Did WinALDL ever get updated for newer operating systems?

Also is there a way to hook up WinALDL without sending the computer into open loop / turning off the timing advance?

i'm not sure if aldl ever updated but if you have windows 7 you can run it even if its not ment to be. You can download the setup file save it don't run it. Right click the setup.exe and choose properties and then click compatiblilty. and check the box to run the program in compatiblity mode for : then choose what operating system its ment for in the drop down menu.

quote Originally posted by Austrian Import: Did WinALDL ever get updated for newer operating systems?

I haven't tried WinALDL on Windows 7 yet. The issue is being able to control the computer's serial port directly, since the raw data out of the ALDL port is at a very non-standard rate ... ~160 bits per second ... and does not use normal RS-232 framing (start/stop bits, data field length, etc.).

quote Also is there a way to hook up WinALDL without sending the computer into open loop / turning off the timing advance?

ALDL mode on the ECM (10K resistor across the control pins) raises the idle speed slightly and (according to ECM guru Oliver Scholz) disables some internal timeout counters, but it does not "send the computer into open loop" or "turn off the timing advance." I have verified this behavior personally. While I wouldn't recommend doing so indefinitely, I have driven around in ALDL mode for 20 minutes or more at a time when checking thermostat operation or gathering BLM (fuel flow) data.

[This message has been edited by Marvin McInnis (edited 03-08-2012).]

serial ports are obsolete they won't release software for rs232 your best bet is to use an older computer with older software or buy a serial usb adapter cable and manually tell the software what com port the cable is pluged into

quote Originally posted by tbicreations021: serial ports are obsolete ...

Not if you're still using an RS-232 serial peripheral. I have several incoming data sources (e.g NWS weather data via satellite) to my Windows server that are still RS-232 serial only.

quote ... they won't release software for rs232 ...

Standard RS-232 serial (COM) ports are supported directly by Windows 7. Multiport RS-232 devices and RS-232-to-USB adapters usually require vendor-supplied device drivers. That said, some modern RS-232 chipsets cannot be configured to run at less than 300 bits per second, which renders them unusable for WinALDL.

[This message has been edited by Marvin McInnis (edited 03-07-2012).]

i stand corrected i did not know that windows 7 support rs-232

Serial ports are obsolete. Unfortunately there are enough specialty products, which still use the RS-232 port and protocol, as it's easy to program for.
The problem is that many specialty software packages won't work right with a serial to USB adapter.

Who is behind WinALDL, and why isn't it updated anymore?

Also is there any way to sniff on the data port without the computer throwing the car into diagnostic mode?

I use winaldl though a usb adaptor all the time no problem on Win 7...

[This message has been edited by Dodgerunner (edited 03-08-2012).]

quote Originally posted by Dodgerunner: I use winaldl though a usb adaptor all the time no problem.

I do too, but I have tested several different RS232-to-USB adapters; some of them work at "odd" bitrates, some of them don't. The only way I know to tell for sure is to test them yourself. Newer RS232-to-USB chipsets are more likely to have problems with WinALDL than older chipsets.

[This message has been edited by Marvin McInnis (edited 03-07-2012).]

quote Originally posted by Marvin McInnis: Standard RS-232 serial (COM) ports are supported directly by Windows 7. Multiport RS-232 devices and RS-232-to-USB adapters usually require vendor-supplied device drivers. That said, some modern RS-232 chipsets cannot be configured to run at less than 300 bits per second, which renders them unusable for WinALDL.

Not questioning the above, but why does WinALDL have two speed options 2400 and 4800?

quote Originally posted by phonedawgz: ... why does WinALDL have two speed options 2400 and 4800?

Good question. WinALDL has, at one time or another, supported more than a dozen different ECM types. Maybe some of them operate at 2400 or 4800 bps. The on-line documentation doesn't even show a bit rate variable in the configuration screen. I just don't know.

I just ran WINALDL on my 1 year old Sony Vaio running Win 7 Pro using a $15 Trendnet TU-S9 USB to serial adapter. Windows update recognizes the device & gets the driver from the Windows Update site. Windows assigned it Com3 and WinAdl worked just fine.I bought the adapter today at MicroCenter. I didn't have to tell Windows to run it as a legacy application or anything. I haven't tested the logging.