Gogrok

Gogrok is a companion to Skype that gives Skype users remote-access capabilities. More than a typical plug-in but not able to stand on its own, the Skype-Gogrok combo makes for a good voice- and remote-access tech-support duo that's not quite dynamic.

Gogrok interface is reminiscent of Skype's, but requires its own login. It features a connection status indicator, docking buttons, Skype contacts importing--which is fast but must be done at every login--and three headshots indicating your status and the status of contacts you're connected to. Double-click on a contact to initiate the connection, and Gogrok will activate voice calling with Skype. Remote program control begins once you select which of your active programs, or your entire PC, should be guest-controlled.

The familiar interface doesn't help the program run smoothly. The program is highly dependent on the system resources of the computers involved. Throw in varying Internet connection speeds and stability becomes a major problem. Mouse movements were usually more responsive than keyboard inputs, and read-only access runs smoother than edit-level permissions. Labels at the top of the remote screen make program status accessible. Skype itself handles any file transfers. Also, Gogrok has two help resources, a standard user-initiated query and a feature that's activated in a child window by relevant keyboard and mouse commands.

Since so much of Gogrok's performance depends on user-end variables--memory, processor, Internet connection--we can't yet fully endorse this product for successful home-user remote access. But it's definitely worth keeping an eye on.