GoToMyPC Gets Pocketed

For anyone who spends much time working without being at work, Expertcity's GoToMyPC can be downright addictive. This Web-based remote-control service transforms any browser-equipped PC into a clone of your desktop back at the office. Just that easily, you have access to your applications, data, and local area network with speed and convenience.

Version 3 was one of our World Class award winners two months ago, beating out such worthy competitors as PCAnywhere and Timbuktu Pro for usability. GoToMyPC 4--a no-cost, automatic upgrade for current users--adds a number of tools that are designed to appeal to large organizations and to Pocket PC users.

I tested a shipping version of GoToMyPC Corporate edition. The program's big-company features should help on-the-go workers convince recalcitrant IS managers that remote control isn't insecure or unmanageable.

Companies that roll out GoToMyPC Corporate to multiple users can require a password each time a user logs in, and they can employ RSA's SecurID technology for heavy-duty authentication. IS types can specify the features available to each employee and can run an array of usage reports. A new edition aimed at small companies, GoToMyPC Pro, includes a smaller set of management options.

Expertcity has also squeezed much of GoToMyPC's functionality into PocketView, an included program for controlling a desktop PC remotely from a Pocket PC. PocketView was surprisingly snappy in my tests, and it provides panning and reduce-to-fit modes. Unfortunately, maneuvering my system's 1152-by-864 desktop from a 240-by-320 screen was unwieldy in the extreme. But if Pocket PCs with beefier resolutions come along, PocketView may get a lot more interesting.

At $20 a month (less for annual plans and volume purchases), GoToMyPC isn't dirt cheap. But as long as you're talking PCs--and not Pocket PCs--it's one of the slickest, most effective tools a mobile worker could hope to find.

SUMMARY

Expertcity GoToMyPC 4 Price when reviewed: $20 per month Current prices (if available) Top-notch remote control gets more manageable, but Pocket PC viewer is too hard to use.