finished pictures on the bottom row, I don't think it looks half bad. Better than the beat up AM/FM tape decks in most of the 10 year old used cars my friends have. This isn't something I'd do in a nice new car, but it looks like a decent enough job.

Re:yes, dedication *sigh*

[Cutriss]

Pictures? There are pictures there? All I get is is "Cannot find server". :)

6527 Total Impressions, 4923 Unique Impressions
Stats from July 11, 2002, 15:00 until Present (July 11, 2002, 17:34)

Re:yes, dedication *sigh*

[stuuf]

Could you integrate a GPS into the computer? or a wireless internet speaker phone?

Re:yes, dedication *sigh*

[roccothegreat]

it may be a cool thing, it looks like crap!"

How can you say it looks like crap?
This is a cool modification!
Next time look at the finished Product
www.arbytech.com

Re:yes, dedication *sigh*

[Alan Partridge]

i think it would look better if he'd hacked a Mac - iTunes would be beautiful in my car. Still, nice work, shame it's Windows...

Re:yes, dedication *sigh*

[Voltronalpha]

I had aspirations of doing something of the sort with my at the time new 2001 Saturn sc2. The biggest issue is space, most new cars aren't designed for the type of space requirements something like this needs.

I personally want to see more HUD display technology in cars, with more people doing more and more distractive things in the car it'd be nice if they wouldn't have to look away from the road to do some of those things.

Re:yes, dedication *sigh*

[dan the person]

The biggest issue is space, most new cars aren't designed for the type of space requirements something like this needs.

For the last 20 years or so (depending on brand/model) most cars come with an industry standard DIN slot. That is all the space you need for something like this.

Granted, that guys particular implementation needs more space, but then that guy hasn't put much thought into his implementation. Imagine trying to choose an album from all the 10000+ MP3s files you have installed, while driving. I don't think the standard WinAMP UI was designed for embedded in car use.

A DIN slot is plenty of space for a small integrated motherboard, laptop harddrive or two, a car radio sized display, and a few buttons.

Re:yes, dedication *sigh*

[class_A]

And if you want a bigger display, look into the motorised screens that fold down into a standard DIN slot from the likes of Alpine or Pioneer

Sweet!

[jat850]

Now all I need is a vehicle!! And .. oh yeah .. money :(
That's a very clean job that guy did. Nice!

Yeow..

[brad-x]

Will it come standard in a Cavalier?

:>

Re:Yeow..

[defender57]

Too bad it's an Eclipse. I think the Japanese would probably put something like this in one of their cars before an american company. And the plus would be that it probably wouldn't run Windows.

Re:Yeow..

[Alan Partridge]

the Mazda Cosmo from nearly ten years ago had something similar - VERY gorgeous, albeit CRT based!

Ok...

[timdorr]

All I know is I want one. I don't care how. But I want it and one for my girlfriend's car too.

Re:Ok...

[antirename]

Yeah, but will she let you? Honey, can I chop up your dashboard? No, honestly, I THINK the AC will still work... On the other hand, if she lets you she's a pretty cool girl.

Re:This sounds way cool.

[acceleriter]

Only an open source GNU hippie wouldn't buy something because it supported a patent infringing, inferior music format like OGG. Yer lucky it supports MP3--to truly protect intellectual property and artists, it should only support secure formats like WMA and Liquid Audio.

And you thought cell phone users were bad

[dreamt]

Oh, joy. Now we have some idiot with a touch screen panel in his car running Winamp. Like this guy won't cause an accident.

Re:And you thought cell phone users were bad

[gerf]

what if he uses mapquest to find his way. THAT would be a bit more dangerous. oh wait, that's what those goddam GPS cars have!

Re:And you thought cell phone users were bad

[buzzdecafe]

Exactly what I was thinking. As a bicycle commuter, I have to say I hope this is illegal. It's dangerous enough out there without some jack-ass looking for "Oops! I did it again" in his playlist instead of watching the road.

Re:And you thought cell phone users were bad

[dreamt]

Actually, not even close. I have a built-in GPS in my car. You enter in your destination before starting and it speaks instructions to you. All you do is listen to it. If you make a mistake or go off their recommended path, it automatically recalculates its directions, all with no user intervention.

Re:And you thought cell phone users were bad

[Andrewkov]

I wonder if Windows will crash before his car does? I hope he posts pictures when it BSOD's!

