Online Computer Support: May 2008

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Keep in touch with online computer support

When you're out of the office, 01 Communique's I'm InTouch 6.1 lets you access your computer from afar. With I'm InTouch 6.1 installed on a Windows XP or Vista host computer, you can access that host computer from any remote Windows computer support on the internet via a web browser.

Now you can take control of the host's desktop, view its attached webcams, access its files and print them to your local printer. There's an option to access the host in Stealth Mode, which is handy when you want to check up on people. One impressive feature is the ability to access the Outlook inbox on the host via a webmail-style interface, which is more responsive than using the full remote desktop.

You would be better off setting up webmail access to your email on the server, but I'm InTouch could be useful if your email provider doesn't provide remote access to your inbox.

New features in version 6.1 include audio support and multi-monitor configurations, letting you view all of the host's displays even if your remote computer support services has only one monitor. When you take control of a host you can choose to view its desktop or a Windows Explorer-like view of the hard drive's contents. When you're viewing the desktop, a small drop-down menu lets you access features such as file transfers and switching to full-screen mode. I'm InTouch is also designed with hand-held devices in mind and is optimised for Pocket PC and Blackberry devices. A

long with remote access, it offers basic collaboration features such as chat and a whiteboard. Up to 10 remote users can access the same host simultaneously, which means you could use it for training sessions and online meetings - although if this is your primary requirement you might be better served by dedicated offerings from the likes of Citrix Online or Cisco's WebEx. One of I'm InTouch's drawbacks is that it is very Windows-centric. Not only are hosts restricted to running XP or Vista, but 01 Communique only supports remote users running Windows using ActiveX or Java via Internet Explorer or Firefox.

We managed to access files on our Windows XP machine from Safari and Firefox on our Leopard MacBook, and Safari on our iPhone but we couldn't view the host's desktop. I'm InTouch does the job but its biggest problem is that competitors such as LogMeIn and Citrix Online's GoToMyPC are more user friendly, more flexible and offer remote connections from more platforms. For example, unlike LogMeIn and GoToMyPC, I'm InTouch's web interface doesn't show you a list of all your host computers and their status (we're told I'm InTouch Premium will offer this, available in June). Nor does I'm InTouch's web interface make it easy to add new host computers.

Source : http://www.theage.com.au/news/upgrade/keep-in-touch/2008/05/27/1211653953797.html

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

How to get online computer support

Steve Duncan, East Carolina University director of military programs, was honored May 3 with the General William E. DePuy Award, presented by the U.S. Army Cadet Command.

The award is considered the most prestigious honor given by the U.S. Army Cadet Command, the parent organization of the Army ROTC program, and has been presented only to two other individuals.

The award recognizes an individual who has provided significant support to the local or national Army ROTC program.

Brig. Gen. Arnold N. Gordon-Bray, the deputy commanding general of Cadet Command, officiated at a ceremony that honored this year's graduates of both the Army and the Air Force ROTC programs at ECU. Also present at the event was Col. William T. Wiseman, the commander of the Fourth ROTC Brigade.

Gordon-Bray praised Duncan for his continuing efforts on behalf of the ROTC program at ECU. He noted that Duncan's previous service as the deputy commander of the U.S. Army Training Support Center and in other key governmental assignments also had significantly contributed to the success of the Army.

While a civilian employee of the federal government, Duncan earned the Superior Service Award, the Meritorious Civilian Service Award and the Decoration for Exceptional Civilian Service – the highest award presented to civilian employees of the Army's Remote technical support program recognized ECU's online master's of science program in Computer support Science and Technology Systems was named a "best buy" from an organization that evaluates online degree programs.

GetEducated.com, which serves as a clearinghouse to showcase and evaluate accredited online degrees, employs college experts to review each online program. In 2007, ECU's online MBA and education degrees ranked one and three, respectively.

ECU's master's program in computer support science ranked seventh out of 68 programs nationwide. Housed in the College of Technology and Computer Science, the program offers four master's of science degrees: computer science; computer networking management; data communications technology; and information security.

Program seeks to help veterans

A program to assist mental health professionals working with returning war veterans will be offered May 29-30.

