Thread: Dash M.I.N.D.

I agree with you on that point. The purpose I want to integrate some buttons into the case front panel is to free up some space on the screen. It would be the most common buttons like play, next, prev, vol up/down, pause, etc. Or better yet, buttons to switch to GPS, Radio, Music, or video. Like you said, the most common buttons that are shared between applications would be the obvious benefit. If you're interested in trying it out, I can find the link to the website selling the keyboard emulators or I can send ya one of mine for developmental purposes.

Okay, just found the link. It's www.ultimarc.com

look for the board called the ipac. The newest model is very small and it comes with software to map out the keyboard keys to each switch input.

thank you brooksware2000!
I feel like you are reading my mind . I wanted to use hardware buttons on both sides of the display (my double-DIN project), like you, for the most common functions. The button function actually was going to depend on the application you are using. Let's call it - context sensitive functionality , just to make it sound very important. But then decided that it will introduce complexity, so I'm back to only switch between the apps.
It looks like 28-input is more that enough. I'm going to buy one. Unless you rally do not need yours and want to sale/donate it .
Can you measure the unti for me (L, W, H) please? I want to know how big is it and could I put it in the single-DIN case? Yes, I'm crazy enugh to try that . Single-DIN has a planty of room...

Media4d,

check out this link www.ultimarc.com/minipac that for some reason is not mentioned on the main page of the site. I think you will like this one a lot more than the standard size one. It is called the minipac and it is only 2 1/4 X 1 1/2 inches.

I could donate or sell one of mine. I'll be willing to donate it if you are willing to allow the mp3car community access to your great looking and seemingly functional software or if you don't want to share, then I'll be willing to part with one for a great price.

I prefer the first choice myself in that I think your software has great potential from what I have seen from your site. Hell, beta testers never hurt.

I'm working on some code myself (when I have time, the Military keeps me very busy). The code I am working on is mainly for the hardware interface side of things. There is a lot of great projects on this site and I figure why recreate the wheel. The schematic forum I see floating around here is a great place for me to start making my posts if it ever becomes a sticky. I have a $800.00 development system for Micros that was kindly donated to me by the Air Force so it makes a lot of my development much easier. Let me know if you have any ideas that you may need help with.

Also, I am planning to integrate the buttons along the side and bottom of my double-din enclosure. I am currently having one machined (man are they expensive). I also thought of the touch membrane like on microwave ovens but not sure how I could implement it. I think buttons hanging off the front of the front panel looks really cheesy and not stock at all. Let me know if you have any ideas of how I could accomplish this. Hopefully by the time my setup is ready to install, the nana itx will be out and my job will be a lot easier.

That is a cool idea - did not think that I would see a 1 DIN unit till the VIA nano boards come out. I looked over your pics and I noticed one thing odd - did not see a fan - but maybe I missed it. Is there one? If not how do you cool it?

brooksware2000, sory for the delay, was busy. I'd love to share my software with mp3car forums, but it us still not ready to be shown. would not make me proud of myself. I will do this probably in a month or so. The music library works and the calculator/unit converter work, but the navigation needs some polishing. I want to make the control resizible to take the whole screen, when I need to look in a bigger map. Also I think that probably show/hide menus will make it more interesting and improve the functionality and usability. Please let me know if you have any ideas about the software. (Hmmmm, the last sentence is very strong argument TO SHARE the software to get more ideas ).
Thanks for the link, this looks like the solution that I was lookign for a long time. I'll probaly buy it from the web site, because I am not going to use it right now - want to bring the software and hardware to some kind of 'finished version'. Or I'll never see it in my car , because of constat improvements. For example - I took it out this week to do some 'hardware improvements'.
Supelmike, it doesn't have a fan. It gets hot, but not that hot. I guess because I have this methal holder inside it somehow dispenses the heat. Works for now, let's see will it survive through the summer .
I have a new idea hot to put the DVD and HDD inside, which will probably let me put a small fan inside, even it is (probably) not needed.
Take a note that EPIA 5000 is fanless.
I also use PC150 mempry, that I run at 133MHz to keep it cool. TinyBGA is magic memory - fast and doesn't heat very much.
BTW Supermike, nice setup!

guys, my mother board died! or it seems like it!
I took apart the whole unit yesterday to try a new idea how to put parts inside the case, and when I powered it up, the monitor did not show anything. Black. In a very scary way.
I hooked it to a normal ATX power - nothing. Removed the memory, HDD, DVD - still black.
This happened before and I think something is wrong with my EPIA 5000. I guess it is time to replace is or re-design the whole thing around newer mini-ITX board.
If anybody has experience fenless min-ITX board, I'd like to hear some comments. ME6000 is out of question, because it has heat sinks that are very high. Not only the CPU, but the chipset too, which makes it impossible to use in a single-DIN case.
craaashmann, I'll post some more pictures of my floormats, so keep tuned .

If there are people that are willing to try my software, I'm willing to give it away. Thanks to brooksware2000, who got me thinking and here you are.
Please, send a request to media4dhotmailcom.
You will get an .exe file, release version, that has everything I've done so far.
Serios people only (please) that are willing to help me develop the software, not only to get some free stuff. I will expect feedback from you, in return of the free software.
Please expect some problems with the software, probably crashes or whatever happens .
To be able to use the software you will need Windows Media Player 9.0 installed - my player will use the WMP music library of WMP. Whatever visualization you have currently set up in WMP, that one will appear in the music player in my app.
To have navigation, you will need to have MapPoint installed. MapPoint 2004 is the one that you should choose, because it doesn't use MS Java Virtual Machine (or so they say).
Why do you need all this things installed? Because it will be an executable, not an instalation package. I do not want to waste time to build an instalation package, at least not yet.
The application is skinned and is 640x480 and fits OK on a Lilliput LCD. That is what I use, anyway. I will work on another resolutions and more flexible skins, but that is for the next month.

Thank you guys.