FordTechCA

Win7 and IE9 works fine. apply the same security settings that are listed for IE8. make *.dealerconnection.com a trusted website too. as for mitchel on demand, i believe the trick for that is to enable compability view in IE9, or something along those lines. had to do that to all the service advisors computers when work upgraded computers recently. all computers at work are now win7pro and IE9.

IIRC, the software will be automatically installed with the Dec. IDS release. It sounds like they've done their homework and there will be a relatively seamless transfer. (I hope!)

 

 

just got word from Ford a few days ago that i should see the IDS software soon that handles both VCM's. been trying to get my hands on a VCMII for 2 months now, ill just keep grinding on the IDS department. still have my complete IDS setup from when i first became a tester back in 05. yes from what i was told the IDS software will work with both VCM's. sounds like it will be ready around version79 of the software, which with their release schedule would be about march or april.

its because there must of been a bug in 70.03 that they are fixing. instead of releasing or rushing out 70.04 which they were probably already working on, they released 70.03B to fix the bug in 70.03. they did the same thing with release 66, i think it was. anyone notice that it was 66A? thats was because of me. i was testing that version and the week before it was to be posted on the website for release i found a problem with PMI on 6.0L for the 03-04(the 04's with the 03 engine)model year. it delayed the release an extra week from when they planned to release it. all of us that were on the original beta for IDS still get to test new releases about 2-3 weeks before they are posted to the website. so when they get ready to go from 70 to 71, i will get 71 about 2 weeks before everyone else.

im rezzing an older thread here instead of posting to a new one, im currently testing a fix for IDS running on 64bit Win 7. as of now it seems to be working great and you dont have to do any work arounds to make it work, like using XPMode or hitting F8 on bootup to disable driver signing. i suspect if all goes well there may be an anouncement from Ford about it in the next month. just thought you all might want to know.

hmm away from work. well i dont do anything car related. besides spend my time with the wife and kids, ive been spending the last 2.5 years taking night courses at the local college trying to work my way out of this profession and into the world of IT. so far ive been focusing on OS support and networking in the world of cisco network equipment. just recently took my first microsoft certification test and passed. so along with being a Ford Senior Master, im now a MCP, Microsoft Certified Professional. hopefully after a few more certs ill be ready to leave the world of auto repair behind and start a new life in the IT world

Originally Posted By: FordTechCA

i saw some other posts, what issue are you having with IE8 and FMC Dealer?

As of NOW FMC Dealer in it's entirety seems to be working on my 64-bit Windows 7 machine with IE8. At first there were a lot of pages that would not display, particularly OASIS and a lot of the plug-ins for the manuals just halted the pages. I do recall Ford having problems with the site and I may have tweaked my settings since then. I was using the IE7 compatibility view for a while which rectified the situation with the ford site as well as a few others I frequented. Now I should turn off the compatibility and see what happens.

on my laptop with IE8, ive applied the suggested settings that ford has on the PTS website. i also dont run any extra toolbars, no google,yahoo or msn. as ive found their popup blockers can be a pain until you've enabled all the necessary ford related popups. i do favor googles toolbar though over the rest, just a preference i guess. other then that most of my IE8 settings are stock to the way it loads. ive said many times at the dealer i work at that Ford IT department needs to be fired. their ability to keep a needed aspect to our job running sucks bigtime.

Remember though, without advances in software (browsers) things would be boring. As a Webmaster there are a lot of cool things I can do... but I do consider users with older hardware and software. Besides, I like to keep things a little toward the simple side. Furthermore, IE6 doesn't have the security features 7 & 8 do. In keeping with the topic, I think it is asinine to have to backdate my OS and web browser just to be able to use Ford's equipment and website. I realize it is difficult to stay current sometimes but it irks me when it takes Ford too long to catch up.

i saw some other posts, what issue are you having with IE8 and FMCDealer? ive been using IE8 since release on FMCDealer without problems(except the many days here and there where the Ford IT department has screwed up the website). as for backdating the OS for the equipment. well some of the blame lays on microsoft for IDS issues. my latest discussion with the IDS people was very imformative. with the current stuff going on, my feelings are IDS in some form will be around for awhile. as for the connection between the vehicle and the laptop, something will have to change within windows or the vcm and cable to make it work with 64bit. PDS is going away due to the limits of the PocketPC and the changes in the vehicles currently and years to come.

