OK, I really need to figure out how to get this working on my desk. It would clear up huge headaches.

10-second description: a little (software) utility that lets you share one keyboard and one mouse across multiple machines (and their respective monitors).

Basically, my desk is set up 1-2-3. 1 is the monitor for my IBM laptop, which is VPN'd into the IBM network. 2 is my new sweetness, a 22" widescreen behemoth feeding video from and serving as an extention of number 3, my bank (the client I work for) laptop screen. Yes, I have three screens on my desk. One is for IBM, the other two for client work. Technically, I have four screens on my desk. But I'm only using three of them.

There are a couple problems I've been wrestling with, though: I don't have a docking station for the IBM laptop, which means that even though I'm not using the built-in screen, I need to have the laptop open (and taking up space on my desk). Not ideal, considering I could have it closed with the monitor it feeds sitting on top of it.

Problem number two is that this solution, no matter how elegant it is, just won't work for me - because both machines tunnel through different VPNs, there would be no way to link them up together (other than over the internet, which I'm sure wouldn't work - they would need to talk to each other both on the home network - so I can attach them to their respective VPNs - and then they would drop their connection to one another).

The only solution I can think of that MIGHT work would be to hide the IBM machine somewhere and VNC into it via a local machine. But that would mean another machine and another network connection on my desk (see why I'm putting so many network connections in the office now, Pablo?). :)

So basically, set up a dumb terminal on my desk that does nothing but relay the VNC output from the IBM laptop, and use that as the client - that way I don't have to worry about logging on to the VPN screwing me up.

Shoot - will I even be able to VNC into the IBM laptop anymore after I connect to the VPN? (I gave you the geek alert). Probably not. Which means this whole post is moot anyway, dammit. What a nuisance.

Labels: geek alert, rant