Using NetMeeting, computer user group members reach out through the Internet to those who are having trouble with their Windows PCs.
By DAVE GUSSOW
Published August 30, 2004
John Chittenden's hot key wasn't working so hot, and he had no clue how to fix it.
The keyboard button opened the Outlook Express e-mail program, not its more robust big brother Outlook. While Chittenden got no help from his Internet service provider, he found the solution through his computer user group.
Chittenden, a retired teacher from Safety Harbor, sat back and watched as Dave Dockery, president of the Tampa Bay Computer Society, maneuvered around his PC. But Chittenden and Dockery of Palm Harbor were miles apart. No house call required.
Dockery connected online with Chittenden's PC using NetMeeting, a free Microsoft program designed mainly for video conferencing. Dockery, a longtime organizer of events such as the free Random Acts of Kindness PC repair clinics, initially saw it as a way to do in-home teaching for older users new to computing.
However, most people have wanted assistance with system maintenance and repair, particularly with this year's outbreak of spyware, viruses and other malware.
"I can get to anybody online," Dockery said. "It is not very difficult."
Dockery, who has recruited about a dozen members to act as cybermentors, plans to make a presentation in October when the Florida Association of Computer User Groups meets in Clearwater.
"Computer user groups are dying across the country," Dockery said. "Here's an area where a computer user group is a natural coalition to do this kind of thing."
It's a selling point for membership, which is usually cheaper (the computer society is $30 a year) than commercial services that can charge by $40 an hour or more, or services that can cost more than $100 for a home visit.
They use NetMeeting because it's easy to use and it's available for Windows versions going back to 98. Remote Assistance on XP is a similar program but is available only on XP.
Here's how it works (and only Tampa Bay Computer Society members can participate in the group's program):
Click Start, then Run, and type in CONF. That brings up NetMeeting. After following the setup procedure, the user needs to find the computer's Internet protocol number, which identifies it on the network. A simple way to do that is to go to the Web site WhatIsMyIP.com.
With that number, the mentor sends a message asking to be allowed to access the computer. The person on the receiving end has to agree, and a connection is then made. The PC owner has to agree to give control to the mentor, who then can show someone like Chittenden how to use Outlook features such as the Calendar and Address Book.
"That's pretty slick, no doubt about it," Chittenden said as he watched his screen change while listening to Dockery on the phone.
For others, such as Pat Hardy of Countryside, Dockery had to scan for viruses and other problems that had hijacked her home page and caused her system to slow to a crawl.
It took a few hours, and the toll was staggering: 58 viruses, 30 spyware/adware applications and dozens of items in settings that were cleaned up.
"I think this is really neat," Hardy said.
So far, the mentor program has worked with people across town and beyond - Delaware, Georgia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Puerto Rico.
"There are some people concerned about privacy issues and you have to allay their fears that it's safe," Dockery said. If the person receiving help gets uncomfortable, she can click a button to stop access.
Already, Dockery says, the program has helped a physically impaired member set up a Webcam and another is mentoring her parents across the state.
Chittenden found the Outlook lesson useful, but he noted there is a difference between watching and doing.
"I have to do it five, six times before it really sinks in," he said.