IDS with Win7 is being tweaked right now. V67 had some fixes for Win7 in it. problem we will all see once Ford gives the go ahead for support is only support for 32bit. 64bit still wont be supported and probably will never be supported, as for the reasons, im not sure i can say exactly what other then there is too many things that will need to be changed for 64bit to work properly. im running on 64bit now while reporting any problems i encounter. it works for the most part but you need to get a realtek driver for the usb cable and on windows startup you have to hit F8 before windows loads then select disable driver signing to install the driver and also every time you start your computer if you want things to work with the least amount of trouble. another option though for those of you looking to upgrade laptops seeing most are coming loaded in 64bit is spend a bit extra and get Win7 professional or ultimate. those 2 versions come with a free Windows XP download that runs in a virtual environment on the win7 desktop. ive been using that since january and it works great.

[quote=Bruce Amacker

And so does IH. I wonder when Ford will wise up?

about this time next year when they run out of the money reserves they had that helped them from joining GM and Chrysler begging for bailout money due to poor business decisions

i never had to do it, i started with ford back in 94 but remember seeing service manuals, wiring diagrams and H-manuals with the stickers refering to a TSB

Just wait till the workshop manual refers us to a TSB!

ummm step back in time to the late 80's early 90's. did we use to apply a sticker in the service manual to refer to a TSB when there was a change?

with all the stuff thats changed why not just build the AOD and do the 4R70W internals swap to get a tad different gearing.

well some inside info for all of you, ford gave up trying to get IDS and Vista working. if you are patient and are up for a challenge, yes IDS can run on vista but Ford will never support it. the guys back in detroit are skipping straight to Win 7. one of the other problems if i remember correctly was getting vista and the really outdated wireless card for the VCM to function too. i havent tried vista. im running my IDS on a virtual drive in XP on my vista laptop. im about to install the win 7 rc though and give win 7 a try. other problems were the usb/ethernet cable that connects to the VCM from what ive been told. you may have to search for the driver for the cable from the manufacture to help with making IDS work.

yeah it took ford way too long to let it work on all editions of XP, and for those wondering, it will never be made to work with Vista. those of you who like being ahead of the curve and playing with the latest greatest software, ford is skipping vista and going straight to windows 7. i havent tried it yet, but ive heard it will run on the beta version

Did you see that the new version of IDS (59) will work with Windows XP Home now. What about all that crap they gave us about having to use XP Pro for these same security issues? I think they are more worried about somebody getting ahold of their precious proprietary software than anything else.

umm yeah, unlocking XP Home is a bandaid for now. the reason i was told why it wasnt ok'd at first, well im not too sure i agree. Ford has no plans of supporting Vista ever. i would love to tell the reason why but cant. as a beta tester ive been told to not say anything.

Our ingenious IT bonehead has not been allowing us to use our personal laptops as an IDS for a while now stating security risks that Ford told him were too high. I found out today what that was, he says that they don't want to be responsible if my laptop infected a car with a virus. I don't think this is even possible, anybody know what operating system our PCMs use?

this is a little late but tell your so called IT guy to share the crack pipe he's been smoking, that way you can try and better understand his thinking. he sounds like he knows just about as much about IT as he does about fixing cars

hourly, i get about 80% warranty and 20% customer pay, wouldnt do it flat rape. only way our shop could even go flat rate is if the owner sold or the parts manager was fired and the parts and service director(owners son) was also fired. only reason the dealer i work at has survived is because we are out lasting the others near us and we have a better service department in general, even if management is clueless the techs give enough of a shit to care about making the customer happy for the most part

i dont keep tools at home for that reason. i have the few necessary tools to do minor fix it projects around the house and thats it. i finally broke my one and only relative who still continued to ask for help recently, my mother-in-law, her last 2 repairs she needed i didnt have time to do anything more then a brief checkout and a recommendataion on what was needed. when she asked how much i told her i have no idea what stuff costs, i just fix them. she didnt like that answer and took the vehicle to be fixed at another shop. as much as ive grown to hate my work lately the last thing i want to do on my time is fix someone else's problems. time with the wife and kids is more important then extra money

i cant remember what the reason was for them to not give us eec4 in IDS but i think it was for the typical reasons, cost too much time and money.

