Winextra » remote assistance

The Crossloop Community

billy2 — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 20:28:42 +0000

When I first reviewed Crossloop, there was little more to it than a very simple, yet very functional Remote Assistance program. It holds a place in my ‘toolkit’ and I usually install it on customer computers for possible remote repairs.

Since that initial post, some pretty amazing things have happened over at Crossloop.com. Nearly 33 million minutes of “help time” have been amassed via the Crossloop interface by 600,000 users in approaching 2 million help sessions. Take a look at the top of the Crossloop home page to see these metrics climbing at a steady pace.

The lion’s share of the credit for these fantastic numbers goes to the Help Marketplace. 5000-plus “helpers” who are experts on tech-related subjects from Windows troubleshooting to Blackberry issues can be looked up in the marketplace.

Now these experts aren’t in it just for fun, mind you, you get to pay them….but think about it this way….you can spend 30usd (helpers set their own rates, from free on-up) for RA help on line at your own desk, or take your virus-ridden box to the local shop and pay them 100 bucks or more. Don’t get me wrong, a couple of my good friends work in or own those shops, but now you have choices. And to be honest, when some n00b brings in yet another Dell (sorry Dan) with yet another infection of the smitfraud virus, there are sighs of resignation from all corners of the shop.

There are experts at *nix systems, programming, web design, and networking. Try having a local shop help you set up a home network. They’ll want your first born male child just to come to your house. After all, they’ve got things to do, too.

With all the talk about monetization in the bsphere of late, the question comes up, “How’s the Crossloop team going to support this steadily growing community?” Think EBay. The front-end billing/transaction stuff is not in place yet, but will be soon, where the ‘Helpers’ pay a small fee for each completed help session, similar to an online auction. Feedback and suggestions on this topic and others are being listened to from registered Helpers and Customers as well. There will also be dispute processes in place, for the (hopefully) rare occasion when something goes wrong in the agreements between Customers and Helpers. According to Mrinal Desai, Co-Founder and VP at Crossloop, this period of fee-free Helping could be great for everyone:

This also allows our Helpers to build a solid reputation (do more sessions, collect customer testimonials and ratings on their profile etc.) in the process without incurring any fees since a lot is going to be about that for Customers. Once that is ready, we plan to provide ample notice with details on the fee structure etc to all our Helpers.

However, all signs point to the Crossloop software remaining a free download in perpetuity.

Harkening back to my original review of Crossloop itself, a couple things that have presented to me and a few associates since the initial post bear sharing.

One, it’s tough to use Crossloop with the far-left spectrum of computer users. You know, the ones that don’t ‘get it’ when you try to tell them that the computer is still on when you shut off the monitor? Those folks. You know them. I sure do. I’m not certain how Crossloop could be made any easier to use, but this won’t be much of an issue for most Crossloop Marketplace users. If they made it there, they’re probably at least somewhat savvy on tech.

I’ve also gotten a couple reports that some types of Internet connections don’t play well with Crossloop. Dialup is obviously out, (the Crossloop FAQ says it works, but they don’t recommend it) but the one that surprised me is Satellite Broadband. Seems it makes the connection, but drops it in short order. I can see this being an issue. One reason a person may turn to RA is that they live out in the sticks, far from a repair shop, meaning DSL and Cable are not likely to be available. Other RA apps don’t seem to have this issue, so perhaps it can be addressed.

So if you’ve got a bit of free time, a desire to help others, offset the cost of gas, save up for that new gaming rig, and consider yourself knowledgeable about anything having to do with computers, networking, blog setup…or anything related, stop by Crossloop and sign up. There are even resources like promotional tools and customer leads to help you sell yourself and create a business.

Or, if you’re totally stuck on something, peruse the Marketplace and find an expert to help you out of the jam!

The Crossloop Community is a post from: winextra
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Crossloop: Revisited

billy2 — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 04:17:56 +0000

The folks over at Crossloop have released a new version of their fabulous remote assistance utility that we reviewed here a while back. As this handy little tool is one of our “Software Suggestions” in the sidebar, we tend to keep an eye on it, and I’m glad we did. Nearly 13 million minutes have been logged in using Crossloop, so they’re doing it right, I’d wager.

