Windows - Well its good enough for
running MS Word or playing games on but its not ideal
for using in a mobile entertainment environment. One
way or another the Explorer interface had to go.
I then joined up a bulletin board on the
MP3car.com site and found
the
The Open Source
Car Computer Project
( Or Media Engine ). It did
everything I wanted, MP3, GPS ( with an external app ), video and more as well
as being touch screen compatible and customisable. Now I have progressed on the
latest kid on the block
Roadrunner.
Gunio
the writer has been very committed and since the
beginning of 2005 has developed and all singing and
all dancing application. You can find out about it and
more of the applications on this page of you you want
even more detail why not visit
Cartft.com
and have a look at my comprehensive reviews on the
Dockingstation.
Old Details
For v3 Here
CarPC Front End Software - A Quick Glance At Some Of The Best From
Around The World
Name |
Web Site |
Cost |
Skinable |
MP3 |
GPS
|
DVD / Video |
FM Radio |
Bluetooth Phone |
TV |
Ext App |
Web |
Weather |
Overall Score |
Roadrunner |
a |
Free |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
9.5 out of 10 |
Frodoplayer |
a |
Free |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
r |
r |
8 out of 10 |
Media Car |
a |
Free |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
r |
r |
a |
r |
r |
9.5 out of 10 ( Version 1.83 ) |
Media Engine |
a |
Free |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
r |
r |
a |
r |
r |
8 out of 10 ( Version 2 ) |
Carbox |
a |
Free |
a |
a |
a |
a |
r |
r |
r |
r |
r |
r |
7 out of 10 ( Version 0.4 ) |
iCT |
a |
Purchase |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
|
a |
|
|
7 out 10 |
Centrafuse |
a |
Purchase |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
Untested |
Street Deck |
a |
Purchase |
a |
a |
a |
a |
XM |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
Untested |
CNS Maestro |
a |
Depends |
On request |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
a |
r |
r |
r |
9.5 out 10 ( Version 2 ) |
Centrafuse
Roadrunner
|
|
|
|
-
Audio Engine ( MP3s )
-
Video
-
DVD
-
Mixer
-
External GPS (Map
Monkey, FreeDrive etc)
-
Launch Applications
-
SDK Support
-
Girder Control
-
ID3 Support
-
TV/Camera support
-
Radio (Radiator, WinTV,
Cinergy)
-
MapPoint
-
Phone Control
-
XM Radio Support
-
SIRIUS Radio Support
-
Weather Support
-
Picture Viewer
-
External LCD
-
iPod Support
-
Internet Browsing
-
16:9
support
A truly impressive
application that came from the demise of MediaCar. It does just about
every thing in the book and with Guino listing to the community its
constantly been updated and added to - he's even made the source code
available.
This is my chosen app and
since I first used and reviewed it Roadrunner has defintly become number
one. Further more some extra tool sets have been created by other users
and include an
automatic updater in a simular format
to the Windows Update function and a couple of
skinning apps to make the job easier.
http://guino.home.insightbb.com/roadrunner.html
or
http://www.mp3car.com/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=72 or
http://www.rrdownloads.net/ |
Frodoplayer
|
|
|
|
-
Audio Engine ( MP3s )
-
Video
-
DVD
-
External GPS (Map
Monkey, FreeDrive etc)
-
Launch Applications
-
TV/Camera support ( Via
Frodocam )
-
FM Radio ( Dlink )
-
Phone Control
-
XM Radio Support
-
Picture Viewer
-
16:9
support
A very nice app with loads of skins* to
support it. The skin function allows you to place any button for any
function any where which means you can be very creative. Checkout
Frodo's site as he has many other supporting applications such as
Frodocom and Frodocam.
http://www.frodoplayer.com/ or
http://www.mp3car.com/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=47
*Skins
shown from
MP3car.com |
MediaCar
|
|
|
|
-
Support for Winamp
-
GPS Using Mappoint 2002
-
Support for Destinator 2.0 (for GPS
Navigation) - Full Support To Come
-
Fully Customisable Startup e.g. last
used, GPS, Mp3's etc
-
Fully skinnable
-
Scalable skins, so you can view them at
any screen resolution including real 16:9 support
-
Day / Night Mode
-
Skin
switch on the fly
-
Visualisation screen
-
Integrated clock
-
Fully active equaliser
-
FM Radio
-
DVD & DIVX Support
-
External Application Launch Support
No longer
been supported or updated it defintly set the bar in its hayday - if you
still like the look and feel of this application have a look at
Roadrunner as it was made to be compatible with the Mediacar skins at
that time.
