There's a new toy around my house, and it's quite a bit of fun to play with.

This quest started with a MIL ("check engine" light) that had come on some time after installing a Helix Power Tower on my truck. In my quest to find out what was up, I learned a bit about the OBDII (On Board Diagnostics v2) codes that drive the computer which manages the lamp. Of course, at some point I wanted to read those codes and once the problem was fixed, clear them so the lamp would turn off. Long story short... I found a shop that would read the codes for free, but wouldn't reset them for me. A dealer will reset them, but usually has a number of $$$ to go with the process. A couple of hops through Google, and I found the concept of a reasonably priced OBD reader. A couple of more hops and I found that I could get an interface that's managed by a Windows program! Now, THAT is something that I just had to have. :) There are a couple of interfaces on the market that will do data gathering to a Windows app, but for reasons of Price, Software Features and Gut Feel, I ended up with the one from OBDDiagnostics.com. They offer the "BR-2" along with free full-function software for DOS or Windows, and additionally, user supported software for data logging under Linux. I won't go into all the details of the software, as it's well covered on their site. What I do want to make note of is how I got it to run under OS X on a Mac. :) Now, truth be told, I'm technically running it under Windows 98 which is running under Virtual PC (an Intel processor emulator done in software) which is running under OS X (10.2.3). It's a bit of a sideways solution for Mac folks, but if you're already running VPC, then know that it does work! Overall shot in the truck   Trouble Codes screen Large Monitor screen Graphical Monitor screen This is what I did... I'm assuming that you're starting with a Mac laptop already running OS X (mine is a Pizmo) And that you have Virtual PC v5.0.4 (or later) already installed and running. You don't have to be running a Windows 98 image, this should work fine on Windows 2000 or Windows XP as well. You'll need a USB->9 pin serial interface adapter. I've had great luck with the Keyspan USB PDA adapter for all sorts of things. Grab the OS X and the Windows drivers from the Keyspan support site. You'll need these for configuration of the adapter under OS X as well as to let Windows recognize it. Grab the Windows software from the Windows download page at the OBD Diagnostics site. Install the OS X Keyspan drivers, then unzip the Windows drivers and the OBD Diagnostics software to a directory that you can get to from the VPC Windows. I suggest unzipping these each into a separate directory to avoid possibly overwriting similarly named files. Plug in the Keyspan device. Start Virtual PC, but do NOT start a virtual machine. Pick the virtual machine that you want to use, and go into Settings. Double click on "COM1 Port", check "Mac serial port" then open the drop list. In the list, select the name that looks like "USA19QI1P1.1". The name will be slightly different depending on the Keyspan driver version and the USB port that you plugged your device into. Click OK. Start the Windows virtual machine. When it comes up, run the setup program from the Keyspan software first. If you're told that you have to restart the machine, do so (but just the virtual machine!). Now install the OBD Diagnostics software. Once the software is installed, plug in the OBD II side of the cable into the OBD II connector on your vehicle, and turn your ignition to ON (you do not have to start the vehicle). Run the OBD Diagnostics program, click on the Start button (not the Windows START button) and you should see that it finds the BR-2 interface on COM1. You're almost there... Just select the protocol for your vehicle. My 1996 4Runner responded to "VPW (GM)"; a buddy's 2000 4Runner responded to "ISO 9141". In a few seconds, you should have a huge grin on your face. :) The Keyspan folks have an support document online that outlines the configuration procedure in a bit more detail: http://www.keyspan.com/support/macosx/usa/docs/html/homepage27.html If you have any questions, you can find me on the YotaTech forums as "mpulver", or drop me a line directly at mark@midiwall.com. Have fun! Mark