[UFO Chicago] remote desktop software

[John Bulger]

First off, I am not a programmer or system administrator, just a user. I
do have an interest in migrating from Windows to one of the free UNIX
style operating systems. Thus, the reason that I came across and
subscribed to the mailing list.

That said, I was looking into the possibility of using something like
VNC to operate a desktop machine remotely on a lightweight, low cost
laptop. My hope is that this way I can purchase the best hardware most
cost effectively and still enjoy mobility. Anyway, I came across the
site below:

http://ask.metafilter.com/60688/What-are-the-limitations-of-current-remo
te-desktop-applications

I would like to invite anyone interested to provide their own comments.
Those on the site are more than a couple of years old and assume that
Windows XP is being used. I personally would prefer recommendations
based on UNIX, if that makes any difference. Some on the site would
suggest using Microsoft's Remote Desktop. I may decide to maintain a
copy of Windows on a partition of my machine, in which case Remote
Desktop may be considered an option I suppose and comments on that are
also welcome.

LogMeIn and UltraVNC appear to be the other favorites. Hamachi, an
add-on to LogMeIn was also recommended for avoiding any issues with
firewalls though someone also suggests that they may just as easily be
avoided by using a non-standard port for RDP and VNC clients. Again,
anyone care to agree or disagree?

Finally, if anyone wishes to recommend a laptop suitable for this
purpose, please let me know.

Thanks.

John 
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