Re:And you thought cell phone users were bad

[Soko]

Winamp nothing. If you look carefully in the fourth picture, you'll see he has Quake installed too. Road rage indeed!

Soko

Re:And you thought cell phone users were bad

[Evil MarNuke]

Stupid trolls like yourself should remove the radio, the AC, light switches, power windows switches, power locks, vents, remove anything and everything from inside the car. And while you're at it glue gloves on the steering wheel, put blinders on so you can only look forward, and pull your head out your ass before you get behind the wheel.

Re:And you thought cell phone users were bad

[timeOday]

I'd prefer they just outlawed bicycles on roads.

Not really. But it really bugs me when people want everything illegal. Anything can be misused.

It's discouraging to think of all the things that wouldn't be allowed if invented today. This most likely includes cars. All you have to do to kill somebody in a car is rotate the steering wheel a few inches to the left (or the right, for you Brits and Japanese out there). And heavens to betsy, think of zipping around with 20 gallons of highly inflammible gasoline just waiting to burst into flames.

Re:And you thought cell phone users were bad

[2sheds]

Well, left or right - depends which side the pedestrians are on :-)

james

Re:And you thought cell phone users were bad

[baldass_newbie]

you'll see he has Quake installed too

Think about this in traffic jams...Make the commute more bearable.
Of course, so would mounting a machine gun on the hood.

Re:And you thought cell phone users were bad

[Skraggy]

Nice job there, I really like what you have done.

And good to see someone realising that what Arby has done isn't anymore dangerous than a CD player, or RC.

Meltdown!!!!

[4/3PI*R^3]

It looks cool, but image the first time he parks his car in the sun with the windows rolled up and the inside gets to about 160 degrees Farenheit.

Will he post pictures then?

"Hey, what's this big assed black piece of glass you got right here in the middle of your control panel?"

wardriving

[SLASHAttitude]

WOW I really like the idea. By running windows he is going to be prone to crashes but GPS and such will be easy. Now he needs a oronico wireless card and he is set to wardrive!

Re:This sounds way cool.

[defender57]

Since the guy is running windows on the thing and using winamp, it kinda does support ogg files

RIAA Illegal Car?

[maynard-lag]

So when he gets pulled over do they call the RIAA for not purchasing his music in each format he plays it in? Policeman into radio: Uh dispatch.. we need a tow truck, code napster. MP3 owner: What did I do officer? Policeman: Just wait here a minute, the nice folks at the RIAA are here to help.

Talk about distraction

[serutan]

Jesus Christ! Look at the amount of information on that screen. I hope I never run into this guy in heavy traffic while he's talking on his cell phone and scrolling through his Jimmy Eat World tracks.

Re:Talk about distraction

[S Nichol]

Actually, I noticed that it's "Better than Ezra," not Jimmy Eat World... what should be even more of a concern than him talking on his cell phone is the fact that there's a shortcut to "Quake III Arena" on the bottom left corner of his desktop.

And "My Network Places" and "Internet Explorer"? Oi. It almost makes me WANT to see people picking their noses and changing their clothes while driving.

Re:Talk about distraction

[Tassleman]

The machine he used was his old gaming machine before he upgraded, that's why it has all that other stuff installed.

Re:Talk about distraction

[dan the person]

I hope I never run into this guy in heavy traffic

I imagine just pressing play or changing the volume on that thing would be a challange while driving. Let alone trying to pick a new album.

empeg and similar designs have put much more thought into making something that is actually usable in a car, rather than just something that looks cool.

Let me just find...

[Q2Serpent]

that one song that I heard the other week...

i think it was after this one...

no no, about 200 back from here (scroll...)

was it around here? maybe down a few... (tap tap tap)...

*incoming telephone pole*

Re:Let me just find...

[tedDancin]

The more worrying aspect in all of this is the Q3 icon on his desktop (:

.. now where did that rail gun go? ..

Re:Insurance Company

[acceleriter]

The same way you tell them you killed a family of 4 in a minivan when you were swapping files with the guy in the lane next to you with your bluetooth MP3 player.

Re:Slashdotted.

[The Wing Lover]

Well, mabye a lot of people already did that, and that's why the site is shashdotted.

