Whether you’re trouble shooting your family PC problems from your home, or just want to access your PC remotely, remote desktop solutions are incredibly useful. Unfortunately, most remote desktop programs aren’t very easily understood by the average computer user.

Here is a rundown of 4 easy-to-use free remote desktop Windows applications which make reaching out to your computer remotely as easy as ABC. All of these are FREE for non-commercial purposes.

1. Teamviewer

Teamviewer is easily the king of amateur remote desktop providers, both because of its wide popularity and instantly recognizable interface. A remote desktop session is created when one partner supplies his securely-generated, unique Teamviewer ID and password to his partner on the other side, upon which the active partner can choose to provide remote support, perform a presentation, transfer files, or create a virtual private network (VPN).

Teamviewer’s one-click solution to remote desktop support and its simple interface makes performing remote desktop a breeze, whether you work at tech support or simply want to reach out to your files at home. There’s also a stripped-down version for passive users for receiving support only, and the program has cross-browser capabilities, working over Windows, Mac, Linux, and even on the iPhone.

2. Instant Housecall

Instant Housecall is basically a simpler version of Teamviewer, and works almost identically minus a few bells and whistles. Similar to Teamviewer, it requires the active partner and the computer he’s reaching out to to have the software installed on both computers, and connects both of them with a unique username and password, or with a basic applet which is marginally smaller in size.

Once you’re logged in, a support window pops up detailing the passive partner’s desktop screen. It’s very speedy, maybe due to its lighter system requirements, so if you’re having problems with Teamviewer or just want to suit a client’s preferences, Instant Housecall provides a nice alternative niche with the same functionality.

3. LogMeIn

LogMeIn is the other major remote desktop provider on the front lines of the market, reaching out to consumers and businesses alike with its easily recognizable brand name. So far, reviews about their service have been top-notch, whether you’re on Windows, Mac or need a link over your iPhone.

Among the choices mentioned here, LogMeIn straddles the extremes rather than provide the best of both worlds. It has the highest stability rates during its remote desktop sessions (which is important), but it limits free users to remote desktop access only and nothing else; paying customers have file transfer, remote printing and desktop sharing options, functions which are completely free in Teamviewer. Still, if all you need is a way to support your clients living on the outer reaches of the globe, LogMeIn is the perfect application to fulfil your tech support needs.

4. ThinVNC

ThinVNC is a new remote desktop solution which provides a revolutionary new approach to performing remote access – through your web browser. Taking advantage of HTML 5′s arsenal of new capabilities, it creates a remote session between the partners and displays the screen within the active partner’s web browser, i.e. Firefox, Chrome, Internet Explorer. The potential for this type of functionality is enormous, such as creating sessions over a friend’s computer or on a public terminal – which is what makes it such a great free remote desktop Windows application.

The disadvantage of using it is that it’s not as simple to set up as the aforementioned programs, requiring basic knowledge of IP addresses and port numbers – but these are easily obtainable with the right instructions. The advantages are obvious, as web browsers are much more readily acceptable on foreign devices than executable setup files, and you have the assurance of performing remote access on campus or in cybercaf©s if you ever find the need to.

This post was written by Aaron Pek and edited by James Yeang

Would you ever need to use remote desktop applications?  Tell us more in the comments :)

Just last month we talked about ‘Giving Your Right Mouse Button Super Powers’ where you were able to add a ton of features to your right click.   Some of you loved it, but some of you thought the extra options were just too overwhelming! 

For those of you in the latter group – here’s something which does exactly the opposite and helps you clean up and streamline your right click.   Think about it – whenever you right-click inside Windows explorer, you would typically only use only a fraction of the items on the context menu.

MMMFree is a piece of freeware which allows you to store these menu-items in a ‘rarely-used’ folder or hide them completely so you get to see only what you want to see all the time…  Perfect for a cleaner desktop!

Would you prefer ‘more or ‘less’ options in your right click menu?  Tell us in the poll & comments!

Hidden files are good for organizing files, and helping to ensure critical files don’t get accidentally deleted. 

Hiding them as a security measure however, is pretty much useless.  A few simple clicks in Windows is all one needs to view everything which you’ve hidden on your system.

Free Hide Folder is a free tool which helps you REALLY hide everything, make it invisible, and secure it.  You’ll even need to run the program and enter a password before you’re be able to even view those files.

What I also liked about it was that you could back up the hidden key (Not the data just the key) so you can restore the data easily if something happens with your system.

I wish you could drag and drop files into the program though rather than having to browse from the program itself, but aside from that it’s a beautiful piece of freeware.

For those unfamiliar with this system, GTD is basically a time and commitment management system, and this definition from Wikipedia truly encapsulates the concept perfectly…

“GTD rests on the principle that a person needs to move tasks out of their mind and get them recorded somewhere. That way, the mind is freed from the job of remembering everything that needs to be done, and can concentrate fully on actually performing those tasks. “

…and yes – speaking from experience, it really works. Jello GTD is a brand new open source plugin which helps you implement this system in Outlook

What’s good?

• It’s free, open source and under constant development
• It’s developer ‘Dr. Uqbarrun’ is quick and responsive to comments and suggestions in the comments sections, which has lead to quick implementation of features.
• Syncs with your handhelds

What’s not?

Having tried it out, it seems that there is no obvious way to associate email to the tasks created. As a lot of of my work is driven by emails that need to be actioned, this is a big drawback.

Conclusion:

If your work is not heavily email based, and you’d like a better way to keep track of your tasks, it’s certainly worth a try… after all it’s free. If anything this program will help whip a scattered workflow back into shape. It’s better than ending up like this…

Try it now – Jello GTD