http://www.mediacar.org/
or
http://www.media-car.fr.st/ |
Media Engine
|
|
|
|
MediaEngine is a program that creates user-friendly environment to play
different kinds of multimedia on your PC while driving. This application can
play MP3s, DVDs, MPEGs and almost any other file based media, database your
music collection and allow searching, launch external applications, display
on screen Visualizations, and even shut down your computer. MediaEngine
can also be used as a manager for all of the media in your home stereo
system. By interfacing with a touch screen and remote control, it allows the
user to perform complex tasks normally requiring a couple of programs and
much mouse movement very easily. By the way if you get a strange message
'First Time Use : Select Display Properties.' Just go to the MP3 Player and
select any track. It will be fine after that.
http://www.mediaengine.org/ |
CarBox
|
|
|
|
- Support for Windows Media Player 9.0 (for Music
and Video)
- Support for Destinator 2.0 (for GPS Navigation)
- Fully resumes play after hibernate/restart
(Windows must be configured)
- Select a directory subtree to replace, or add to
current play list. Allows for queuing up as much music as you need
for your journey!
- Search facility, to find individual songs/movies,
or full albums.
- Fully skinnable.
- Scalable skins, so you can view them at any
screen resolution.
- Run-time switchable skins, for example day/night
skins.
- Option to embed GPS application in Visualisation
screen. Small, but handy.
- Option to start-up GPS application when CarBox
starts.
- Integrated clock.
Very small and very quick.
It was one of the first carpc
apps to fully support the
Destinator
GPS software. The playlist selection is a little complicated how ever
once you have got through that it is very good at its job. The skining
option is so flexible its hard to decide what to do but the newly
released skinning app will help you with that. Currently it still has some rouge edges how ever
it is very stable and does exactly what it says on the tin.
http://www.stuffandting.com/carbox/ |
iCT
( In Car Terminal )
|
|
|
|
-
Search feature for
media files
mobile phone support via PhoneControl.NET (Download)
FM radio support via Radiator [e.g. Hauppauge USB TV/FM RDS]
CarPC Desktop optimized for Touchscreen-Usage
multilingual
Skinable (Free Skin-Editor available above)
Day/Night Mode (manual or automatic)
Navigation software like Travelbook, NaviPC, Navigon,... can be
attached to the Touchscreen Desktop (2 different quickbars possible)
Integrated On Screen-Keyboard
Image Viewer with slideshow-functionality
Auto-Resume for Music
Easy to control playlist functions
Integrated DVD-Player Interface
From the familiar
home of
Cartft.com this stable bit of kit
is home grown. For the price you get a simple value for money front
end which is also supported so you know if you do have problems
there is always help on hand. There is a full skinning app available
with some skins already in the community area and best of all it
supports Phonecontrol.net very nicely too. Try the free trial which
is downloadable to see what you think.
http://www.cartft.com/ |
Street Deck
|
|
|
|
-
Touch Screen Control
Navigation & Mapping
Bluetooth Phone Integration
Satellite Radio
Vehicle Diagnostics
Rear-view Camera Support
CD player/MP3 Extraction
MP3 Player
FM Radio
DVD/Video Player
Picture Viewer
WiFi Sync Support
-
Partners which such companies like
Intel
I've not tested this app as its not made
it way over to Europe yet how ever this is a massively stable
application and is MP3cars first commercial venture. Its not cheap and
can be bought stand-a-lone instead of with their specific hardware for
which it was designed how ever the fact that its supposed to be an 'off
the shelf' solution for the masses means support and stability must be
there.... heck even Intel to name but one company are really pushing
Street Desk too. This is the first commercial CarPC solution ( hardware
/ software ) that is really available and has the experience behind it.
http://www.streetdeck.com/ |
Carrera EX - The Opel /
Vauxhall OEM ( Factory Fitted ) CarPC / Carputer - Yep It Exists
Car Navigation Systems Inc
www.carnavsys.com
Currently they have a contract with
the major Opel market player in Bulgaria. They are negotiating with Opel's
headquarter in Germany to approve and include this technology not just on
local and EE level, but worldwide as well. Their goal is to provide people on the go with computing
functions and Internet access identical to being in the office or home.
