Build Date: Wed Dec 3 10:00:11 2025 UTC
Of course, it is always easier to whine... Goodness knows we prove that on Pigdog-l every Goddamn Day.
-- Johnnie Royale
Coolio VNC! It's the MAN
1999-08-10 19:55:52
All right, I know that remote-access software is not only insecure and bloatacious, but it's also REALLY OLD and BORING technology. But I don't CARE! I love VNC!
VNC is the Virtual Network Computer. It's a protocol and a set of software components (clients and servers on various platforms) for remote access to a computer. That means that a user on one computer can use a completely OTHER computer as if it were the SAME computer.
Like, move the mouse on this computer, the OTHER computer thinks you moved the mouse there. Type here, the words come out THERE, and you can see it on your monitor HERE. Does that make sense? Of COURSE IT DOES.
VNC was originally developed at Olivetti for some project or another, but they quickly realized that it was too cool to leave mouldering as part of some grandiose graphic computer vision, so they released it under the GNU Public License. When Olivetti's labs got bought by AT&T, or something like that, the AT&T kept VNC out in the public, and has continued work on it. Huzzah for them!
Now, sure, there's a ton of remote access options out there, ranging from freako expensive stuff like pcAnywhere, to "system administration" tools like Microsoft's SMS Server and, uh, Back Orifice 2000, to general-purpose remote desktop stuff like X-windows. But I like VNC!
There's a lot of reasons why. A) It's free. I mean, Free, like Free Software free, under GPL. B) It's Open Source, so I'm not as worried about security hassles as with proprietary, closed systems. C) It's real easy to set up and use.
D) Unlike X-windows, there's Free (note caps) clients available on a lot of platforms. I've fucked around with "X servers" (which would be the "client" for any decent and logical architecture) for Windows too many times. I'm sick of it. Fuck it. I'll stick with VNC. Finally, E) There's a ton of VNC SERVERS available for different platforms. That means I can manage my NT boxen from my Linux boxen and vice versa. Cool!
They even have a Javur applet all BUILT IN and shit, which means that you can manage a VNC-serving machine just by connecting to it with a Javur-enabled browser. A whole computer in your Javur applet! Beaujolais to that!
Now, sure, there's a lot of security hassles with having a server that allows your computer to be hijacked from other computers. Fucking DUH. But there are ways to alleviate that risk. I use a firewall for the main VNC port, then use SSH to tunnel through. It's encrypted, fairly secure, and it's extra super fun. I only keep the VNC server going while I'm working, so it's fairly (knock-on- wood) OK.
I recommend this product or service! Go check out VNC today!
T O P S T O R I E S
The Crossroads are real and The Blues is a place; The enduring myth of Robert Johnson (More...)
California Glory Hole attracts huge crowds
A glory hole at Napa's Lake Berryessa is drawing huge crowds. According to Chris Lee, the general manager for the Solano County Water Agency, the glory hole hasn't been active since 2019, and only restarted operations on Feb 4. (More...)
Republican State Senator busted after soliciting a teenage girl
Republican State Senator Justin Eichorn of Minnesota was arrested for soliciting a teen girl on Monday just hours after he introduced a bill proposing "Trump derangement syndrome" (TDS) as a form of mental illness. (More...)
Parents claim measles is not that bad after having only one child die
The parents of a Texas girl who died from the measles are defending their decision not to vaccinate their daughter. "She says they would still say 'Don't do the shots,'" an unidentified translator for the parents said. "They think it’s not as bad as the media is making it out to be." (More...)
Delusional rich man tries to fire town staff
"I'm mayor now" said write-in mayoral candidate and founder of Pirate’s Booty Snacks Robert Ehrlich after losing the election for Mayor of Sea Cliff, NY. Then he tried to take over the Village Hall and fire everyone. (More...)
Musk claims Xitter security is staffed by idiots
Earlier this month Xitter experienced a massive outage. In an interview, Musk told Fox Business that he believes the attack came from "IP addresses originating in the Ukraine area." (More...)
C L A S S I C P I G D O G
The quest for knowledge never ends at the super top secret Spock Mountain Laboratory, although it is frequently interrupted by beverage breaks. Recently, a team of crack ethnomixologists returned from a dangerous expedition to the frozen expanse of Canada with the much sought recipe for a Spocktail that is destined to replace blunt force head trauma as the major cause of brain damage in the civilized world. (More...)
The Deep Dark Underbelly of the Star Wars Myth, or Ramayana Remembered
It's a fact: Star Wars is a blatant plagiarism of an ancient Asian legend, and the long lines of devout Star Wars freaks are really unscrupulous Asian copyright busters. From Indonesia to Thailand to Nepal, videos are available for sale or rent before they're even released in the US and UK due to this nerdy camcorder-clutching bunch. (More...)
About 14 years ago when I was on a road trip and stopped in Seattle, I was invited to a party. At this party there were these little tiny glasses sitting in a flat-bottomed bowl of ice. Thin cylinders about an inch in diameter and 4 inches tall, with thick glass at the bottom. Into these were poured frozen AKVAVIT... also known as the water of life. (More...)
Brother Wayne Lays Down the Truth
Flesh interviews Wayne Kramer of MC5. (More...)
Tastes like key lime pie, gets you hammered like nobody's business: Introducing the Key Lime Spocktail! (More...)
Patient Joab's scientifick editorial discusses aspect of the space-time-beer continuum never before processed by sub-bush-robot minds!!! Too fabulantastic to contempulate! (More...)
