Chapter 7. In-Car Applications
Hacks 69–75: Introduction
The majority of this book has focused on the hardware side of car PCs, with very little discussion of the software you will actually run on your computer. At first blush you might think that you can run any software you want on your car PC. And though this is technically true, as Chapter 5 points out, most software is designed to be used with a mouse and keyboard and is not easy or safe to use while driving.
For this reason, several clever hackers have designed special software to run on your car PC. This software acts as a frontend to your operating system and applications, and provides a simplified interface with large “touchable” buttons so you can launch an application with a brush of your finger. This chapter covers three of the most popular frontend programs: CENTRAFUSE, Neocar, and FrodoPlayer.
However, your car PC is not limited to the features provided by these frontends. There is plenty of software that is suitable for use in an automobile, especially by passengers. These range from navigation systems, to game emulation software, to video jukeboxes. This chapter has several hacks that cover these possiblities.
Plug into Your Car’s Built-in Computer
If your car is less than a decade old, you can hook into a wealth of real-time information through its on-board diagnostic port.
If you say “car computer,” most auto repair shops will assume you mean one of the various electronic control units, or ECUs, built into your car. ...
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