If I hook up the laptop to the ECM via USB OBD2 style cable... with the onboard battery it wont communicate with ECM, with the powersupply hooked up to A/C it communicates. How do I get the laptop to Com without it being plugged into A/C.. I want to do some tuning while I drive..

 

Looks like you laptop may be shutting off USB port power when on batteries..Following is for XP, and may be vary by manufacture, but the principal is the same foe all OP Systems. Have you verified the power management (control panel power options) in your laptop is not set to minimum power management, also on the 'my computer', 'properties'', 'hardware', 'device manager', 'USB Root Hub', 'properties', 'power management', is 'allow computer to turn off this device checked' ? Try un-checking and see if that makes a difference, repeat and try for all root hubs.

 

Where'd u git the cable? Sounds like it might be an isolation problem or something, is there a ground pin in the connector?

 

ok, I checked the USB power settings and they were not turned off. I installed and reinstalled the cable drivers.. I got my cable from ALDLcable.com.. nothing seems to work..

 

Whiteflame, can you install some other USB device on your laptop, like an external drive, or a flash drive and see if it will work under laptop battery power. The USB (2.0) port should supply 5v at 100-500 Ma depending on the device requirements. In battery mode your laptop should be capable of supplying up 500Ma to the AKM cable, but in reality the cables internal adapter should draw much lower current. Guess you could call AKM and ask about your specific. See if there is a PC manufacture support issue.. Maybe they will send you another cable for testing purposes.