soapbox: updating factory vehicle GPS navigation maps, the costs

yes, i am among the 'lacks a sense of direction' types when it comes to driving in new places and in turn have a navigation system in my car.

i went the factory option since 1) it was covered under warranty 2) very seemless integration and a good system 3) gave me a SD card reader via a pc card slot

at the time the  benefits outweighed the negatives (cost was only negative at time).  they have for some time, however this year i decided to update my maps for my navigation system and thus this post.  more ranting after the jump.

MSI Wind Hoda touchscreen kit install notes/video

previously on my blog; i had posted about my solderless touchscreen kit i installed on my msi wind.  as promised, i am following up with a more detailed notes on installing and a few videos i took of myself doing the install.

the hoda touchscreen kit was made by fidohub.com and being sold on ebay or directly through their website; also there is an ongoing forum thread over at msiwind.net on this particular kit which me and quite a few other users have posted notes on the installation.

this isn't true step-by-step guide/video but more of a general overview of what you will need to do and a few quirks i ran into while installing.

keep reading for the full post with videos and a demo in osx and vista.

msi wind + solderless touchscreen kit = project time!

well, to my geeky delight  i arrived at work today and had a little surprise awaiting me at my desk: my msiwind solderless touchscreen kit!!!



i ordered the kit from ebay after seeing it being posted on the front page over at msiwind.net ( a direct link to Hoda's page is here )

the biggest selling point of this touchscreen kit is the fact that it is solderless and also adds additional internal usb connections for other possible mods (ie integration of a gps dongle or perhaps even an internal 3G card?).

so, how hard was it to install? was it worth it? lets find out! keep reading for the setup notes and a video.

my geeky december thoughts, follow-ups, projects...

well, its been a few weeks since my last post again and i thought i'd check in as the holidays approach ever faster.  its been a while since i've blogged about my previous laptop purchase, HP DV6700T CTO so i thought i'd do a quick recap/followup on it.

also, thought i'd drop a few notes about some upcoming projects i have in the works (most of them involving my new fav netbook, msi wind).