Another story - another unreachable site

[Sanity]

It is getting rediculous - what use is Slashdot if 50% of the stories link to slashdotted sites? Many people have proposed potential solutions for this (such as /. providing a Google-like cache), but the editors always come up with lame excuses.

Re:Another story - another unreachable site

[GoatPigSheep]

Unfortunately it won't change untill the day someone claims slashdot dos attacked them when it was just a large amount of users hitting a site at once.

I have already seen sites being shut down because they were slashdotted and used up all their allocated bandwidth, with only a 'sorry to shut down this site but we were slashdotted' message left. It's an interesting dilemma.

Re:Another story - another unreachable site

[Peyna]

It's simple. Smart web admins will start denying referrers from slashdot. Then it will reduce the /. effect on their server. Many places already do this. An obligatory link to a google cache prior to posting would be good enough for me. Or maybe contact the person who runs the site and get approval first, as well as approval to borrow some pictures or whatnot, since that's what every wants to look at anyway.

Re:Another story - another unreachable site

[NanoGator]

"...but the editors always come up with lame excuses."

Funny, I thought they fixed that by using the karma system. Why write extra code when people will do the work for you and get that +1 Interesting? heh.

Besides, isn't that what Open Source is about? "If you're having a problem, YOU fix it."

Re:Another story - another unreachable site

[pjt48108]

Again, I say why not a cache server, or is Slashdot afraid of being Slashdotted?
Wow... Slashdot could have it's own outer event horizon o' shlashdottiness!

Re:Another story - another unreachable site

[Cryptnotic]

/. providing a Google-like cache)

But then Slashdot would Slashdot itself.

Re:Another story - another unreachable site

[timeOday]

Why deny slashdot refers in particular? They're no better or worse than referrals from anywhere else. You could save the cost of setting up the connection (to get the referrer string) just by refusing connections as necessary to stay up.

The google cache doesn't redirect links (including inline images!) to itself so it's nearly useless for reducing slashdotting.

Finally, cnn.com, news.com etc. don't need or want traffic directed away and would probably get upset about it.

Re:Another story - another unreachable site

[Maxwell_E]

Nobody reads it anyway. Just speculate wildly and pretend you read it all the while making gestures while talking into YOUR DAMN CELLPHONE while reading /. on your DAMN TOUCHSCREEN CONSOLE! Damn you all! I'm getting a touchscreen jammer.

Re:Another story - another unreachable site

[fmaxwell]

But then Slashdot would Slashdot itself.

You laugh, but I think there's more truth to that than you know. Slashdot creates a text-only story with a couple of links. The story is what? 500 bytes? Then Slashdot readers click on the links and each one downloads several hundred K of web site and images.

For Slashdot to cache the sites that they now indiscriminately take down would require that they increase their bandwidth substantially -- maybe by an order of magnitude or more.

I would buy such a thing...

[flowerp]

I would buy such a thing...

if it had a HEADS UP DISPLAY projecting on
my windshield and if it played DVDs and DivX
movies too, while I am driving long Arizona
and Nevada highways on cruise control.

And maybe the Windows PC could steer my car
through light traffic as well, using a webcam
taped to my center rearview mirror.

YIKES!

Re:I would buy such a thing...

[fabiolrs]

dude, i see two major problems with your solution:

1 - would the rare event of a blue screen occur, you wouldnt be able to see a feet in front of you because your windshield would be totally blue.

2 - would the rare event of a windows crash occur while the computer was steering your car, you might end up visiting god sooner than you expected! :)))

Re:I would buy such a thing...

[jms]

On the other hand, he could play quake when you was stuck in stopped traffic

Re:Slashdotted.

[jarodss]

It's not slashdotted.
Try typing the url.
Or hitting the link off another site.
It seems he is/was aware that he would be slashdotted and is blocking all requests with a referer of slashdot.org.
Smart move IMHO.

Nissan Macfinder

[superdan2k]

There's a webpage here. He did it with a 2001 Nissan Pathfinder, an older Mac Powerbook (utilizing Airport for file transfer), and a lot of ingenuity. His page also goes into detail, instead of just photos.

(I'm thinking about trying the same thing with my 2001 XTerra.)