With this they can save a lot of time and
money and be much more productive and really mobile. Of course they'd like to
entertain the people during trips as well which is why they have developed a
flexible and full-featured multimedia part of their own software.
What have they done so far? They have developed a system, called Carrera EX.
Basically it consist from 3 parts - specially developed anti-shock Pentium
4 PC w/ DVD, usually mounted in the vehicle's trunk, dash-mounted Touch
Screen LCD (at least one) and entirely developed by
Carnavsys in-car software for
usage during drive time. Of course thet offer installation and maintenance
to their customers and partners as well. Currently they are working on a 24x7
support centre and help desk, so they might stay more close to the
audience and they hope to announce it later this month ( Sept 2003 ). In fact here there
are lots of "hidden" to the normal eye details like special audio and
power supply filters, vehicle safe and security features, special
microcontroller integration board (that connects the consumer electronics
of the car with the pc. For instance - there is a connection between the
front lights and the pc. With that the customer gets an automatic switch
between day and night mode of the software. All he needs to do is just to
turn on the vehicle's lights...)etc
Concerning the new models of Opel - they are starting to install CarreraEX
in the new Vectra, Signum, Zafira and Combo. In fact these models have
great LCD place - what they need to do is just to de-install the audio
equipment that comes with your Vectra.
Below you can see some screenshots from their in-car software called Maestro that
was made
especially for Opel, Opel fans and dealers worldwide.
If you decide to use their in-car software
solution, you'll need the above mentioned integration board in order to
get all the features working fine (such as intelligent power management,
day and night auto switch, vehicle's integrated audio intelligent control
etc). If you want to have a play then CNS currently have v2 available for
a free download from their web site and its fully functional - you just
have to apply for a free licence via an email.
For more information please contact :-
Alexander Ivanov
Commercial Director
Car Navigation Systems Inc
Sofia, 1784
Bulgaria
Frontdesk: +359 2 9768198
Fax: +359 2 9768199
Visit us on
www.cns.bg /
www.carnavsys.com
My Own
Software Setup For v4
Freedrive For GPS
Freedrive and indeed MapMonkey are based around Destinator so
you will need to have bought a copy both for licence
reasons and for the maps them selves ( be careful you
get the right version ), also you may require a copy
of the Dest_DLL.DLL file which is available though the
Destinator SDK at extra cost.
So
what advantages do these new front ends to Destinator
give us ? LOTS ! Ok so we are still limited by the
same map views but the extras you get are obvious
straight away – a better looking interface. ( Software
houses take note ) This is achieved by making the
applications fully skinable and in the case of
Freedrive this can even be done using Macromedia Flash
– oh the possibilities. In fact CDRSkull who writes
Freedrive has created not just one but several front
ends which are Flash based and intergarte very well.
Safety
camera alerts are available in both applications
although Freedrive in my opinion presents this better
to the driver.
Freedrive is
currently been re-written to work with Destinatior
PN how ever there is a question as to whether this
will ever get to the public as there are some legal
issues that CDRSkull is trying to sort - this
includes getting Powerlock who own Destinator to
help find a way that the SDK and maps can be
available to non corporate users after they
with-drew support after v3.
In the mean time
you can use Destinator PN maps with Freedrive v1 as
long as you cut the maps to less than 95Mb.
The
final and most useful addition you need is speed
camera data. Freedrive has been designed to work
with the single file CSV from
PocketGPS.co.uk -
you have to delete the three lines of text from the
top of the file before you import it which is a very
painless procedure. In the UK this function is legal
because it is GPS based but I believe you should not
use this for speeding. In fact the reason I use it
is because so many of these cameras are hidden and
so many roads are badly marked up its easy to be
caught out - the best course of action is don't
speed. Freedrive does have a feature to capture new
cameras if you do come across any how ever it does
not currently offer the feature for you to submit
this to
PocketGPS.co.uk
where if you do find a new one and its confirmed you
get free life time updates from them in return.
