Service Manual.... CD or hard Copy?

[Lund]

Was getting ready to order my service manual and was wondering if there is any extra information on the CD compared to the hard copy or visa-versa. Does the manual cover both the autos, 47 & 48? Is it easy to locate info on the CD? Has anyone printed out wiring diagrams from the CD?

 

[Deezul1]

Is that a Dodge CD manual? I have a Alldata CD that is not as complete as the Dodge manual but its nice especially on wiring stuff because you can print out the page you need and take it to the truck and throw it away when it gets dirty and its easier to find stuff on it too. I wouldnt be without my printed factory manual but like having both but would chose the printed version if I could only have one.

 

[sag2]

Have the CD and it is identical to the print version. The only thing I do not see is the power train Diagnostic manual, or the component location diagrams.

It is handy to print off the pages and then toss them when done.

 

[David Muench]

CD for sure. . You don't have to worry about getting the manual greasy. Just print out what you need to refer to while working on the truck, and if you get the pages messy it doesn't matter.

 

[Badunit]

I've never had the CD version. I like being able to flip through the hard copy manual, especially when there are several pages/sections that I'm looking at at one time. And after you get to know the manual, it's faster to flip to the section and page you're interested in than it is using the CD version. BUT, you can probably search better on the CD (someone with the CD could answer this for sure) and it would be handy to be able to print out just the stuff you want, especially if it is dispersed across several sections in the manual. As for grease, if you're using the CD, just make sure you print out everything you need before you start. I don't worry about grease on the book, it absorbs it well.



I'm sticking with the book for now.

 

[DaveN]

personally, my wife would kill me if I'm all greasy and have to run in, fire up the PC, and start printing off pages. I'd recommend the paper copy myself, if you get into the middle of something and need to look at something else, you just flip the page, not have to go in and print it off.

 

[PCline]

Does the manual cover both the autos, 47 & 48?

What's the answer to this question? I was at the dealer and had a quick moment to glance through a new hardcopy. I noticed the 48RE but didn't specifically look to see if the 47RE was included.



Anyone know if they're both in there?

 

[lschultz]

Mopar Mudder has this link to the 03 Service Manual over on Dodge-Diesel. Org



http://www.moparmudder.com/2003_Dodge_Manual/03_Ram_Manual.PDF

 

[davidclark]

Originally posted by PCline

I noticed the 48RE but didn't specifically look to see if the 47RE was included. Anyone know if they're both in there?

I DL'ed the CD version, no 47RE in there, dangitall... The CD is a PDF, very cool.

 

[Badunit]

The hard copy doesn't have the 47RE.

 

[radar doctor]

Where to find a CD???

Where can I get a CD for a 99 and a 03> Can anyone burn them???Oo. Oo.

 

[Deezul1]

davidclark

Where can you download it from?

TIA

John

 

[Chipstien]

Can you still buy the CD for a 2001. Need to know.

 

[nkiewel]

Originally posted by DaveN

personally, my wife would kill me if I'm all greasy and have to run in, fire up the PC, and start printing off pages. I'd recommend the paper copy myself, if you get into the middle of something and need to look at something else, you just flip the page, not have to go in and print it off.

What?!?! Everyone doesn't have a computer in their garage!?! You need the keyboard condom out there for sure, because otherwise it will be full of grass clippings and other crap in no time at all.

 

[Badunit]

One other thing you may want to consider with the CD version is the resolution of the screen you will be reading it on. If you can't read a full page at a time it can be annoying to scroll around; it takes a high resolution monitor to allow small text to be readable. I was looking at the CD version wiring diagrams at 1024x768 and the resolution isn't good enough to read the wiring diagram text when a full page is displayed. The main text of the book is readable, though.



Another consideration is the memory requirement. The manual is 80M. You'll want enough memory to load the entire thing (plus what it takes forwindows and whatever other software you have). Otherwise I suspect you'll be waiting around a lot while it swaps things to and from the hard drive.



On the highly positive side, searching is very easy compared to the hard copy. The hard copy index isn't as comprehensive and I often don't see what I'm looking for in it. It's nice to be able to search for a specific word across the entire CD manual.

 

[$BANKS$rupted]

i would reccomend the CD especially since you can download it for FREE from the link above. (right click save target as)

 

[Duck]

And you can print it out for a hard copy backup. Better have a fast printer though. At 2800+ pages it's a beast. Takes 3 4" ring binders to hold it...

 

[lschultz]

2800 pages

That will give me something to do this weekend here at work

 

[Deezul1]

$BANKS$rupted

No link showed up

 

[Duck]

it's on the 1st page of this post