Re:Nissan Macfinder

[guttentag]

I looked into doing this with an iMac and a GPS receiver (much safer than strapping my PowerBook into the passenger seat and turning my head 90 degrees to check the map), but ultimately I decided that would be like begging for someone to steal my car.

in transit quake3 arena

[Anonymous Coward]

i wonder how he manages to drive and play q3a too.
(note the icon for it in the pictures).

Lots more info for those that want to do it

[TwoStep]

There is a lot more inf on this at MP3Car.com, the user sites are a bit out of date, but the forum is excelent.

Also, it looks like Q-PC sells premade car computers, though I haven't seen any info about one.

I am building a car computer myself, that will completely replace my radio with a 8.4" touchscreen, running a custom program that does Radio, MP3's, DVD and GPS navigation.

Twostep

Re:This sounds way cool.

[NanoGator]

Damn Im glad that modded as 'Funny'. I thought for a moment there that I wandered into bizarro.slashdot.org.

Re:Break out the champagne!

[JesseL]

I think I'd be a lot more interested in the girls that are impressed by the MP3 player that I put into my car than the girls that get impressed by a tan (not to mention that I go straight from fish-belly white to beet red after 15 minutes of solar exposure).

My $0.02 worth

[HenryWirz]

Based on his completed photos, I think it looks great! And I've spent a lot of time with 'glass so I know from where I speak.

Re:My $0.02 worth

[shepd]

>he'll be looking in the junk yard for a new dash and console before he can even THINK about trading in this car.

No he won't, because I'd buy a car this cool in a heartbeat.

SO THERE.

Re:crashing?

[Peyna]

Was it 2000 or 98 that crashed during the the big demonstration with bill on stage? XP Pro is the only Windows release I have used that I have yet to see a BSoD. I have used: Windows 3.1 (actually, it didn't crash too often on me, but then, it wasn't really a multi-tasking os anyway..), 95, 98, 98 SE, NT 3.51, 2000 workstation (nt 4), XP Professional.

Why would you go to all that trouble...

[anonymous loser]

and not add GPS capability to it? I mean, 90% of the work is already done.

Re:crashing?

[Peyna]

and NT 4.0 as well.

Re:Insurance Company

[windex]

It adds more delight to my day to think of the two file swappers racing down a 2 lane road when it happens. :) P2P + Street Racing! The RIAA and the police will finally have a joint project with a purpose. :P

His News

[phriedom]

"Wow! I got linked to by [H]ard|OCP today. I sure hope this server will hold up much better than my old one ;) "

Oh, if it was only HardOCP, then you might have a chance. Alas, that was only the beginning.

Re:Which reminds me...

[beernutz]

Yeah, except now their hardware DOES run windows! The BMW 7i.

Re:Blue Screen?

[Anonymous Coward]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You so funny! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You so original! You make me laugh! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You funny man! I like you jokes! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Wow...my sides are hurting with that funny, funny quip you just threw down on us like some clever maniacal funny man! You so funny! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Someone even modded you as funny to show how funny you really are to the rest of us! Quip, quip says you! Everyone! Over here! Look at the funny man! He made a funny about a screen being blue! Get it...blue...screen...HAHAHAHAHA! It's a reference to Windows...yes when it crashes...HAHAHAHAHA! Yes, I am not sure where this guy is from but boy is he funny! Who invited him to the party? We gotta have this guy over more often! Honey? Come down here a second and listen to this guy 'tell it like it is' in a really funny way. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! WinCe, that's priceless. "I thought the guy had installed a 'crash screen' from Windows." Gold. Just pure gold. How do you do it? So many people post on Slashdot but then you see a funny gem like this. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Pure hilarity. When's the last time you actually used Windows to see a bluescreen and so wittily remark about it? Had you been using Win2k or WinXP this wouldn't actually happen and hence your joke would 'have no teeth' as it were. But the brilliance of you tying in the blue screen with WinCE had me splitting my sides. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You funny man. So clever, so very very clever. I'll bet you were the funny man in high school too. Wow. You still got it!

The MP3 player I installed in my center console

[fmaxwell]

I have a 2002 VW Golf TDi into which I installed an MP3 player. The player is mounted in the center console. It has an electroluminescent, multi-color display, infrared remote control, motorized, multi-angle display/control panel, and plays MP3s that I burn onto CD-R/RW media. That way I don't have to hook it up to my PC to put songs on it. And the CD-R/RW media holds probably 10 hours or more per CD, so it's a great way to have lots of music in a small space. That also freed me from having to worry about shock-mounting a hard drive, how the drive would deal with temperature extremes, etc.