These can be
downloaded at
http://www.freedrive.co.uk/
,
http://www.mapmonkey.net/
,
PocketGPS.co.uk
POI Edit
POI Edit
is mainly used with PDAs how ever has the ability to
save the POI files locally. You first set up what you
want to download and then you can either set it to
automatically update or what I recommend manually.
This way you can do it at home via WIFI rather than
GPRS so it will cost you less. The POIs that are
actually available are wide and varied and include
POIs from McDonalds to Safety Cameras so hope over to
there web site and have a look for what you need.
You can
find it it at
http://www.poiedit.com/
My Web Traffic Interface For Travel Info Via GPRS &
More
I have a web site
that I have built which matches my in car skin.
Using the a web browser on the move allows me to
access it and as I have also created buttons to work
it the system is totally integrated with the car. On
this site I have direct and controllable access to
many traffic or general information sites so I can
access free information when ever I need to. The
best part is that I have free internet with my
current contract and that I can add / remove or
modify any services I want with out having to do a
new install on the car its self.
More information can be
found at
http://www.letscommunicate.co.uk/carpc/traffic/
Steveig.org Mobileweb For Travel Info Via GPRS
Stevieg created this
after I came up with the concept. It came from the
continuing quest for live traffic information which at
the time ( and still is ) new web based services where
starting up and pushing very hard to be used. This is
great for a static user or some one who wanted to
check on conditions before they left but not much good
on route. Thus Mobileweb was born to allow a touch
screen interface set up to quickly access
predetermined web pages, of course you do need an
Internet connection still but that’s another story. As
long as you have the right plug-in’s ( i.e. Macromedia
Flash ) and MS Internet Explorer this will work for
you – and its skinnable. Steveig has further enhanced
its functions buy allowing it to work with Map Monkey
and Phonecontrol.net to deliver more localised
information and integration and because it is a
separate program it will work with any front end that
supports external applications.To
access the information Mobileweb connects the relevant
web site such as
Trafficmaster
or
Getmethere
via the GPRS card I have installed. There is no
special set up required other than to have the web
sites pre set up in the ini file and to make sure that
Internet Explorer will automatically dial the right
modem connection. In the UK we only get charged for
what we use so this means that the connection can be
left open all the time and with the updates only been
a few b big not expect a great big bill at the end of
the month. I use this as a backup option to my new web
interface as it can also control the disconnection
of phonecontrol.net to allow the GPRS call out.
These can be downloaded
at
http://www.stevieg.org/carpc/downloads/
Phonecontrol.net
Phonecontrol.net is at the moment a very unique
application at this moment in time in that it allows
you to control your mobile phone ( subject to
compatibility ) and even use your CarPC as a mobile
phone car kit ( with a microphone etc ). Not only does
it do this but it is a skinnable application but it
currently is directly supported by a number of major
front end applications including Road Runner, Mobile
Media Centre, InCar Terminal and even Meedio.
It
allows you to access your phone book and dial out
using an on screen touch interface and even access
your SMS message functions. The best part is that when
some one calls you on your phone you can set it up to
show either the money and or a picture of those
calling you. Although possible I don't use it as a
Carkit as I have a Parrot CK3000 installed so I purely
just use the USB cable to control the phone its self.
I have just ordered my new phone a Imate Kjam - this
is Windows Mobile 2005 based and currently not
supported by Phonecontrol therefore I have volunteered
to be a Beta tester for his new Windows Mobile
version... I'll update here when I know more - in the
mean time
more information can be
found at
http://zoran-horvat.de/private/CarPC/.
Girder
Girder originally
started life as a freeware application doing what no
other application did. Then because of its success
Promixis integrated it in to their portfolio and
further started charging for it. This is no bad thing
though because Girder now has corporate support it
should not be going any where for a long time as well
as getting further developed. So what can it do ? It
basically allows control from any input device to any
output but because it uses scripts to do this it is
not limited to one key press but can perform a whole
series of commands. I have constricted my own Girder
file to control Roadrunners main features when in view
but also to control Phonecontol. This means I can have
a passenger make and answer calls as well as select
their own music - and been RF there are are no
problems where in the car that person is.
