Thread: 2007 Mini Cooper Project

PdaNet rocks for using your compatible cellphone (mine is a Treo Centro) to connect your carputer to the internet. Just start the program on your PDA, and the computer automatically detects and connects. Even more convenient, I have the hotsync button programmed to start PdaNet. The connection is not bad at all.

I'm thinking of installing a docking device for my PDA in the cupholder. That way, the screen is also easily seen while driving. Otherwise, I will just run the sync usb cable to the handbrake console. I don't have an armrest.

Some comments on the RJ45 loopback wake-on LAN idea as mentioned by others. I took an old RJ45 cable and twisted wires 1-3 and 2-6 together.



I made sure the windows XP settings of my LAN card was activated for wake-on lan. The BIOS menu also had an option for wake-on LAN that I turned-on.

Well, it works, kind of. The computer must have shut-down or hibernated with power adapter on, and the power adapter also has to connected without interruption while the computer is shut-down or hibernated. Since I don't want my power adapter on draining my battery, this option became a wild-goose chase. Also, I have my computer to automatically go to hibernate after a few minutes without power from my car adapter that is hardwired to an ignition only fuse.

To bad because it would have been easier than soldering the power button leads directly as I showed in the earlier post. An ideal carputer laptop would be one with a BIOS that can automatically turn-on when it detects power. Unfortunately, I don't think many laptops have this option.

First remove the battery and power. Then remove all the screws on the bottom as show by the red circle in the picture below:



Then remove the keyboard by pressing on the tabs around the edges starting at the top. Here's one tab location:



Then snap out the keyboard and remove it's ribbon connection along the bottom:



Then remove the screws in the tabs holding the metal plate like the one underneath the yellow sticker that says warranty voided if opened.



Before you can remove the metal plate/plastic body top, you will have to detach the connections labeled with the stars below:



Remove the metal plate/plastic body top snapping it out around the sides, and then the circuit board is exposed.



To remove the screen bezel cover, remove the screws around the perimeter like the one pictured. They are covered by a rubber plug.



Then you can snap of the bezel and expose the lid contents:



From here, I disconnected all connections from the screen and other components in the lid such as the microphone and camera.





I detached the wifi antenna as pictured below to preserve it and the wiring that goes down the side to underneath the circuitboard. It is just taped in.



Then I removed the hinge screws as seen in the pictures above. I soldered the power switch as seen in the prior post. I then reassembled everything without the lid/screen of course. Now I have a tiny computer disguised as a keyboard.

nice install and write up.
Thanks for sharing.

i just remembered someone here wrote a power app specifically for laptops, i can't remeber what it's called tho, search around it might be useful for your situation.

Originally Posted by Injector

i just remembered someone here wrote a power app specifically for laptops, i can't remeber what it's called tho, search around it might be useful for your situation.

yeah, i saw that thread by blessani. i do plan to use the program. instead of hibernating everytime i turn off the car, it can do a complete shutdown, reboot, and reload of applications, and then hibernate.

the guy who wrote is actually uses wake-on lan to start his laptop. unfortunately, as i mentioned, it wake-on lan doesn't well with the eee pc unless i have it plugged in constantly.

one annoying issue i'm having is that while driving my computer's power management system will make an alert noise and flash a notification on the screen that it has switched to battery power and then almost immediately switch back to AC power.



i guess my cheap ebay car/cig (12-20V input, 12V 3A output) adapter cut's off when the input temporarily drops below 12V/3A? or cut's off with some voltage spike? forgive my electrical ignorance.

i wouldn't mind just disabling the alert but i have been unsuccessful without causing other issues.

i have an A8JS which is an asus laptop aswell, and you can disable the asus power scheme and get rid of the icon and the sound, because it's software based and not hardware

Originally Posted by Injector

i have an A8JS which is an asus laptop aswell, and you can disable the asus power scheme and get rid of the icon and the sound, because it's software based and not hardware

thanks. i ended up disabling AsAcpiSvr.exe via msconfig. also disables the fn keys, but doesn't matter for a carputer. no more annoying alerts from from crappy car adapter.

i now have the shutcontrol software installed. it's great. much more reliable than using windows 'auto hibernate when on battery power setting'. i have shutcontrol, to shutdown the computer after 30 seconds of battery power, restart, reload roadrunner, then hibernate.

now i need to work on my start-up timer relay power switch.