Volvo's VADIS

[S60-MBS]

just accuired the vadis programme from ebay,got it installed onto my thinkpad,found this was a very impressive piece of kit to have ..includes all parts numbers for all models and blow-up diagrams some repair and installation intructions.all service schedules for USA and EU..there is a facility on it to communicate with the cars itself..is there anyone else out there who has same product and can tell were i can obtain the hardware to connect to car..

[m_watkins]

You need a VCT2000 which will set you back a few grand.

Originally Posted by S60-MBS

just accuired the vadis programme from ebay,got it installed onto my thinkpad,found this was a very impressive piece of kit to have ..includes all parts numbers for all models and blow-up diagrams some repair and installation intructions.all service schedules for USA and EU..there is a facility on it to communicate with the cars itself..is there anyone else out there who has same product and can tell were i can obtain the hardware to connect to car..

Yes, a VCT2000 is needed as well as a pricey connector to use it. It's good for making minor udjustments on 01'+ Volvos. It can change some common settings such as heated seat temp range, alarm settings, lock and unlock setting and probably a few other simple things that would set you back about 20-30 quid from a dealer.

The software versions for updates/upgrades for engine, suspension and tranny updates etc. can be changed, but those will require a subscription to VADIS database or RICA database..... I don't have the money to waste for on only a few cars that I might tinker with, but if you have the equipment and a trusting friend.....


Kevin

EDIT: here's a link to the cheapest place one could purchase a VCT2000 from-VCT2000

[S60-MBS]

just about figured out the vadis ,,but i am trying to find a way of emailing pages if the need arises rather then having to print scan and then email..anybody outhere who can guide me ALONG?

Haven't got a clue if VADIS tool can automatically e-mail pages (I haven't got it yet, but plan to get it soon. £5 or so from ebay wasn't it, so cheap! I paid £100 for a VW golf workshop manual couple of years ago!)

But what about doing a screen dump and then e-mailing that as a picture file? Would that help you? You can take a print of everything currently on the screen and save it to a file then e-mail that. The best way to do this is with a dedicated screen capture program as you can just capture a region of the screen. Snagit is one program that can do this, I think you can still get a basic copy for free. Here is a link:

http://www.techsmith.com/snagit.asp

Or, one other option is to setup to print to a file so when you print the page you want it actually prints to a postscript (PS, .ps) file which can then be e-mailed and viewed with a postscript viewer. That would eliminate the need for a paper copy. Postscript format is basically the format used for communicating with a printer.

If you want to do the "print to PS file" then read on. I'm assuming you are running windows, I've got Win2000 I presume it is similar on XP and it always was on older things like 98.

1) Go start menu -> settings -> printers
2) In printers click on Add printer
3) Follow the wizard as necessary, choosing local printer
4) When asked to choose a port e.g LPT1, COM1 etc. go down and choose FILE
5) Click "next" and now choose a suitable printer from the list which prints to PS. Example, I have chosen HP then chosen "HP Color Laserjet PS" from the right hand side.
6) Click "next" and windows installs the driver for the new "PS printer to file". You might need the windows installation CD at this point.
7) Finally, choose NOT to make this your default printer as by default you still want to use the actual printer sitting next to your PC!

When you want to print something from any program, you always get the "printer" box which opens up and asks you what printer to use, and the options etc.

So, when you do this from VADIS in the print box where you choose a printer you should choose this new "XXX printer on FILE" as the printer to use (instead of your actual printer). Then when you click "Ok" to print the document you will be asked to choose a file name. It will get the filetype .prn but change this to .ps as because you are using a PostScript printer driver it is really a postscript file (you can change it by choosing "All files (*.*)" from the drop-down box and then typing your_file_name.ps in the box.

The contents of this file appear exactly as if printed, and the file can be e-mailed to someone and then viewed with any postscript viewer - and then of course it can be printed on their printer. Here is a link to "Ghostview", a free postscript viewer:

http://www.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/gsview/

There's probably also various software tools allowing you to print to a file etc. and with more info, try doing google search of "print to file", postscript or something like that.

Hope this helps a bit if there's no nicer way to do it, nicer than printing then scanning I guess.
Seems weird to put all this computer stuff down in a car forum, oh well!

Pete

[Iain_M]

Another option would be to just press PrtScn then open up whatever photo editor you use and past it into there.

[fluff110]

Oooh - my first post!

Another option is to install PDFCreator from http://heanet.dl.sourceforge.net/sou...hostscript.exe (it's free, all the default options are ok and there's no spyware etc in it - which is nice!)

When printing from VADIS, choose the 'PDFCreator' printer and email the PDF it creates. At the other end it can be read with Adobe Acrobat Reader (installed on most PCs now?)

Well, that's what I do

Paul