Computerize your car

Step 2: What you'll need

The standard boilerplate in-car computer consists of a monitor, a CPU, input devices, peripherals, and cabling. Every install will be somewhat unique depending on what features you want. Desired features and project cost are directly related. Some nice-to-haves can be put off for a while to keep the initial cost down.

Monitors
Two manufacturers currently dominate the small touch-screen market. Xenarc and Lilliput make the majority of screens for this application. Both manufacturers build quality screens with different sizes and form factors. What it boils down to is the look and size that suit your needs.

Monitors come in four general variations: flush mount, external mount, and retractable. Flush-mount and external-mount devices are very similar and can often be interchanged. Flush-mount monitors are set into the dash or center console and require some kind of modification for the area where they will be mounted. Flush mounts make the best fixed, professional-looking installations.

External-mount monitors have a universal mounting bracket that allows for installation nearly anywhere the mounting base can be secured. This style of monitor is useful where fabrication would be too expensive or too destructive to the interior. Motorized and manually retractable monitors, housed in a single DIN case, can save precious space in the dash as well as offering the person installing it a standard size to work with. (Single DIN is a standard size for aftermarket and some OEM stereos.) If you have an unused single DIN-size opening or don't mind replacing your car stereo, it is a very good but somewhat more expensive option.

CPU
The heart and soul of the install, the PC, will most likely end up hidden deep inside your car. Function, heat dissipation, and mounting ease are important considerations when picking a PC. Cars get subjected to temperature extremes that computer components were not designed for. Although your local PC shop may have some tiny systems that look right, mobile-computer makers offer finned, heat-dissipating cases designed to withstand high temperatures. Standard plastic CPU cases may not offer the rigidity or temperature protection offered by car-specific case designs.

Most systems will come with the standard palette of VGA, keyboard/mouse, audio output, 10/100 Ethernet, USB 2.0, and microphone connectors. PCMCIA/CompactFlash slots give you the option of using 802.11g Wi-Fi cards or GPRS/EDGE access cards from your wireless phone provider. If you intend to get a wireless broadband card from your mobile telco, this is a must-have slot.

Many peripherals such as external DVD drives, TV tuners, GPS antennas, Bluetooth dongles, and Wi-Fi adapters are USB based. Peripherals can very quickly outnumber your available ports. In addition, many of the USB-connected devices have power requirements that, when connected to a standard USB hub, will demand more than the single source port can give. Your local big-box electronics store may not have the solution on its shelf, but IndustrialComponent.com came up with a combo pack that has everything you'll need to get four powered USB ports out of one.

When it comes to powering the CPU, we are once again faced with the reality of living in a 110V AC world, or at least a 110V AC country. Although motherboards and internal components of a computer run off DC, the power supplies do not. A DC-to-DC power supply lets you connect the computer's power terminal to the vehicle 12V supply without having to deal with AC power supplies. For a roll-your-own system, Opus Solutions provides DC-to-DC converters, or you may want to keep things simple by purchasing a system that comes with the DC-to-DC converter preinstalled. The advantage to having a DC-DC power supply is that the computer can sense the 12V switched power coming on and off and can handle its own bootup and shutdown.