Programming a Saab

I use the term "Programming" loosely here because I am not talking about Programming in the true sense of the word (writing code that is compiled and run on a chipset).

I am really referring to the use of software so that you can tune and make settings adjustments to the car's software components. 

The Saab has several control units, such as the Engine Control Unit (ECU) - sometimes also referred to as an Engine Control Module (ECM).  General Motors, who made the Saab 9-3 as a joint venture after taking over the auto division of Saab, uses a device called a Tech II  to pull codes, run diagnostics and adjust settings on the cars. These Tech IIs are handheld devices that interface with the OBD connector (which is under the dashboard in most car models). 

The OBD connectors, these are fairly standard, which allows you to drive the car into just about any auto store (Advanced Auto, O'Reilly, Autozone, et al) and they can plug an OBD reader in and get the codes, look them up and make recommendations (and or sell parts which is why they do this as a courtesy).

Since they don't make Saabs anymore, there is no US-based network of dealerships, and mechanics are disappearing fast - only a handful of Saab shops are left operating, and some of them are simply individuals who work on Saabs for various reasons (restoring them, extra cash, etc). So having an OBD reader is certainly helpful if you buy or own a Saab, because you will DEFINITELY need to learn to do some things on your own (most garages won't even a Saab enter their engine bays). 

Buying a Tech II device, which has the Saab software module (PCMCIA card), is almost necessary if you're hardcore into your Saab. But they're expensive. And hard to find, actually. When they pop up on places like eBay, they get snatched up pretty quick by enthusiasts, restorers, mechanics etc. Also, the Tech II devices interface with laptop software, and there are two kinds: TIS2000, and a newer version called TISWeb. This link discusses these laptop software packages:

https://www.uksaabs.co.uk/UKS/viewtopic.php?t=123074

But ... if you cannot get a Tech II device, there is another way to skin the cat!

You see, software is software. And you don't "need" a handheld device as a host for the software. Any laptop will do, if you have the software! Fortunately, someone (Saab?) released the software in open source. You can download and run it. Not the source code I don't think, but the compiled X86 program that will run on a Windows laptop with an installer that sets it up.  But - how do you interface it with the car? There is a cable you can buy, called OBDLink SX. One side is OBD, the other side of it is USB and plugs into the laptop (more on this later).

Now - all this said - you DO need to know what you're doing with this software. Or you can brick the car! But if you learn how to use this software, you can reset faults, run diagnostics, and you can even swap car components and re-flash them (i.e. the ECU). Many Saab parts, believe it or not, are tied to the VIN and you cannot just pull them off of one Saab and stick them on another without running this kind of software.

Lastly, the software. If you don't have a Tech II or can't afford one or can't find one, there is some software called the Trionic Can Flasher (trioniccanflasher). With this, you can flash a new ECU if the one on your Saab went bad - provided you can follow steps.

For example, the steps for cloning a Trionic 8 ecu are as follows:

1: start trioniccanflasher, select T8 and your interface (which corrresponds to the serial port on laptop)

2: read ecu content from the original ecu

3: select t8 mcp and read ecu again

4: switch to the new ecu

5: make sure legion bootloader and unlock sys partitions are checked

6: select t8 mcp and flash that

7: select t8 and flash that

Now - what if you are on a workbench, say at a Saab garage with ten cars that need ECUs, and you don't want to deal with the laptop and getting in and out of the car(s)? There is a different interface you can use where one connector plugs into the ECUs and the other end on the laptop (AEZ Flasher 2?). Honestly, I am not savvy about this yet and don't even know what interface this is (but will update this post once I do).

NOTE: GM makes a software called Tech2Win. I hear that this software does not work with the OBDLink SX cable - but cannot verify this at this time of writing. UPDATE: Indeed it did not work, but someone somehow went in and patched the software and apparently now it DOES work - but only with the MDI 1 (not MDI 2) clone cable adaptor.

https://www.saabcentral.com/threads/tech2win-for-saab-fixes-i-bus-missing-on-2003-9-3.731283/

Pinephone Pro - Unboxing and Use Part II

I picked up the Pinephone Pro, which I had attached to a standard USB-C charger. It indeed was sitting at 100%. So it looks like the charging works okay.

