I need help helping

[Ohzopants]

First of all I swear my intentions are good, I do not plan on using anything you guys tell me maliciously.

A friend of mine just bought his first computer and doesn't know a thing about computing. He keeps calling me for help, but it is very difficult for me to explain to him how to do stuff (i.e.: he couldn't even keep track of where he was unzipping files). Is there an application that will let me control his computer remotely, WHILE HE CAN SEE WHAT I AM DOING? The last part is very important because I want him to be able to see what I am doing so that I can explain as I go.

 

[muzikool]

http://www.realvnc.com/

 

[Lee]

First of all I swear my intentions are good, I do not plan on using anything you guys tell me maliciously.

A friend of mine just bought his first computer and doesn't know a thing about computing. He keeps calling me for help, but it is very difficult for me to explain to him how to do stuff (i.e.: he couldn't even keep track of where he was unzipping files). Is there an application that will let me control his computer remotely, WHILE HE CAN SEE WHAT I AM DOING? The last part is very important because I want him to be able to see what I am doing so that I can explain as I go.

You got more patience than me. I would tell ne friends of mine to buy idiots guide to (whatever operating system they're using) book.

Good Luck!

 

[fitz]

There are a lot of applications that can do this.

VNC (as was mentioned) is a great one.. there are many different versions of VNC - including the realVNC version someone already mentioned.
Personally, I like TightVNC (http://www.tightvnc.com/) a little better for bandwidth concerns..

If they are running Windows XP, you can use the built in Remote Assistance functionality..
There is also Netmeeting and/or MSN Messanger that allows for desktop sharing..

You can also check out http://www.ypsolog.com/docs/comp/other/remotectrl.html for a list of various remote control products and some of ther advantages or disadvantages..

--fitz

 

[Ohzopants]

thanks a lot guys i think I'm going to try one of the VNC's, because all the built in windows ones suck (IMHO)