This was a pleasant surprise.
For quite a long time, I was using a program called LogMeIn Free.
https://secure.logmein.com/products/free/
It’s a “remote control” app that lets you control another computer in another place as if you’re sitting on the actual PC. There are several similar products, but this one is free for non-commercial use. Just keep in mind it means they see *everything* you do potentially -but they appear to be reputable and not fly by night hackers from Russia 🙂
I removed it from my Windows PC when I tossed my old laptop and no longer needed to control the other computer 20 feet away 🙂 I was having problems with another program crashing and wanted to rule this out as the cause – and since I no longer needed it, I didn’t reinstall it.
Getting ready to go on the road, being able to remotely control the computer back in Connecticut greatly reduces the chance that I’ll have a situation I can’t resolve without hopping on an airplane. Back in 2004, I had used a product called GoToMyPC when I was visiting a female friend in California and was still running FindAnISP.com as a business (with the web server located in Chicago). I attempted to reboot Windows XP and one of the programs threw up an “Are you Sure?” prompt and then GoToMyPC exited first without force closing the window – leaving the computer “stuck” without a way to finish the reboot. I still had access to the web server, but not anything on my PC. I wasn’t very happy about that (and it wasn’t free).
I was so happy with LogMeIn that I bought their iPhone app to control my Windows PC from an iPhone. It works well, given the limitations of a tiny screen and no real keyboard and an iPhone isn’t at all like a Windows PC. But an iPhone is much easier to haul around than a laptop. You wouldn’t want to use it 8 hours a day, but it does work.
So I reinstalled LogMeIn and connected using an updated LogMeIn app – I haven’t used this in 6 months. I sat the phone back down once it appeared to be working, and went back to testing streams – and suddenly sound is coming out of the iPhone.
Streaming Remote Sound used to be a feature limited to only the LogMeIn Pro account that has an annual fee. It appears that is now a Free feature, and by the way the Ignition App is also now free. The hook is it is gonna remind you about the other features in LogMeIn Pro and entice you to buy a subscription through the app.
Sorry, but Microsoft is rudderless. They have an incredible amount of inertia in the Corporate world, but they have no vision of where they are going. Today’s press conference – called with no notice and with no live streaming – was bordering on bizarre. I was watching the “experts” on C/Net try to figure out why they were there and what the big news was. There was a little rumble of approval at the keyboard, but left unanswered were very basic questions like battery life and resolution of the screen – and pricing.
Why would I buy a windows tablet that can’t run windows programs (Windows RT) when I can remote control my Windows PC from an iPad? It didn’t escape anyone’s attention that most of the reporters covering this event were doing it on Macs.
For all the things that there are to not like about the way Apple does business, you can’t fault them for slick marketing and presentation. Microsoft is their polar opposite on those fronts (got Zune anyone? anyone?)
At a minimum they needed to match iPad on price (and at least tell the public the price of the new product!)
While they were waiting for the show to start (it was late), the C/NET folks were speculating what was about to be announced – one thread of thought was it could be some kind of blending of the XBOX into a tablet.
Some of the later media reports point out that Microsoft getting into the Hardware business is a direct shot across the bow of companies like Dell and Acer – speeding up the death of the PC – and that makes no business sense.
“Sorry, but Microsoft is rudderless. They have an incredible amount of inertia in the Corporate world, but they have no vision of where they are going. ”
Yes, they havn’t a clue. They change things in the OS just to be in there mucking it up. Poor ol’ Microsoft hit their high water mark with XP and Server 2003. You can’t fix windows 7 , they hide crap in the control panel and who calls their files (Libraries)? Dumb-asses.
I have a new windows 7 PC bought by my company last year. Its only been on about 3 times. its a paperweight, actually its buried somewhere on my desk.
When my XP machine’s lease was up, I bought a Laptop like it on Evil-Pay and swapped the hard drive. So I am still using my XP and getting stuff done.
I do need to make a duplicate image of this drive, its four years old now.
LOL Foyle, —> “Zune” That went no where.
I havn’t embraced the Android tablets yet, although my wife has a Samsung Tab she loves and Generic Android that is newer she plays with. They seem interesting,
I may have to embrace new technology sometime.
parrott
It is always going to be a cat and mouse game
between MS and APPLE…
Both will be here I believe for the rest of my adult life.
After that, nothing lasts for ever..