LogMeIn Ignition lets you access your desktop from a mobile device, reveals Nick Pride, managing director at direct marketing agency DMS
Eventually I’m sure it will be possible to open a large Excel spreadsheet on your iPad, take all of your network files and desktop applications with you when you leave the office, make a phone call while looking up the bus routes, and do all of that on one device. An iPCPhone perhaps? Until then, you might get close with LogMeIn Ignition. This handy app gives you access to your desktop(s) from your smartphone or tablet.
Design
The whole point of LogMeIn is to be as invisible as possible. Once your login is set up, then there’s a single screen where you choose which of your desktops you want to access. It is worth noting that your desktop needs to be turned on – it’s the only thing the app cannot do for you. Once you have clicked the screen icon the software opens your PC screen. It will even unlock your screensaver if necessary.
At this point you can do everything: open files from the network, use software that only works on your desktop, read your emails and make appointments without the hassles of webmail. You can now open the document you forgot to take to the meeting and show it to your client.
A decent Internet connection is needed and this will definitely improve the overall experience. It is also worth bearing in mind if you are using an iPad, there is a bit of awkwardness when navigating round the screen, especially if you’re trying to scroll. However, there is an alternative keyboard layout, which displays the page up/down and arrow keys, and lets you zoom in to the screen to make it easier to select exactly the right option.
Functionality
It is simple, professional, secure, and most importantly it works. You do pay for the service, but you get what you pay for. The update for iOS5 was ready on the day that the new operating system was launched. Download and installation is straightforward too.
It will work on a 3G signal, and it changes screen resolutions to keep response times to a minimum.
The least satisfying aspect is when you want to scroll, or to move an open window. Once a window is open you can change its size, but for the life of me I can’t work out how to change its position. To scroll down, you need to be able to see the whole of your desktop, so you sometimes have to change the screen resolution manually to bring it all into view.
I’ve used LogMeIn since it first launched as a tool for IT support professionals to work with remote users. It is a good lesson in business strategy to watch how LogMeIn extended the idea to offer a free version to people who needed to help others with their computers. Now it’s found a new target audience: people who want to use all of their IT even if it won’t all fit on a single device. It’s retained my interest in its service with the ‘family help-desk’ version, and now it has me back as a paying customer. Nice.
Overall opinion
Apart from the inevitable dependency on an Internet connection, this is as close as you will get to having all the capabilities of your desktop on a single portable device.
Yes, there are some frustrations, but they are negligible compared to the huge benefit of being able to work with every one of your documents and applications, irrespective of the capability of the little piece of kit on your lap. And, if you’re connecting to your work machine, then you can connect to your home machine as well. Who needs cloud computing?