To see a picture of the unit, go to this web page.

Total investment: Less than $400
Installation time: Less than two hours
Serviceability: Excellent
Permanent modifications to car: None

Re:The MP3 player I installed in my center console

[lsd4all]

Permanent modifications to car: None

That's not the point. Any Joe Six Pack can go to Goodguys and pay someone else to put a MP3 stereo in their car. I got a good buddy who started making a MP3 for his car in early 1997. He got about halfway done but then got distracted with other projects. The point is, he had a blast and learned a lot doing it. As far as I am concerned this fiberglass guy is a hacker and he enjoys what he is doing.

Re:The MP3 player I installed in my center console

[fmaxwell]

That's not the point.

There is no single "point", but that's one valid point for anyone that wants to be able to resell their car, restore it to factory condition if the MP3 unit fails, etc.

Any Joe Six Pack can go to Goodguys and pay someone else to put a MP3 stereo in their car.

I installed the unit. I did a sano job creating a harness that was a plug-in, complete with soldered, shrink-wrapped connections. I also modified the unit, opening it up and removing the bundle of cables that hung out the back with RCA jacks for input and output (they plugged into connectors on the PC board internal to the unit). They interfered with the fit of the unit and got entangled with the ventilation controls.

I got a good buddy who started making a MP3 for his car in early 1997. He got about halfway done but then got distracted with other projects.

Sounds like a good argument for buying a professionally made unit and installing it. I have no desire to f*** up a 2002 model year car, leaving me with an ugly mess and no MP3 capability.

Re:The MP3 player I installed in my center console

[fmaxwell]

Plus you have to know where on the CD is the mp3 you want to listen to.

My CDs are organized as:

root
\____Artist
\_____Album Title
\Song 1
\Song n

Navigating is a simple matter of selecting the artist, album, and, if desired, song. There are buttons for next and prev directory and file. It's really pretty intuitive once you use it for a while -- although I can understand how it could be daunting at first.

Re:The MP3 player I installed in my center console

[Icculus]

BUT, does it match the red/blue color scheme of your dash lights?

Re:The MP3 player I installed in my center console

[fmaxwell]

BUT, does it match the red/blue color scheme of your dash lights?

Although not a motivating factor in the purchase, yes, it does. ;-)

one problem

[nexex]

nice, but good luck trying to sell it if he is ever decides to.

Re:one problem

[KosovoYankee]

for nexex - Jay Z is quoting a song called "I Wish" by Carl Thomas. Check it out.

Fast mirror ...

[zsazsa]

Fast mirror here

this car install

[wompser]

This guy is a regular over at www.mp3car.com forums. You can check out the progress of his install if you root around a little bit.

Actually, if anyone is planning a car install, this is the best site on the internet for all things "carputer" related. They have a TON of information about how Power supplies, touchscreens, inverters, and all the rest work.

And really, all you people who post "thats just what we need, someone watching DVDs while driving" can @#$% off. I think a lot of people are jelous they don't have the skill to build something like this themselves, and would rather rip on people that do. Of course there is a safe and unsafe way to use these, just like cell phones and eating fast food. But that is just my 2 cents.

mirror

[tedtimmons]

Google caches are great for the HTML, but not the images.

Here's my mirror.

-ted

Re:This sounds way cool.

[Scottarius]

the latest version of winamp comes with an OGG decoder installed...

Re:crashing?

[simmonsays]

The Win3.1 - Win9x based kernel had a BSOD. That issue was eliminate in Win2k/XP

Bond, James Bond...

[pjt48108]

Now al he has to do is hookup a rear-facing web cam and he can get rid of the overhead mirror, allowing room for the overhead ejection seat lever.

How cool would it be if he did it with OSX-compatible hardware!?!

When i get my 3L Toyota Supra Turbo...

[The_Guv'na]

I'm sticking in a phat I.C.E., laptop/desktop innards [shock dampened], fingerprint regognition [yeah I read the story], webcams, a G.P.S. thingy and an interface to several vital car components. A bit of UNIX Shell scripting/coding later, seeing as I'm doing it at college this year [hopefully]. I'll have the security system MMS me the coordinates, and mugshots of the "fucking stupid soon-to-be-dead" plonkers who think they can steal my motor, and de-activate the ignition, ready for me to pop a glock out the boot and teach them a lesson in Car Security they won't forget!

