Using Office Machines at Home
Richard Enkelis is a Redwood City, Calif., attorney who owns three IBM-compatible PCs. One is in his office, another is on his secretary’s desk and the third is at home.
He does most of his work at the office, but sometimes needs to take work home. Instead of stuffing floppy disks into his briefcase, he enters a single command on his office computer, leaves it running and heads for the parking lot. When he gets home, he continues working at his office machine, using his home PC as a remote terminal.
Both Enkelis’ home and office machines are equipped with modems and are running copies of Co-Session, a remote access program from Triton Technologies of Iselin, N.J. With Co-Session, Enkelis’s home machine has access to all the resources of his office system, including his files, software, local area network and laser printer.
Enkelis, like many attorneys, uses WordPerfect to write his briefs and legal pleadings. He has copies of WordPerfect on his office and home machine, but some of his files reside only on the office system. Co-Session allows him to access or transfer those files by phone.
Once he has transferred the files he needs, he disconnects the modem and finishes the work using WordPerfect on his home PC. When finished, he logs back on to the office machine and, using his office’s local area network, prints the document on the laser printer on his secretary’s desk. It’s ready when she arrives in the morning.
Enkelis also uses Co-Session to provide computer support to the Human Awareness Institute, a nonprofit group in San Mateo, about 15 miles from his office. Sometimes the institute staff needs help generating reports with PC-File, its database program. When that happens, they issue a command that puts their machine into host mode. That way, Enkelis can take over the machine from his home or office to format and print the report.
Co-Session is one of several remote access programs. Others include Carbon Copy from Microcom Software of Norwood, Mass., and pcAnywhere from Dynamic Microprocessor Associates (DMA) of New York.
Timbuktu from Farallon Computing of Emeryville, Calif., and Carbon Copy Mac from Microcom provide similar benefits to Macintosh users. Like their IBM PC counterparts, these programs give you access to all the commands and resources of a remote Macintosh, even if you’re thousands of miles away.
Timbuktu and Carbon Copy Mac can also be used to transfer files between Macs that are connected via modem. If the Mac on the other end is connected to a network, the remote user gets access to all of the network’s services, including printers, hard disks and gateways to other computer systems. For all practical purposes, it’s the same as being in the office.
Another DMA program, pcMacterm, allows Mac users to control remote IBM PC-compatibles via a network or phone line. The IBM-compatible programs run in a window on the Mac, while Mac programs run in other windows. It’s possible to copy and paste data between the PC and Mac and use the Mac to access resources on the PC’s network, such as laser printers or hard disks.
Remote control programs are ideal for training. A trainer, for example, could temporarily take over the screens of remote users to demonstrate a particular task. The trainer could use the same software to look over the users’ shoulders, electronically speaking, as they perform a task. The local area network version of Timbuktu allows a teacher to view the screens of several remote machines at a time, each in its own window.
Such software can be valuable for people who provide technical support services to other users. I have a San Francisco-based colleague who uses one of these remote access products to maintain a local area network for a bank in the Philippines. He is able to trouble-shoot problems and make software modifications without having to board an airplane. He has even used the dial-up system to install software on one of the hard disks on the bank’s network.
Software companies could use such programs to help their customers trouble-shoot problems. A technician, for example, could take over the screen of a customer’s computer to try to locate a problem or demonstrate proper use of the software.
In some cases, the programs come with separate host and remote packages. In others, you need to buy a separate copy for each machine.
The only downside to these programs is that they can be slow. A typical 1,200- or 2,400-bit-per-second modem will allow you to connect the two machines, but running software via a modem can be noticeably sluggish, especially if the software uses graphics--as is always the case with Mac software. A speed of 2,400 bits per second may be adequate if you’re using the remote program just to transfer files or issue a few commands to the host system. But if you plan to run software from afar, you’re much better off with 9,600 bits per second.
I’m now using a Courier HST 9,600 modem from U.S. Robotics and have been impressed with its speed and performance. If you get a 9,600-bits-per-second modem, be sure it offers MNP-5 or V.32 error correction and data compression. These protocols allow the modems to compress data at both ends, increasing the effective speed--an important plus if you’re trying to control a remote computer. Both the host and remote computer must be equipped with such modems to take advantage of their speed.
Farallon offers a $1,295 Timbuktu Remote Access Pack, which has a 9,600-bits-per-second modem, along with a copy of Timbuktu and a Remote-WakeUp Cable. The cable allows a remote user to turn on a Macintosh II via a phone line.
Computer File welcomes readers’ comments but regrets that the author cannot respond individually to letters. Write to Lawrence J. Magid, P.O. Box 620477, Woodside, Calif. 94062, or contact L. Magid on the MCI electronic mail system.