More
information can be found at
http://www.promixis.com/
The Skin Screen Shots ( v5 )
Currently I am using
CDRSkull's MC2 (
Media Centre ) skin which is flash based. It looks
good and work even better but that's hard to show
here. You may recognise it if you have an Xbox (
XBMC ) or other modified consol as its based on the
Project
mayhem skin. Its
got some great functions including a flash speedo
that works when you have Freedrive up and running.
Many MC2 users including my self have also
contributed as well for extra functions as and when
Roadrunner has included them.
|
|
A screen shot of
CDRSkull's MC2 skin which is flash
based and I use. There are some more images in the Gallery area showing
the full skin in use. |
|
The OS or Operating System
First of all you
need to format your PC's drive ( I did this build on my desktop where I
could ). To the right you will see a
diagram of how
I did it how ever you can change it how ever you want. My advice though is
that this is the best configuration you can have. Partition 1 is the
system drive and if done right should not change much so its easy to
restore should it ever need to.... I'll come to that bit at the end.
Partition 2 is for all your music and videos'. I have separated this
because it the main area that changes a lot, this area can become very
'fragmented' so keeping it separate has two advantages. The first been
that the main system ( Partition 1 ) works the quickest it can because of
the lack of fragmentation. The second ( again I will cover this at the end
of the article ) is that you can restore just the data if need or just the
system disk ( Partition 1 ). Eventually I chose the OS
Windows XP. The
reason for is that it is a modern OS with some great features and media
support how ever it is a little slow, lastly its very compatible with
Media Engine which I will be basing most of my system around.
Drivers:-
Next was to
install all the drivers I required for the Mother Board and other devices.
The mother board under Windows XP required only some support drivers some
of which could only be down when the hardware was installed fully. The best way of installing drivers is to get the latest you can of
the web site for your own particular device and operating system.
Service Packs
Service packs
for the OS were next. I installed the drivers first so they could be
updated if need by these, and in-fact Microsoft recommend any changes that
are applied no matter how small the SP should be applied. Note that I have
not upgraded MS Internet Explorer as its not needed by my self.
Applications
These take the most time as
you have to integrate and test each one with the right settings but once
don you will get your integrated OEM look.
Scan
Disking, Defraging And Imaging The 'Build'
So we have our
'Build'. I now want to back this up for a number of reasons ( apart from
knowing what can happen ) so to make sure this is working at its optimum I
ran scan disk twice then the defrag tool three times. This may sound over
the top but it the disk is too fragmented it will slow the start-up of
your system. Here comes the cleaver bit. I have took an image using 'Drive
Image 5' ( how ever that are others such as Ghost about ) and saved
this to the back up area on my disk along with all the drivers I may ever
need. The idea behind this if I ever change the build and don't like it or
it becomes corrupt, with one CD I can do a restore even when away from
home of an optimised system. I also recommend that you restore your image
and time you want to make any major changes to the system partition ( such
as a new GPS app etc ) then re take an image after a defrag etc. This way
you are always working with a good fast system. Always keep this one safe
some where on CD etc - that way you can always go back. I won't going to
imaging and builds too much as its such a complicated topic but there are
plenty of places with information about best practices etc on the net
including the software houses them selves..
The Data
Lastly to test I put a
couple of small music videos and mp3's on to the data drive..... the
results were worth the effort. I am currently converting all my LP/CD
music to MP3 which is taking some time but looking at the amount of space
I am using up to this point its going to take a while to fill - and I say
this as a former DJ. Currently I am using Magix's application set and so
far I have found it to be the best for cleaning the tracks up as well as
recording them.
Conclusion
It takes time but do the
build once or twice for using it as an image - this way you know exactly
which options you want with which drivers etc plus you have already tested
it so your system works to the optimum. Make sure you have a backup and if
needs be ( like my self ) document the process and keep and files needed
so it can easily be repeated should the worst happen.
Old Details
For v3 Here
|