How does Honda maintenance minder decide you need to change your oil?

How does Honda maintenance minder decide you need to change your oil? - 1

All it does is read the mileage and look-it-up on a pre-programmed maintenance schedule…

The old ones were just odometer driven. Modern ones use a calculation based on idle time, engine temperature, engine power, and miles.

It counts how many miles you drove.

The onboard computer system in your vehicle continuously monitors the engine operating conditions such as speed, engine and ambient temperature, time and the vehicle use. The system will count down the vehicles oil life based on these conditions to determine when an engine oil change and maintenance is necessary. I always try to change mine when the counter reaches 10%. Do not wait any longer than 5%.

It doesn't. READ the owner's manual that came with the car. It will tell you when you should change your engine oil, AND what kind of oil you should use.

It's programmed so you don't change it every 3,000 miles like you should. That way you make it through the warranty period. You won't get the most miles out of the motor following the on board reminder.
Regular oil every 3 months or 3,000 miles and synthetic oil every 5,000 miles with no time limit.
Check the oil once a month and top the oil level up if it drops more than 1/4th the way down from the top dipstick mark. Don't let the oil get black before changing it.