Synergy
If you’re like me, and you service clients on multiple platforms, you might need to have a Windows machine handy on ocassion. It’s a drag, I know.
There are many ways to solve the problem of having two simultaneous operating systems running, and I think I finally might have found the best possible way.
More than 1 way to skin a cat
Having the ability to run multiple operating systems is something that every developer faces from time to time. Web developers especially need to have access to multiple platforms to properly debug any display problems when they are designing a Web site.
Windows users are not as concerned as other Operating System users are. It’s quite simple really, developers on Windows really don’t need to be as concerned about fully-supporting Mac OS or Linux, since they are in the majority already.
Mac and Linux developers, on the other hand, are constantly coming up with ways to test their products on Windows. Some, who don’t have direct access to a PC, run emulation software such as Virtual PC to run Windows on their Macs. Others, who have direct access to a Windows system, setup switching hardware to make use of 1 keyboard, mouse and monitor. The one drawback being that the resolution supported by the switchbox hardware is typically much lower than any developer would care to use.
You can’t beat free with a stick
Well, you probably could, but… Purchasing the switchbox and cables needed to use the same mouse, keyboard and monitor for two computers running seperate operating systems can get pricey (let alone for more than two). For a decent switch box you might be looking at upwards of $35.00 (I haven’t bought one since 1998). Depending on the monitor your using, you could spend a lot more on the cables needed to allow the signal strength throughput needed to power your monitor properly. Of the few that I’ve used, the picture was far inferior when using the switch box, compared to being directly connected to the video card.
Ok, so what’s left? How else could we solve this issue? Synergy. Synergy is software which runs on most Operating Systems and enables a user to use 1 keyboard and mouse between an unlimited number of computers (I haven’t found a documented limit, although I’m only using it for 2) and an unlimited number of operating systems via TCP/IP. That’s right, it runs through your existing network.
Currently I’m using Synergy to run my iMacG4 and my Windows XP machine. Synergy does not allow for the use of 1 monitor between multiple machines, so you will need to have a screen per computer/OS. However, I don’t see this being a huge draw back, since the picture quality is so much better being directly connected.
When I first installed Synergy I thought to myself: “Wow, this is very fast.”. But after I thought about it, it’s really doing what’s been done in the past, with far less bandwidth stress. VNC server/clients have been around for years. Using any VNC client, a user could control another computer from his/her desktop regardless of Operating System. You’d have a window open with a view of the other computer’s desktop. Windows XP users might be more familiar with the Remote Desktop Connection, or Remote Desktop Assistance via MSN Messenger.
Synergy does something very similiar, except that it doesn’t need to transmit any desktop information back to the client. It only needs to keep track of coordinates. Which is far less tasking on the network, so it translates in some really nice response time. Note: If you run Synergy in Terminal/CMD you can watch Synergy track the coordinates of the mouse on the remote client systems. Mmmmm, geeky!
Synergy is also more intuitive than VNC in that it allows you to take control of the remote computer simply by moving your mouse in the direction of the monitor to which it’s associated.
Still have no clue how this all works? Check out the About Synergy page, which describes the way the software works even better than I can. Or, you can review this short Quicktime clip that I made today while drueling over the incredible simplicity of Synergy.
I feel that Synergy is one of the best, if not the best way to solve a problem that plagues a large percentage of people. The only drawback, that I’ve found so far, is if the client computer(s) become disconnected from the network - then you have to find a way to connect a mouse/keyboard to get it back online. If you don’t have any Windows XP machines, which seem to drop any Wifi connection at random, than you should have no problems at all.
Related sites
Recent features
Leah Andreone - Break Your Fall
The Format - Give It Up
Coheed and Cambria - The Velorium Camper II: Backend Of Forever
Song of the week
Sara Bareilles - Between the Lines
Sara Bareilles' "Between the Lines" is the Song of the Week for April 20 to 26.
Warning: main(images/faq.php) [function.main]: failed to open stream: No such file or directory in /home/.eastwood/cdevroe/theubergeeks.net/wp-content/themes/clockworkorange/sidebar.php on line 119
Warning: main(images/faq.php) [function.main]: failed to open stream: No such file or directory in /home/.eastwood/cdevroe/theubergeeks.net/wp-content/themes/clockworkorange/sidebar.php on line 119
Warning: main() [function.include]: Failed opening 'images/faq.php' for inclusion (include_path='.:/usr/local/lib/php') in /home/.eastwood/cdevroe/theubergeeks.net/wp-content/themes/clockworkorange/sidebar.php on line 119