Errrm, well, anyways, I've yet to see someone really combine a car and a computer. Ignitions on modern cars are usually computer controlled so it's possible, at lest in theory. How about a Tomorrow Never Dies stylee remote controll? I'd add some hidden internal fual pumps and lighters just in case the car was out of range [hell, insurance will cover it ;-] and a webserver, just to be 31337.

Ah bollocks maybe I shouldn't post while drunk... but these are things I've seriously considered while Stone Cold Sober(tm)!

When the world seems to shine like you've had too...*THUD*

Ali

Huh?

[Wakko Warner]

Why the hell didn't he just buy an MP3 head unit?

- A.P.

Re:Huh?

[Wakko Warner]

Most of which are illegal to do while driving.

Re:Huh?

[ThatComputerGuy]

It's much nicer to be able to just build the latest oggutils release on your own machine and play higher quality rips, rather than bitch at some company and wait for them to (possibly) build an ogg based unit.

Use Voice Control

[Dr. Bent]

This solution to this is to use voice control instead, which is what I did in my car computer

Re:Use Voice Control

[DustMagnet]

On you website you write, "I'm using custom written voice control software to control the system. Yes, it works well and No, you can't have a copy (yet). Check back later."

I assume you didn't write your own voice recognition and O/S. I'm curious to hear what you used.

Re:Neo Car Jukebox

[telstar]

...some people just don't get it.

Yeah, and he could go hire an immigrant to sit in his back seat and change CDs whenever he wanted as well. It's the accomplishment of somebody busting their hump to create something that pretty much anybody on this site would love to have that makes it noteworthy. ...and I guess it's the dozen or so readers like you that knock down his creation that make it /.

Funny quote

[clandaith]

Wow! I got linked to by [H]ard|OCP today. I sure hope this server will hold up much better than my old one ;)

Well, here comes a larger flood to test your server!

Touchscreen Winamp isn't the problem....

[malakai]

it's touchscreen Quake III Arena that will get him killed. Anyone else notice that icon in the bottom left?

Also, someone teach this poor guy how to download Winamp skins. Because that default skin is just painful.

with a little ingenuity he could make a shifter-remote or steering wheel mountable remote and hooked it up to his system, utilizing max10 or some other serial line based remote control plug-in.

-malakai

It does more than MP3s

[MBCook]

I see a Quake III icon on the desktop. Is your framerate tied to your RPM? Does your stickshift work as a joystick? How many cars have you hit so far? He he he. Will you make me one? Cool.

This is great, the way it should be

[Anonymous Coward]

It is all about the control of the songs. When you have 2000+ songs (Can't do it with CD's) you need an easy way to get the right one.

On a side note, there are very few head units out there that look professional and fit with your exact car. Kenwood's current one comes close with the ability to change the background color. But panasonic's will output more than just a few characters of the name on the screen at a time. I have an eMpeg that allows you to do both and store lots of mp3's. It looks good also, there are not a ton of flashing lights of all different colors(AWIA).

When will car makers start coming out with this kind of setup?

The Linux car

[smammon]

Can't believe that no one has added this link yet (maybe I missed it eh) http://www.dashpc.com/ This guy rocks - besides mp3 he has a really nice tcl interface, plays movies on multiple screens - gps and 802.11 (bringing a new meaning to wardriving methinks)

Even has a sourceforge project up for the code! Look and learn.

Nah..

[Ogerman]

This is dedication.
More like stupidity. This story is not news for nerds, it's news for rice boys. (you know.. the people who think their Honda will go faster if they lower the suspension and add a giant spoiler..) Car MP3 player "mods" are no longer cool nor original. Sorry. Many (most?) commercial CD decks now play MP3's. The ones that don't probably have a line-in for an external portable unit. And for crying out loud, this guy is using Windows--the world's worst 'embedded' OS.

Now, on the other hand, if someone wants to show off a minimal-footprint Linux driven unit sporting gpsdrive, WAP scanning, police radar, clock sync via radio, cabin noise cancellation, speed/heading/mileage/odometer on a HUD, engine diagnostics, proximity sensors, and of course voice synth/recognition, THEN I might raise an eyebrow. So have at it fellow geeks. Oh, and you might as well make it play OGG/MP3/DIVX too. (-:

Re:Nah..

