I checked, I have an engine...

So yesterday I was driving back from an electronics swap meet when I noticed the "check engine" light was on in the "Danger Ranger", my '06 Ford Ranger pickup. I checked, and I do have an engine, so I don't know what that's about.

The gas cap seemed snug. The owner's manual doesn't make it sound like a big deal - says it could just be a loose gas cap or bad gas, and that it could take a few fill-ups and quite a bit of driving before it resets. It doesn't seem like it's running any worse than normal, or making any more noise than normal, so I guess I'll just ignore it for now. A coworker is going to let me borrow his OBDII meter, so at least I'll have a starting point. But at some point, I'll probably need to take it to the dealer - which means spending money I'd rather spend on brightly-colored shoes and deeply discounted beef jerky, and spending time waiting at the dealership that I'd rather be spending time doing something else.

I hate the check-engine light - it's silly to have one light that tells you "there is something wrong with your vehicle, and it could be anything from a loose gas cap to your engine is about to fall out". At least most computer error messages give you some info of what you need to do.