Being away from your computer doesn't mean you can't use it. The best remote access software we've tested lets you control your machine or someone else's from afar.

Funk Software in Cambridge, Mass., has announced Proxy 5.0, a new version of its remote control software designed to make it easier for help desk workers to support remote desktops.

Users can simply extract the executable to any Windows machine, then run it directly. This lets system builders in the field quickly control a remote system from nearly any Internet-connected PC.

Secure Sockets Layer remote access users who use the technology for getting to their desktop applications might want to try a new product from 3am Labs - it's free.

pcAnywhere is a remote control tool that lets computers connect with hosts running Mac OS X, Linux and Windows operating systems.

Can control remote Windows XP and Windows 7 computers from the same host (in pcA concepts). Doing this simultaneously would be quite neat, but not required.

Products like pcAnywhere also face competition from the free remote-control capabilities that Microsoft Corp. has built into Windows XP, Drake added.