[wompser]

Jebus christo! Really, give me a break! You are the worst kind of troll slashdot has. Someone goes and does something that is pretty cool, and you demand it be 100% geek buzword compliant, runs Linux, have a T-1 speed wireless connection, Jolt soda cooler, hydrogen fuel cells, and night vision. Give me a $@#$$ break!!!

What this guy did is more than you have done to your POS, so cut him some slack, unless you can make the Uber-smallpenis-mobile you have described in your post. Then you have every right to say his mod is "more like stupidity," but until then don't knock others creativity!

I've been thinking about my own method of this.

[TellarHK]

Back when it looked like I was getting a job I applied for (sigh) I had thoughts of taking a wireless approach myself. Take a P166 or faster laptop (Cheap) with a CD-ROM drive and a WiFi card and an FM transmitter plugged into the headphone jack.

Then I'd take another WiFi card, drop it into my Newton 2100, run a network from that to the laptop, VNC from the Newton to the PC and run control of things from there.

Probably can be done for under $500 and could be set up to facilitate some pretty kickass wardriving with an antenna on the trunk.

As far as I'm concerned, power is a minor concern and the bigger problem would be mounting the Newton to the dash properly.

Hi mum, I'm on /.

[Gamasta]

I too want to appear on /.

I bet it was the author of the project himself who posted this story. ;-)

Re:Blue Screen?

[Alan Partridge]

actually, I was in the back of a London TAxi awhile ago and it had a built-in LCD screen that was supposed to be spewing advertising crap at me. It couldn't though, because it had bluescreened - the driver was blissfully unaware - and I figured it would be fair not to tell him. What a joke.

nicest install I have seen

[gambitdis]

This is one of the nicest installs I have seen in a 300zx.
http://www.ashleypowers.com/ZPCTour/300tour1.htm

He even has it integrated into the car computer and last I heard he's working on making modifications to the chip (ECU) while the vehicle is driving.

--derek

derek.delconte.org

why is he still running explorer?

[edrugtrader]

switching the shell to winamp would be much more intelligent.... unless he uses the system for anything else.

Not my preferred Interface

[farrellj]

In using a laptop to play MP3s in my car, I use a logitech Marble Mouse Track ball on the center console between the front two seats to control the system.

ttyl
Farrell

Lets hope

[AnimeFreak]

Lets hope he installed without AVS. The last thing we need is someone getting high off AVS while driving.

Re:Break out the champagne!

[antirename]

That's a tempting, but scary thought. I souped up an old 66 Mustang fastback, did it all myself from the ground up, roots blower, 650 horse, looks stock although the moter comes out of the hood, ladder bars, etc. I did it becuase I wanted to, but partly because I thought it would impress chicks. It doesn't. It makes their ears ring, you can't carry on a conversation inside of it, and it gets 3 mpg. I've had the car 10 years now (it's been in it's current condition for 5 of those). So far two girls have been impressed by it : the first lost interest (in the car) when she discovered that her leg cramped up after pressing the clutch down 3 times (yes, she was in shape) and didn't like the manual brakes and steering. The second still likes it, but she considers it art and doesn't even like to ride in it. She says it gives her a headache. Impressing girls that are older than even recently out of high school with an MP3 player will be tough. On the other hand, if the guy is in high school, he just needs some rims to go with the tunes:)

If you think that's cool

[muon1183]

Check this car out. This guy ripped out his existing stereo and replaced it with a touchscreen display for a pc he has in his trunk. The computer runs linux and has a wireless network card so he can download data off of his LAN before he leaves. He even set it up with a chip to boot up the pc when the ignition is turned and wait to turn on the monitor until the software is loaded. And, of course, it's all GPL'ed.

Re:Wait until the sun hits it.

[kaoshin]

Id use a backlit LCD and tint my windows.

Re:wow

[Archfeld]

yah but any manufacturer addition is SURE to have DRM built in :(

Just imagine when your ignition is de-activated and the police given your GPS coordinates because you might possibly have an unlicensed MP3.

PS. does this mean I can get a yellow triangle...

MP3 on-board :)

Suzuki Amiga mp3 player.