generic OBD2 functions were asked for back in 2005 during the beta of IDS and as you can see what the answer was. we also asked for one more cable, an EEC4 cable along with the software upgrade to do those old vehicles because alot of us still see those cars but Ford said no to that too.

talking about shops being cheep. my shop doesnt own a complete IDS kit. the only complete kit is mine from being a beta tester. the shop does own 2 VCM's. cant wait to see the look on their faces if my plans come through in the next 3-6 months and i can retire my tools and move on to another profession, the IDS goes with me /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif

not that it really matters but i didnt know 7.3l oil pan leaks were a common thing. are they? all the diesels ive worked on since 96 i can only remember less then a handfull of oil pan leaks on the 7.3L

what a flipping iddiot. i didnt read the whole thread, first 2 pages and last 10(didnt think i could handle anymore stupidity) i hope he has to go in for warranty work eventually. ive seen oasis with warranty void on it due to mods. do i remember right didnt Ford put in a your screwed code that couldnt be erased if the pcm was reprogrammed on the 08? oh well all i could think about while reading about that 6.4L was 2 things.

heres your sign!! and you might be a redneck!!!

I was wondering if there is a way fleets can access inford or PTS for service info? Also we want to buy an IDS but were told that it wasn't possible. My old dealer refuses to look into it for me....Is this true?

 

According to EPA federal law, all OE's must make available all scan tools, service manuals, online manuals, and training to all aftermarket people at the same cost as they charge dealers. If this is ever denied to you, I suggest filing a NASTF complaint. NASTF.ORG is the main website, and all factory service websites are lined together at http://nastf.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3292. The maximum allowed charge by law is $20 for 24 hours access. Ford charges $10 for 1 vehicle for 24 hours and $20 for all Fords for 24 hours. There are monthly and yearly subscriptions available, also. Toyota is $10, Kia and Hyundai are free to access after you sign up (free also).

 

I have not been successful in trying to get a PTS password, so I access PTS through a different source. IDS's are readily available from Motorcraft at the site Keith listed, they were on backorder for a year but I bought one about 6 weeks ago and they were in stock at $2415 plus shipping. I think the total was $2433 or something with a 2 year subscription for cals. Renewing your cals is $500 (supposedly for one year, but they gave me two years?) Ford recommends 2 particular laptops, but I've loaded IDS on many different brands without a hardware glitch. I suggest you remove (not disable) your anti-virus, firewall, etc software so you don't go through the living hell I did trying to get the VCM to communicate. If you do have problems, be aware that non-Ford employees do not get telephone tech support for the IDS like Ford employees get. Outsiders get internet/e-mail support only. They really have the bugs worked out of the software and I wouldn't be afraid to load it on any PC (it must have XP Pro). If you don't have the red DVD manuals, get some from a buddy, or buy them on Ebay cheap.

 

Good Luck!

i wouldnt be too worried about ford tech support. there was only one person i trust there for help(had to deal with him during the beta stages of IDS) and if your not using one of the recommended laptops then well you can guess the response. we all know it will load and work on many non approved systems but the recommended stuff is the only stuff they have access to or have used.

yes anti virus stuff was a pain. we found that out in the beta stages. if you missed one pop up and denied access because you didnt know what it was for you were screwed. we tested nortons and macafee along with running the windows firewall, had everything worked out for what pop ups to watch for so they can get that info in the release notes then when IDS went live the tune changed to disable or uninstall because i think they didnt want to deal with support calls related to non Ford crap

last i was told from the people at IDS is they are still trying to get past all the new crap that microsoft added into Vista. they arent in a rush because XP can still be ordered on new computers for up to 1 year from the release date of Vista. i think they were about 95% done making it work on Vista but everytime they think they have it working they run into another issue.