Alarm troubleshooting

[LineInTheWater]

As with many of you, my alarm is flaky and will eventually go off all by itself. If you are in my boat, you have sworn many a time. I have scoured this board (and others) for information on how to troubleshoot my alarm (99 Passat). I've read many posts, but few outline details of how to systematically and manually narrow-down which switch (trunk, hood, doors, etc) may be causing the problem. When my alarm is armed it does not beep (as it used to) ... the arm light does come on. I read somewhere that this definitely indicates a switch failure. I also read somewhere that an OBD checkout can determine the last trigger for the alarm. If true, anyone have suggestions where to bring the car to get the OBD info on the alarm without getting raked over the coals (raped) by the dealership? Is there any way to reset the alarm settings (if they exist) using the key in driver's or passenger's door? I believe many have these problems, so any input would be appreciated!