Can i support my mother (83yo) over the internet?

Are there tools that are part of Vista (my mom's new laptop) and XP (my PC)
that would let me connect to her PC over the internet and take control of
the screen. I have been at companies with an internal help desk that can do
this, but don't know if it is possible over the internet. Of coruse she
could click on something to "allow" a connection, say.

Can you tell me if tools to do this are part of Vista and XP, or if not, but
they exist and can be purchased for a nominal cost, make some suggestions.

Seems like some problems are just too hard to solve over the phone without
seeing and manipulating the screen.

Thanks,
tom

"TomCon" <> wrote in message
news:LC_Mi.15625$bV2.3107@trndny02...
> Are there tools that are part of Vista (my mom's new laptop) and XP (my
> PC) that would let me connect to her PC over the internet and take control
> of the screen. I have been at companies with an internal help desk that
> can do this, but don't know if it is possible over the internet. Of
> coruse she could click on something to "allow" a connection, say.
>
> Can you tell me if tools to do this are part of Vista and XP, or if not,
> but they exist and can be purchased for a nominal cost, make some
> suggestions.
>
> Seems like some problems are just too hard to solve over the phone without
> seeing and manipulating the screen.
>
> Thanks,
> tom

www.logmein.com - choose the free version. You will have to go to granny's
to set up Logmein on her PC, but after that, it's a breeze....a free breeze.

jim

windows remote assistance is nice too i have helped someone with that too.

--
Capt. Jonathan Perreault

Personnal Advice To You:
#1: Do Not Undermine Windows's Work, Or It'll Undermine You As A User.
#2: Torture Windows (Any) Now Before It Tortures You
#3: Windows Is Bad Enough In English, Why Get It In Another Language

Best Comments From Users:
No Matter The Problem Even With Linux, It's Microsoft's And Windows's Faults

A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely
foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools.
"TomCon" <> wrote in message
news:LC_Mi.15625$bV2.3107@trndny02...
> Are there tools that are part of Vista (my mom's new laptop) and XP (my
> PC) that would let me connect to her PC over the internet and take control
> of the screen. I have been at companies with an internal help desk that
> can do this, but don't know if it is possible over the internet. Of
> coruse she could click on something to "allow" a connection, say.
>
> Can you tell me if tools to do this are part of Vista and XP, or if not,
> but they exist and can be purchased for a nominal cost, make some
> suggestions.
>
> Seems like some problems are just too hard to solve over the phone without
> seeing and manipulating the screen.
>
> Thanks,
> tom
>
>

"TomCon" <> wrote in message
news:LC_Mi.15625$bV2.3107@trndny02
> Are there tools that are part of Vista (my mom's new laptop) and XP
> (my PC) that would let me connect to her PC over the internet and
> take control of the screen. I have been at companies with an
> internal help desk that can do this, but don't know if it is possible
> over the internet. Of coruse she could click on something to "allow"
> a connection, say.
> Can you tell me if tools to do this are part of Vista and XP, or if
> not, but they exist and can be purchased for a nominal cost, make
> some suggestions.
> Seems like some problems are just too hard to solve over the phone
> without seeing and manipulating the screen.

IIRC, there are some incompatibilites when using Remote Desktop between XP
and Vista, but I could be wrong.

TeamViewer is very easy to set up, and does not even need to be installed.
You do not have to worry about forwarding ports, or opening them in
firewalls, either.

www.teamviewer.com

ss.

"TomCon" <> wrote:
> Are there tools that are part of Vista (my mom's new laptop) and XP (my
> PC) that would let me connect to her PC over the internet and take control
> of the screen.

I had good results with CrossLoop (www.crossloop.com) and it is free.

ThePro

"Synapse Syndrome" <> wrote in message
news:...
> "TomCon" <> wrote in message
> news:LC_Mi.15625$bV2.3107@trndny02
>> Are there tools that are part of Vista (my mom's new laptop) and XP
>> (my PC) that would let me connect to her PC over the internet and
>> take control of the screen. I have been at companies with an
>> internal help desk that can do this, but don't know if it is possible
>> over the internet. Of coruse she could click on something to "allow"
>> a connection, say.
>> Can you tell me if tools to do this are part of Vista and XP, or if
>> not, but they exist and can be purchased for a nominal cost, make
>> some suggestions.
>> Seems like some problems are just too hard to solve over the phone
>> without seeing and manipulating the screen.
>
> IIRC, there are some incompatibilites when using Remote Desktop between XP
> and Vista, but I could be wrong.
>
> TeamViewer is very easy to set up, and does not even need to be installed.
> You do not have to worry about forwarding ports, or opening them in
> firewalls, either.
>
> www.teamviewer.com
>
> ss.

While teamviewer looks really neat, their page at
http://www.teamviewer.com/licensing/index.aspx says that the free version
does NOT have a no-install module for the client.

I use a home grown VNC client that has no installation when helping my
clients - but I do have an open port for them to connect to me. I want to
work on a portable version that does not need an open port ... I just need
the time.

"jim" <> wrote in message
news:EW8Ni.2005$
>
> While teamviewer looks really neat, their page at
> http://www.teamviewer.com/licensing/index.aspx says that the free
> version does NOT have a no-install module for the client.


I have used it many times, without installing it. You just run the .exe and
choose not to install, and just run it. Then just tap in the number of the
host, and password, and you're there.

ss.