Real Control Freaks!
by Gary Woods

These days a lot of you are using more than one computer in your work place. The problem comes when you end up with several keyboards and several mice wandering around on your desk. I've used what's called a Keyboard/Video/Mouse (KVM) switch for years but I just came across a piece of software that may be even cooler.

The software is called Multiplicity Pro by Stardock Corp., Inc www.stardock.com $69.95 direct and if you work with two, three or more computers you should check it out. Multiplicity Pro works with Microsoft Windows 2000 or XP, and as long as your computers are correctly networked, installing Multiplicity is simple.

A Wizard walks you through the steps of configuring the primary and secondary machines and for security; you can require a password for connection to the secondary machines. Back at the primary machine, you select the secondary machines to use and decide how you'll switch among them. In the seamless switch mode, moving the cursor off-screen with the mouse causes it to jump to the next machine in that direction. Once the secondary machines are configured, you can literally pack away their keyboards and mice, relieving desktop clutter.

Your computers will continue to work independently and you can even copy and paste between machines but you can't drag and drop. Stardock also makes a $39.95 Standard version that controls just one secondary machine and doesn't include the ability to copy files between PCs.

If you have any suggestions or questions for me please drop me a note at garyandlaury@santabarbaraproperties.com or see my column on the Internet at http://www.santabarbaraproperties.com or call me at (805) 729-0910