The May 29 session will focus on mental health of service members returning from active duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. It will be held at 5:45-9 p.m. at the Edwin W. Monroe Eastern AHEC Conference Center, 2000 Venture Tower Drive, Greenville. The program is aimed at primary care physicians, psychiatrists, nurse practitioners and physician assistants.

The May 30 workshop will help mental health professionals apply clinical skills to their work with these veterans and their families.It will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Pitt County Agricultural Center, 403 Government Circle, Greenville.

Speakers for these events include Dr. Harold Kudler, mental health coordinator for Veterans Affairs medical centers in North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia; Dr. Vince Arnold, retired Navy and director of the Deployment Health Center at Camp Lejeune; Dr. Kristy Straits-Troster, clinical psychologist with Veterans Affairs.

The events are sponsored by the Eastern Area Health Education Center, the Southeast Area Health Education Center, the N.C. Citizen Soldier Support Program, the Veterans Administration and others.

For more information, call (910)-792-5560, Ext. 100 or visit http://eahec.ecu.edu/calendar/mental.cfm?category=mental_health.

Engineering grads donate

ECU's first graduating class of 22 engineers donated $1,500 to ECU's Engineering Foundation. The announcement was made at the College of Technology and Computer Science Recognition Ceremony on May 10.

"This generous and forward-thinking gift is the start of alumni involvement in the engineering program," said Paul Kauffmann, chairman of the engineering department. "Our first graduates have demonstrated their commitment to enhancing engineering access by this donation which will focus on scholarships and financial support for future students."

Business sets scholarship mark

The College of Business recognized 96 undergraduate and graduate students with scholarships at an awards banquet on April 29.

The scholarships totaled $120,000 for the 2008-09 academic year – almost doubling last year's sum of $65,000.

"These scholarships reflect the generosity of our alumni, faculty, and friends – they have shared their success so that others can succeed," said Frederick Niswander, dean of the College of Business,

Trujillo named chair of OT

Leonard G. Trujillo has been named chairman of the Department of Occupational Therapy in the College of Allied Health Sciences.

Trujillo, who holds a doctoral degree, has been an occupational therapist for 30 years with the majority of his clinical experience in the U.S. Air Force. He was the only USAF officer to have held the position of program director for the Tri Service OT Assistant Program at the Army's Academy of Health Sciences, Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

Prior to joining ECU, he was an associate professor and associate dean at the School of Occupational Therapy at Texas Woman's University in Dallas.

source : http://www.reflector.com/local/content/news/stories/2008/05/19/ecunotes.html

Monday, May 12, 2008

New Computer Support Automation Utility

Menlo Park, CA May 2, 2008 -- Digital Support Technology, Inc. (, a pioneer in automated computer support over the Internet, announced the release of PC Fixer, a proprietary computer support automation utility today.

With an innovative Reverse Search Engine and a comprehensive knowledgebase of support procedures, Digital Support Technology has the ambition to empower individual computer user to diagnose and fix problems on a computer. By downloading and installing PC Fixer, a computer user connects the computer to the Reverse Search Engine, which not only detects problems on the computer but also explains the problems to the computer user. After going through details of the computer problems, the computer user may decide which problems to be fixed by PC Fixer. At present, Digital Support Technology fixes the majority of computer problems and solution for free and charges a nominal fee for some specific fixes.

Since the beta release of the automation utility, thousands of computer users have tried the simple, secure, fast and easy-to-use tool and provided enthusiastic feedback. One user of the tool acclaims, "Great job in fixing my problem. I only wish I had discovered your service sooner, I could have saved myself a lot of time and frustration. Kudos to you!"

Although the online computer support landscape is already crowded with established players like Geek Squad and Firedogs, and new comers like iYogi and Support.com, Digital Support Technology intends to differentiate itself as the most innovative and the most cost-effective online technical solution provider for millions of computer users. In addition, the company commits itself to protecting privacy and security of computer users and builds its software on the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES).

source :prweb.com/releases/2008/05/prweb908264.htm

Online Computer Support

Blog Archive