The OS asked me for a pin code to unlock the screen. Yikes. I wasn't prompted to set up a pin code! 

I rebooted the phone to see if I could figure out what OS was on it from the boot messages. I figured out that the phone was running the Pinephone Manjaro OS. 

https://github.com/manjaro-pinephone/phosh/releases

Since the Manjaro OS has a default pincode, I attempted that pin code and got lucky - it wasn't changed, and it worked.  I (re) connected to WiFi, and noticed that the OS is prompting for my WiFi Password every single time and doesn't seem to remember it from before. Secure? Yes Annoying? Yes.

The form factor issue I ran into using the Firefox browser seemed to be more related to Firefox than the OS. The issue with Firefox is that the browser is sized past the phone form factor, and you need to scroll left and right which is a major hassle. The browser doesn't auto-size itself for the screen dimensions.

I played with the Terminal app, and noticed that the user when I launched the Terminal app was pico-xxxx (I don't remember what the suffix is). I tried to sudo to root, but didn't know what the password was for this user. 

Lastly, I played a video from YouTube, and the sound was very tinny. So the speaker on this phone is not high-end. I have not yet attempted to use a headphone on this device yet. 

Since the Linux-Mobile apps are so limited, many apps you typically run from a dedicated icon app/client on a mobile phone will need to be run from a browser.

I am not sure Manjaro is the "right" OS to use on this phone, or if the version of the OS running is current or stale. I ordered the Docking Hub and a Micro SD Card and when those arrive, maybe I will try flashing a new/different OS on this phone.

Pinephone Pro - Unboxing and First Use

I ordered a Linux Pinephone that just arrived.

In the United States, trying to get off of Google, Apple, and even Samsung is nigh onto impossible. Carriers make a ton of money off of selling and promoting phones, and have locked Linux phones out of their stores and off of their networks because they can't all collude and make money, either by selling the devices (carriers) or siphoning your data on their operating systems or defaulting the browser, etc.

There are probably numerous videos that show the unboxing of a Pinephone, so I will skip that and just make some general comments on my first experience.

When I unboxed the phone, there was no charger included. I bought this phone used on eBay, and while it came in the box, I wasn't sure if they come standard with a charger or not. The phone uses USB-C as a charger, though, and I had plenty of these. The phone had some weight to it. The screen seemed quality, but the back cover looked like a cheap piece of plastic and I could feel something pushing against the back cover (battery? dip or kill switches?). As I don't yet have a SIM for it, I have not yet opened the back.

The phone did not boot up at first. I wasn't sure of the button sequences, so I downloaded the Pinephone User Guide to get going. I decided that the phone probably needed to be charged, and plugged it into my USB-C charger, and immediately, I got a Linux boot sequence on the screen. Linux boot sequences are intimidating to just about anyone and most certainly to a user that is unfamiliar with Linux and not Linux-savvy.

When the boot sequence finished, the phone shut itself down again - presumably because it didn't have enough juice to boot and stay running. I left the phone on the charger, and returned to it 3-4 hours later.

When I came in and picked the phone up and powered it on, I got the boot sequence again and it booted up to the operating system. The OS was reasonably intuitive. I don't have a SIM in the phone yet, so I configured it for WiFi as a first step. Then I tried to set the clock, and I added my city but it is using UTC as the default. Next I went looking to see what apps were installed. It took me a few minutes to realize that the "Discover" app is the app for finding, updating and installing applications.  The first time I tried to run Discover, it crashed. When I re-launched it, it showed me some apps and I tried to update a couple of them, and got a repository error. I finally was able to update Firefox, though. Then I launched Firefox. 

Right away with Firefox, I had issues with screen real-estate and positioning. The browser didn't fit on the screen, and I didn't see a way to shrink it down to fit the screen properly. After closing the 2nd tab I had opened, I was able to use my finger to "grab" the browser, and pull it around, but clearly the browser window fit and lack of a gyroscope to re-orient the browser when the phone is turned sideways are going to make this browser a bit of a hassle - unless I can solve this.

I want to test out the sound quality. That's next.