Can GoToMyPC Aid Family Tech Support?

I love talking to my parents on the phone, but I never seem to have enough time to talk as long as I'd like. When we add computer questions and fixes into the conversation, time grows even shorter—and often a little frustrating—for all of us.

My folks are in Florida. I'm in New Jersey. I set them up with a Dell laptop computer during our spring vacation, and offered my long-distance support as much as needed. I know I haven't delivered, and I'm sure my mom doesn't ask me all the questions she truly has because she knows my days are filled with work and kid activities.

After a few long computer phone sessions—one successful to download updated security software, and another, unsuccessful, to download iZoom freeware to magnify their computer screen—I wondered if there was a better way to help.

Which made me think of GoToMyPC. I've seen friends on vacation use GoToMyPC, which allows you to access work computers from home computers (and vice versa, if you choose). And I know it's a good way for employees whose companies do not have VPN access to work computers to work from home or the road without copying or emailing oodles of files before they walk out the door. But I wondered if it could work for family members who are trying to troubleshoot computer questions from miles away.

GoToMyPC's Michelle Knab and Katie Davis, who helped launch the web-based, real-time remote access service five years ago, assured me that is indeed one of the ways it is being used. Davis used it to keep tabs on email and work flow during her maternity leave, which helped her make a smoother transition back to work. She said she and her husband also plan to install it on her mother-in-law's computer so they can do what I'm hoping to do.

I'd like to be able to help my parents download and organize photos, download software, and keep up with their PC maintenance. And solve any other problems they have throughout the year. Moving files between computers can be as easy as dragging an icon from the main computer's desktop to the other computer's desktop with GoToMyPC, so I'm eager to see how quickly our troubleshooting sessions can go.

Another option for a family member who has more than one relative she turns to for tech advice: She can click on a "guest invite" feature to invite someone to access her computer from the remote computer.

Sounds like just the thing we're looking for. GoToMyPC offers a free 30-day trial, so we'll be trying it out. Subscriptions cost $20 a month or $180 for a year.

Stay tuned for part two of this post after I test it out with my parents. Until then, if anyone has put GoToMyPC to work to help family members troubleshoot computer issues, post away.