Remote Desktop Connection

On Monday I installed a really neat piece of software on my Mac laptop. It is called "Remote Desktop Connection" and allows me to use my Mac to log into a Windows Server machine. The latest software project I am working on is with Microsoft SQL Server and that means I need to have access to a Windows machine.

The latest version of the Mac operating system has a feature called "Open Spaces." This basically allows me to have four virtual displays on one screen. It is very useful to keep from having a lot of programs cluttering up your screen at the same time. You can start your e-mail in one display and then go to another virtual display to run your web browser. Once you have all your programs running, you can easily switch between them using the "command" and the "tab" keys. Linux has had this feature for a while and I am glad to see it moving into other operating systems.

So I started my browser in screen one and Remote Desktop Connection in screen two. Then my younger son came down to my office to visit. I showed him that I was running Windows in one screen and Mac OS X in another. He thought that was pretty cool.

My older son came down later and saw me working in Windows and thought I had erased my Mac OS and replaced it with Windows (something I wouldn't recommend). When I showed him I was actually running both at the same time, he was relieved. He will probably be taking my Mac laptop to college and favors the Max OS over Windows.

Remote Desktop Connection really is an elegant little program. Without it I would have been forced to load a bunch of software on one of my Windows computers and that would have taken a lot of time. Instead I was able to take a few minutes and instantly become productive with the help of an already configured server. Now I need to get back to work.