What tablet would you recommend and how do I get shop manual software. That is def worth trying.
Tablet
Any of these would be fine:
Best Cheap Windows 10 Tablets
Or this:
Micro Center - Computers and Electronics
Look for a Bay Trail chipset device, they are cheap and sufficiently powerful to run the apps we're talking about here.
I have a Dell Venue 8 Pro, which I don't think they make anymore but I'm sure you could find one on Craigslist or something.
Shop manual
For Gen 1s, you can get a sketchy copy of the Ford service manual app on ebay:
2000-2002 Ford Lincoln Mercury - Factory Service Manual Repair Manual on USB | eBay
It was originally intended to be on a DVD; with a tablet, you run the app installer, and copy the DVD image to your desktop. You need to mount the DVD image as a virtual device
before you run the app
(in Windows 10, you just need to double-tap it to do that).
For Gen 2s,
the 2006 manual is online and you can just use a web browser -- I downloaded the entire site to put on my tablet since my wifi doesn't go all the way to my garage.
OBDII reader
As Rigs mentioned, a lot of Bluetooth devices will work with Torque et al but not FORScan. I have two of the one I linked upthread and they both work, but I have another cheapo one that doesn't. They pair with your Windows device like any other Bluetooth peripheral. Definitely check Amazon reviews on a given devices to see if anyone has reported success using it with FORScan specifically.
I think Rigs' USB device also supports MS-CAN protocol which most of the Bluetooth readers don't
unless modded. I don't know what this means in practice; I'm able to get door codes and run diagnostic tests with my BT reader so it does what I need. I like that I can also use the BT one with my phone to keep an eye on coolant temp on road trips.