So lately I’ve been writing a lot of articles for various websites. I was never a good writer in high school and I didn’t get much better in college. Lately for work however I’ve had an increasing need to become a better writer for some upcoming projects that we are working on. It’s amazing how fast you improve at article writing after only a few weeks. I’d say I’m probably a month into writing articles and the first two weeks were definitely the hardest. After that it just kept getting easier and easier.

I’m currently writing articles for a website called rambles on tech which is going to be a cool website dedicated to everything tech related. I’m not looking to compete with sites like Gizmodo or Engadget which are definite authorities in this area, but it will be a great place to keep a journal of the technology I use in my life and also a site where other people can contribute to the site and talk about tech in their life as well.

After a few weeks of article writing I started digging through my old college work. I’m still digging through all the backups trying to find the majority or it, but I did find some papers I wrote. I will say that some are better and less embarrassing than others. Considering I’m into photography the article I wrote on the transition from film to digital wasn’t to bad. It was short and to the point, but over all was very good. The paper or manual I had to write on how to throw a kegger however wasn’t so great. It was a group project and the teacher thought it was funny so I guess it worked out ok. There is something odd about standing in front of a group of college kids and presenting a manual on keggers though.

See I told you this post would be boring. If you made it this far I’m impressed…haha.

I have started a new guest posting site though where people register and can post articles on my site with links back to theirs. I’m hoping to start more soon, but currently I’ve only get Info and Reviews up and running though.

I did move again, which I don’t think I’ve blogged about recently. After trying and failing to purchase two separate homes this year and after they both fell through for various reasons I decided it was time to sit down and sign a lease until Winter passes. It’s a sweet place on the second floor of an awesome 4 unit just outside Heritage Hill.

I’m also looking into getting a new camera soon. The D70 and D70s are getting a little old and I’m actually outgrowing them skill wise. I would really like to get a D700, but can’t justify spending over $2500 on a camera right now. The D90 has been slowly dropping in price though and I’ve seen them around $750 for just the body. I am going to be selling my D70s though so if anyone is interested get a hold of me and I’ll give you a good buddy deal.

Well this post has turned into a random mashup of thoughts in my head. So I will leave what I have close out this post, if I don’t do it now I’ll just ramble on which nobody will enjoy reading. One last thing though that I completely forgot about. Congratulations to Lance and Mandi, they are expecting!!!

I also attended a wedding this weekend and took a few photos that I’m sure some people are going to want to see, so those will be going up tonight as well.

In other new I’ve decided to join the million other people that try and make money online. The site isn’t that great, I know…but it’s a start. You can check it out if you’re feeling brave. It’s a site about bamboo window shades. Read at your own risk. I need to work on my writing skills.

Update: Sorry the photos still aren’t up. I’ve been busy with a few side projects. I did get them off my camera though and hopefully I’ll have some time to upload a few tonight.

Well I got my Google Wave invite and I’ve got to say…I have no idea what to do with it, but I am excited! Google describes it as;

Google Wave is an online tool for real-time communication and collaboration. A wave can be both a conversation and a document where people can discuss and work together using richly formatted text, photos, videos, maps, and more.

You can read more about how Google describes it here: About Google Wave or Mashable has a great post called: Google Wave: A Complete Guide

I can’t seem to find mine. I think I need to take another photography class. I need to do something, anything to get some creativity back. This weekend we’re heading to Chicago, maybe I’ll find some creativity there.

Warning / Disclaimer

You assume 100% risk by reading/attempting any of the activities described below. There is a level of risk involved with flashing your ECU. If you aren’t careful you could make your car undriveable. Romraider has a great section on the risks.

Also please don’t copy and paste this all over the internet. When I get it finished I will post it in the forums. Thanks for understanding.

Photos

What You Need

Hardware
1. Laptop w/ a good battery or power adapter – I’m using an EEE PC 900
2. Alpha-bid Cable – Photo of Mine
3. Tactrix Jump Block Connection – 2001-2002 | 2003-2005 – Photo of Mine

Software
1. Romraider
2. ecuExplorer
3. ECUFlash – It needs to be version 1.29a and I’m still trying to find a download link. You can use ecuExplorer instead to flash.
4. Learning View
5. OBD2 Cable Drivers (FTDI) – WinXP

Installing / Configuring

NOTE: This install is for Windows XP only, install with Vista will definitely be different.

1. Unzip the FTDI Drivers you downloaded to a folder on your desktop
2. Plug in the Alpha-Bid cable and the “found new hardware wizard” should pop up.
3. Choose the Advanced option and Have Disk and point it to the folder where you unzipped the FTDI drivers. Click Continue if it makes a fuss about the drivers being certified.
4. NOTE: When going through the next step make sure to write down what Com Port number the cable is using. Mine was using Com Port 3.
5. We now need to change the baud rate from 9600 to 4800. Right click on My Computer and select properties. Select the Hardware tab and then the Device Manager button. Under COM / LPT ports there will be an FTDI Com Port, mine was listed as Com Port 3. Right click on that port and click properties. Click on the settings tab and change the baud rate to 4800. Click OK on all the dialog boxes.
6. You need to install the remaining software listed above. Each software site has their own install instructions so I’m not going to rewrite them here. Make sure you have the .NET Framework installed though, some of the software might require it. You can download it here. Also make sure you have the newest Java installed.
7. You are now ready to head to your car and test things out.

Connecting Everything In The Car – Datalogging

To datalog you only need to have the Alpha-Bid OBD2 cable plugged in.

1. Plug that cable in to the OBD2 port located under the steering wheel.
2. Plug the USB end into your laptop. Try to use the same port everytime as this will help make sure you always get the same port number.
3. Turn the key two clicks forward to the ON position, but don’t start the car.
4. The easiest way to check if you’re good so far is to open Learning View and see if you’ve got a COM Port listed at the top, if you don’t make sure the cable is securely plugged into the laptop and OBD2 port.
5. Click Connect. You should see your ECU Info, A/f Learning, and Fine Learning Knock Correction Table.
6. Now close Learning View and open RomRaider Logger. I always need to click refresh (green circular arrows) before it connects. You will know it connected because in the upper right hand corner the message will change from Connecting to ECU to Reading data.
7. You are all set and can record data by either clicking the Log to file or pressing the rear defroster button. Turning the rear defroster will start the recording of data and turning it off will stop it.

Connecting Everything In The Car – Flashing the ECU

Coming Soon, I want to make sure this section is perfect before releasing it. You CAN flash with this cable though.

Programming Voltage Too Low

Conclusion

Special thanks to qikslvr from LegacyGT.com.