It's happened to all of us. You're out of the office, at home or on a business trip, and you suddenly remember there's an important file you need. Unfortunately, it's securely out of reach on a network drive accessible only via your office PC. This is where GoToMyPC comes in - it's a secure, Web-based remote-control service that promises 24-hour access to your PC from anywhere in the world, from any system (not necessarily a Windows PC) with a Java-enabled Web browser.

It's very simple to use - after signing up, you download a small (1.4MB) System Tray applet and your host PC is ready for remote access. Security is well addressed - as well as your email address and password, you assign an access code to each host PC that's stored on the host PC, not on the GoToMyPC Web servers. GoToMyPC uses end-to-end 128-bit AES encryption and its hosting site has TruSecure SiteSecure certification. It's billed as firewall-friendly, although some personal firewalls such as Zone Alarm might have to be configured to allow the host service to access the Internet.

For individual accounts, you manage your registered PCs from your account page on the GoToMyPC site. Connecting to a host PC launches a Java applet that initiates the connection and then starts the Viewer applet. No software is downloaded or installed onto the local PC, which is very useful if you're in an Internet cafe, for example. Once you've entered the correct access code for the host PC, the viewer launches the remote Desktop. Corporate and Pro packages include a central administration application - this is limited to adding and removing users and basic reporting in the Pro package, but the Corporate version adds group management, centralised accounting and enhanced file-level security features.

The Viewer is freely resizeable and you can run in full-screen mode. Response speed will vary depending on your Internet connection and the screen resolutions used - it's a good idea to run your host PC at as low a resolution as practical for this purpose, and disable unnecessary graphics.

You can cut and paste text and graphics between the host and local PC by using standard Windows commands, but to transfer files you launch a separate utility from the Viewer menu.

It's a real shame you can't launch this application independently without running the remote Desktop. Other features are the ability to invite a guest via email to view (or even control) your host PC and use an on-screen text chat facility or annotate your screen. You can also print remote documents locally to any available printer.

In addition to the PC-based Viewer, there's a neat feature called PocketView that lets you use a PDA or any Windows CE/Pocket PC device to operate your remote PC. The procedure is the same as explained above, with a small PocketView utility downloaded to the PDA. You can't transfer files with this utility but you have full control of the host PC. The Viewer can be rotated and zoomed to suit your PDA's display and it's actually remarkably good.

Personal pricing is based on a per-host fee: each PC you want to access is charged separately. There's comprehensive help available on the Web site. Overall, it's an invaluable service for heavy-duty travellers, and the pricing is reasonable if you intend to use the service a lot.

Contact: Expertcity (0870) 345 1096
www.gotomypc.com

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