[CaptainPotato]

Even cooler is the use of an almost unmodified Amiga as an mp3 player in a Suzuki, that has gone through several revisions since it was first created. Whilst this one may not have (yet) have the large LCD screen of the one mentioned, this one is a total DIY job :)

The player can be found here (http://amimpc.world3.net/)

Re:Want to talk about dedication? Check out THIS p

[ctar]

Please mod up...I modded down by accident! (damn wheel mouse...)

A few things....

[mp3vw]

I am not a representative of the mp3car forums, but I'd like to think that I share a number of opinions with most, and would just like to respond en mase to a number of comments. No, its not linux, no, its not xp. Linux support for gps is still lacking, even with the open source projects that are being worked on, and win98 boots faster, and has more support for old odd hardware. For those calling him a ricer, and not a computer enthusiast, wheres the 5 foot spoiler, TypeR logo, and 10 inch chrome exaust tip. For those calling it a waste of time, and he should have bought a mp3 deck, why do you constantly recompile your linux kernel? or overclock your pc? or why did you buy WarCraft3? or incessantly read /.? Because its a hobby, we do it because we enojy working on our projects. Its also something that even after having been "in the media" for a number of years now, still has a very small following in terms of the number of people who have built a system. Also, can your mp3deck play divx movies? track your movement via gps? carry 3000 hours of music? get updated wirelessly? And for a basic functioning carmp3 player, my first setup cost me the price of an inverter, aprox. $50. For those calling it an accident waiting to happen, the amount of work required in building such a device usually means that the people have a bit of common sense, and is no more dangerous than a AM/FM radio.

Re:A few things....

[mp3vw]

And the one i missed, those that said the default winamp skin is ugly, and that he should get another, find another skin thats as easy to use with your fingers on a touch screen. Its used for its high visibility as well.

Re:A few things....

[Skraggy]

My thoughts exactley, Arby is very well known and respected on Hardforums and MP3Car fourms.

An ubergeek if there is one. Not like some of the slackers here who don't do windows icase it will weaken their contribution to the gene pool.

have they ever thought, as the system he has built is totally standard X86 hardware, that generation one uses Windows because it may have probs, but works out of the box. generation two might just have custom software to do the Job. But I'm sure he won't use linux. If he is going to do wireless, he better base it on OpenBSD to be on the safe side.

Windows has it's uses. and this case it is quick and dirty, functional, and a proof of concept, and it actually works.

While they are still trying to pull the last few bugs out of their wonderful curses front end, before starting to code the PostgreSQL based data and file storage system, Arby is cruising with the tunes playing. I have a project in the pipeline. It may be windows, it may not. I don't know yet. GPSDrive looks cool, and is free, but so is GPSS, and both do voice directions, so who knows.

GPS

[Snover]

What happens to GPS devices, then? Nothing, just like what happens to this.

Illegal?

[SonicSpike]

I think this might actually be illegal in most states to have a viewable display unit within the driver's field of vision... Not sure if it is indeed law or not... anyone have any more info on this?

Re:Illegal?

[acceleriter]

I doubt it's actually illegal, though it's probably not bright (LCD, get it?) to look at it while driving.

Re:Blue Screen?

[angelkey]

I live to give.:)

Re:Blue Screen?

[fakeplastic]

Excellent. You have just made my Friday morning.

Re:Break out the champagne!

[cybermace5]

Grrr...how often has this happened to me!!!

I post something that's non-offensive, certainly not worth the mod point to mod down...someone mods it down to 0.

And then someone else posts in response and gets a nice 3 or 4!!!

At least I usually get modded up by those that have a clue.

looks great; crappy car!

[wessman]

From the low quality pictures, it looks like he did a damn, damn good job of installing it.

Too bad the car is the slower Eclipse model!

Re:This sounds way cool.

[Skraggy]

You touch the screen.

jeez, call yourself a geek.
Please leave slashdot.

Re:something's missing.....

[Skraggy]

Ah the thing that is missing from the Bestbuy HU is the ability to play DVDs for your passengers, run your GPS, or when parked up with friends play a lan Quake game with your wireless lan.

Don't even dream of telling me that Best buy has a system that can do that. At any price.

And how many MP3 Headunits can hold 20-40-60 gig of MP3s if you want and be controlled by a ncie big easy to read touch interface?