K12IT

If you are in the tech field then very likely you have had friends or relatives ask you for help with some issue on their home computer.  Often times you need to make some change on their computer, or even just see the screen so you can talk them through what is going on.  This is where you would end up driving to their house to help them out, which would likely take most of the evening if they don't live very close.  Nowadays with high-speed Internet access and some remote support software that is available that doesn't have to be the case.

There are many tools out there for remote support, some you pay for and some for free.  I'm going to mention two of my favorites here.

TeamViewer

A friend introduced me to this a few years ago.  It does not require anything to be installed on the remote computer.  You just ask the person to download and run the "TeamViewer QuickSupport" program from their website.  Once it starts it displays a 9 digit ID and 4 digit Password or PIN.  (The ID stays the same for the computer, however the password is different each time the program starts.)  The person will need to tell you the ID and PIN, which you plug into the TeamViewer full version on your computer to start the session.

You have the option of "Remote Support" (view their desktop), "File Transfer", "Presentation", or "VPN".  I always use this for "Remote Support".  Once the session is started you are able to see the remote desktop and can control it with your keyboard and mouse.  The remote user sees a small screen in the lower right indicating that you are connected to the computer.

Benefits:

• Nothing needs to be installed on the remote computer.  When the session is done the QuickSupport program will exit.
• This program is free for non-commercial use.
• Many additional features available.
• Works through most firewalls.

Cons:

• Someone needs to start the program and give you the ID and password.

LogMeIn

This solution requires that you install a small agent on the remote computer.  It is geared toward allowing you to access your computer from anywhere, but it can also double as a remote support solution for computers that you have full access to.  You can initiate a session without anyone present at the remote computer.

Benefits:

• You can initiate the session without having to walk someone through downloading and running a program.
• Free for basic remote control.  Additional features available with annual subscription.
• Works through most firewalls.

Cons:

• Privacy concerns - since there is no notification to the end user you can watch what your brother is doing on his computer without him knowing.

Each of these solutions fits a different need.  I know there are more options out there as well, please post a comment with your favorites.

For the past few weeks I have been using Internet Explorer 9 Beta exclusively as my browser. With Google Chrome, and Mozilla FireFox now in the market and being the internet browers of choice by most IT professionals Microsoft has really set themselves up for an uphill battle to win people over. Here are a few things that has been improved in IE9 that might sway some people back.

Microsoft has streamlined and minimized the IE9 Interface. The biggest change that has pleased me is the "one bar" address bar. This is similar to what you see when using Google Chrome. Not only does this double as an address and search bar with Bing, Google, Yahoo, and etc, but you can also add other websites such as Amazon and Facebook for searches. This is the single reason that I have stuck with IE9. Customizing searches makes finding what I want on the web that much easier. One other update to the general interface of the browser is that there is finally a download manager in IE.

When it comes down to performance Microsoft has taken some nice steps in giving control to the user. The days of IE being all bogged down with bloatware that is next to impossible to remove are over. The "Add-on Performance Monitor" shows you what add-ons are running, and how much time they add to the startup of the browser. I have had great success with stopping all of the add-ons and it does make a difference.

I have been a FireFox (Windows) user for a few years now and I can honestly say that IE9 is going to be my browser of choice on Windows. In an Active Directory environment you can't beat the integration and for home use it is stable, and fast; two very important things for me when it comes to my web browsing experience.

Here is the web address if you wish to check it out for yourself.