May 16 2007
Remote Control with CrossLoop
Dealing with technical support with your customers can be difficult when your not sitting beside their computer. They try to describe what is wrong and then you walk them through a solution. A good way to do this is to have the program they are working on open on your computer while telling them which buttons to press on their end. This method doesn’t always work very well if your client is an inexperienced user or their machine has some strange configuration that prevents you from guiding them to a solution.
Using a VNC server could solve this problem, but it creates additional problems as well. Installing it is not an easy thing to do for novices and trying to get them to find their computer’s IP has always been a challenge. Normally, I would ask them to drop into the command line prompt in Windows and type ipconfig. This is an easy enough solution for someone with moderate experience in Windows, but the neophytes are lost in trying to use the command line.
An additional problem occurs if the computer is behind a firewall or router. Walking inexperienced people around hardware your not familiar with or even granting permissions through a firewall is frustrating.
An easier way to control your client’s computer is through CrossLoop. This application is both easy to use and setup. It will allow two computers to connect to each other. CrossLoop is a client application and it doesn’t stay running in the background when your finished with it. You don’t have to worry about hackers to trying to guess your VNC password when your not around. CrossLoop works through firewalls and it doesn’t need an IP to set it up.
Using it is very simple. The computer that you want to connect to is the host. Your customer opens the Host tab and then presses the Connect button. You then go into the Join tab and enter the Access Code which your customer gives you. After some time, the host computer will receive a message whether to allow you to connect. If permission is granted, you will then be able to remotely use their computer.
When your finished, both users shut down the CrossLoop application and the connection between the two machines is broken. There are no applications running in the background.
This is an amazing program. You can provide real-time tech support to your clients by connecting to their computer and seeing exactly what is going wrong. CrossLoop is a must-have utility for every software developer.
May 16, 2007 @ 18:31:31
Johan – a BIG thank you from this small team at CrossLoop for this excellent review and supporting us by spreading the word to your readers.
Please feel free to email me anytime you or your readers have questions.
Stay close to our blog…..
Thanks
May 17, 2007 @ 09:45:30
Good software deserves good reviews. Keep up the great work.
May 22, 2007 @ 07:32:40
Websense installation at my workplace blocks access
“Your organization’s Internet use policy restricts access to this web page at this time.
Reason:
The Websense category “Proxy Avoidance” is filtered.
URL:http://www.crossloop.com/
What are my options?
May 22, 2007 @ 09:11:01
Hi ThinkaLot. You can’t do very much if access to the CrossLoop web site is being blocked at your end. What I could do is e-mail you the program instead. It’s only 2.08 MB in size so it shouldn’t cause any problems with your e-mail service.
You can give your e-mail here or send it to me at johan@cyprich.com.
Jul 10, 2007 @ 02:58:00
Looks interesting… but it requires download and installation – not easy for novice users. Perhaps it’s good tool to support mom or friends, but for professional support I recommend Techinline Remote Desktop – the easiest remote support tools I’ve ever seen.
It works on any Windows and needs just a browser to run. No downloads or installs.
Jul 10, 2007 @ 11:54:24
Crossloop is very easy to set up. All you have to do is run the installation software and it places a shortcut on your desktop.
What I really like about CrossLoop is that people who know very little about computers can download, install, and use it. I’ve used it with novices with no problems. It’s much easier than walking them through installing RealVNC. With CrossLoop, you don’t need to find out your computer’s IP, which is a real challenge to those who don’t know what a command prompt is.