Friday Favorite: Mac HelpMate

While I am seriously impressed with the diagnostic features of HelpMate, if people want a simple "control the mac remotely" option, try Teamviewer. I've been using it with my Mom and it works flawlessly. It's free, it gets around the router issues and it's secure. Mom calls me, flips on Teamviewer, gives me the login and off we go. There's a Windows version as well that my Dad uses with his friend/tech guy in England.
(No, I don't work for Teamviewer, it's just a suggestion)

I took my business from a one-on-one onsite consulting business to a worldwide remote support business with this software. 99% of my business is remote now.

I wouldn't be where I am today if it weren't for this software. Dean is a great guy and this is great software!

Shine On,
Marnï "The MacAngel" Melrose
 Certified Technical Coordinator
Master Certified DayLite Partner
www.macangel.com

I was quite happily using VNC to support my remote clients when the need arose from time to time. Once I discovered VNC reverse connect, I'd talk the client thru installing a VNC server. Schnitz Remote Lite is a simple download and launch on Mac OS X; Real VNC download and install is a few more steps, but it's never been a problem. Chicken of the VNC + Lighthouse (for easy port forwarding) on my Mac completed this free screen sharing solution.

I'd still be using VNC were it not for a chronic problem with dropped connections that started about a year ago. Some screen sharing sessions last only 5-10 minutes; others go 20-30 minutes before failing. I've been unable to identify the cause of the disconnects.

I've just started using JollysFastVNC to see if its screen sharing sessions are more reliable than Chicken of the VNC.

VNC instability has been annoying enough that I've been experimenting with two commercial solutions:

Citrix GoToAssist Express is currently in beta. The viewer app currently runs on Windows XP, Server 2003 or Vista. I use XP on VMware Fusion. The client app runs on the same Windows systems and Mac OS X 10.4 or later. I've been putting up with GTAX on XP because a Mac viewer is supposed to be here soon. When GTAX completes beta, the yearly subscription will be $660 (less 30% for beta users).

TeamViewer offers viewer and server apps for both Windows and Mac OS X. TeamViewer is free for personal use (with a reminder to both parties about non-commercial use at the end of each session). A TeamViewer Business license is $699 and a Premium license is $1399. This license is for the current major release; there's an upgrade fee for the next major release, whenever that happens.

It's clear I should add Mac HelpMate to my evaluation, assuming it supports cross-platform sessions. I'm 98% Mac; my clients are 50/50 Mac and Windows.

It is an essential part of the Mac Consulting Group, the company I work for. I couldn't imagine working without it.

Scott, Daniel -

You both make excellent points, but:

Vine Server is a zero-config solution for my clients. Really - download, double-click, Command-R, connect. Because they initiate the connection, there's really nothing on their end to configure. All I've had to do is one port forward in my own router - incoming 5500 goes to my PC, and I run TightVNC viewer in listen mode on my PC on that port - not even all the time - it's one click to start it while on the phone or IM with a client in need. It's fast, reliable, and effective.

Daniel, you say options are good, and my original comment was only meant to highlight a good and free one. Steve's response stated that it lacked the simplicity of the MHM solution for the end user, and my second comment was meant to refute that. Me being snotty about Mac users needing to pay too much for stuff was admittedly doing a little internet fight-picking. But I definitely see that pattern of behavior on the Mac side of things, for example with what Apple gets away with charging for RAM upgrades. I keep thinking of the part in "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" where John is unhappy with the narrator's plan to shim his loose handlebars with a bit of beer can. It's the perfect technical solution due to the nature of the metals but John is put off by the idea because he doesn't understand the technical part - he only sees that someone is trying to fix his fancy BMW motorcycle with a bit of old beer can and it offends him. That's the attitude I was responding to - this idea that paying more for something somehow ennobles it, and that a low-cost or free solution is somehow inferior even when in many cases it's absolutely appropriate. It's part and parcel of Mac fanboyism, and it bugs me.

Best regards,

Andrew

Andrew Solmssen said:
"Sometimes I think Mac people aren't happy unless they're paying through the nose for something."

Andrew,

I don't think you're hearing what the others are saying, and I also agree with what the others have said:

There are clients/customers, who don't already have Vine installed, can't configure their own routers for port forwarding, and want assistance that is simple and easy. Mac HelpMate (MHM) provides this option, and I'm glad and very grateful that they do.

MHM offers all that and more (such as disk test/repair/rebuild/cleaning/automating, etc.., and for a professional consultant, it quickly, and much more than, pays for itself.

I don't think it's that Macintosh users always want to pay for things, that makes no sense. However, if the free solution, isn't as good, and there is greater value in the commercial solution, sometimes the commercial solution is more appropriate.

I use free VNC clients, when appropriate, I also use Apple Remote Desktop, VPN logins with some clients that allow the above, and I also use Timbuktu & Mac HelpMate, when appropriate. The MHM option is great for many applications/clients.

In this case, MHM has more than paid for itself, so it's a profitable and smart decision for consultants that want or do offer remote services for clients/customers. Especially when the client/customer is not able to do the above tasks of setting up their router's port forwarding, VINE installs, account/password configurations, etc...

And sometimes, even if they are, it's quicker and easier to have a simple solution that works, and works great!

Not to mention all the other repair/rebuild features that are not an option in VINE/VNC options. The MHM repairs and auto-mated clean-ups have also, on their own, paid for themselves many times over, in a professional capacity.

Options are good, and this is a great option.

Cheers,

Daniel
MacMind consulting services
www.macmind.net

How is that different from "see that thing that looks like a green circle, click on it, hit Apple-R, type bitboy.com and hit connect."? I have full control of the machine and it's user initiated like you say - it doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the $600 solution but it's effective and easy. I usually put a copy of Vine Server on their machines at setup time and even put it in the dock for them sometimes, and even if I didn't get a chance to do that, it's the first Google hit for Vine Server and an easy download.

Sometimes I think Mac people aren't happy unless they're paying through the nose for something.

A simpler, no-cost solution for mac-to-pc screen-sharing and support - Vine Server on the Mac, and TightVNC on the PC. Use the reverse connection capability of Vine Server on the client's Mac to connect to TightVNC Viewer on your end. All the firewall config happens on your end - just a simple portmap to your listener on 5500. I can talk someone through downloading and installing Vine Server in about 3 minutes, and it works reasonably well. It has none of the extra functionality of the product in the article, but it's free, too.

The write-up implies that MacHelpMate is free. It isn't. To actually use the service costs $600 a year or $79 a month. Auto HelpMate is cheaper.

An absolutely quintessential piece of software for the Mac consultant. Although I've never really used it, I believe Dean also maintains a Windows HelpMate version for supporting Windows clients in the same manner.