Now, for those of you that just opened another tab and rushed over to Crossloop.com and downloaded the latest version, you’re probably coming back about now to find out what the hell I’m talking about. Doesn’t look too much different, does it? They *did* change ‘JOIN’ and ‘HOST’ to ‘ACCESS’ and ‘SHARE’. Apparently, this was of critical importance to some users, and Crossloop was listening. Myself, the old titles made more sense, but that’s just me. Moving on.

No, there aren’t any groundbreaking changes to the program itself, besides, how can you improve on something so close to perfection? I’ve already used Crossloop to help out 5 or 6 friends or family members since I did the initial review, and I’ll never be without it again, I daresay.

What’s changed, is the support. No, not tech support for the solitary person who can’t figure Crossloop out, support for your customers.

Ever hear of “Genius Bars”? According to Wiki:

The Genius Bar is a station located inside every Apple Retail Store, the purpose of which is to offer help and support for Apple products.

What we have here, folks… ….is the Crossloop Bar. Okay, it’s not really for Apple products. Aaaaand it’s not in an Apple store either. Okay, the similarities are pretty thin, but you catch my drift. You can now sign up for a free account at Crossloop.com to be the guy (or girl) behind the Genius Bar. Signing up for the account allows to you track your R.A. sessions and promote your web presence.

You use the Crossloop Badge to “advertise yourself” by placing it on your blog or other website. Each time you use Crossloop, your badge will automatically update itself.

Bill’s Software Review: Crossloop

billy2 — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 04:29:37 +0000

Chances are very good that since you’re reading this post, you posses at least a modicum of computer knowledge. Most of you, likely much more than that. That in mind, I’m sure that many of you, like me, have heard the dreaded words, “Hey, I’m having this problem with my computer….”

Alright. There are two basic responses us techies generally lean towards. Some will perk up a bit and start fishing for more useful information, pleased to have the opportunity to show off some of their stuff. Others instantly develop a searing pain in the pit of their guts, and frantically begin scanning the room for the nearest window to leap out of, mindless of glass-inflicted lacerations, already imagining phrases like “The cup holder on my PC won’t retract!”

In the end, many of us relent, and may turn to remote assistance tools. I’ve used one or two of them, and I eventually got them working, but configuring on my end was a PITA, and even harder to walk a n00b through configuration over the phone 1000 miles away.

On their website, Crossloop has a blurb from a user comment that states “Brilliant little application. How could I ever live without it?”. I may not go that far, but even having not heard of it until a few days ago, it’s going in my ‘keeper’ file.

In the creation of this handy little utility, the designers of Crossloop appear to have successfully stuck to the mantra “K.I.S.S.” – Keep It Simple, Stupid. Perhaps they’ve stuck to it a tad too aggressively, but I digress for the moment.

The installer is less than 3 megs, quick to download and easy to drop onto a USB stick and take with you. Installation was done here in about 20 seconds.

The interface is very simple, but don’t let it fool you. It might be dressed like a Volkswagen, but it’s packin’ a Hemi! Upon opening Crossloop, you are presented with 2 fields, already pre-filled for you. The program generates a 12 digit code for you, which ensures that only the computer you wish has access to Crossloop’s servers and your machine.

There is no configuration needed at either end, and the connection was established in seconds. I had full access to all aspects of the remote machine, the connection remained open without a hitch for over 30 minutes.

Crossloop does have a few options, such as a wide variety of available languages, and several skins to choose from.

Since security is such a big issue with utils like this, here’s what Crossloop themselves have to say about the subject:

Crossloop is powered by the proprietary Crossloop VIP Tunnel, a secure peer-to-peer data transmission system. Crossloop encrypts all files and messages exchanged on our network to ensure user privacy. Only you and your invited friends or family can view or share control of your computer. A Crossloop session can only begin on your computer by explicitly inviting them to begin a session. All data sent over the Crossloop network is encrypted at the endpoints using a 128-bit Blowfish encryption. For more detailed information on Crossloop security, visit our security page.

Another tidbit many of you may enjoy is the knowledge that Crossloop uses an open-source VNC (Virtual Network Computing) viewer and server combination from TightVNC. Score another one for the Open-Source movement!

In short, this *is* a brilliant little program. I’m quite certain I’ve been won over, and will undoubtedly make use of it. While the intent was to make it absolutely painless to use, if you’re accustomed to being elbow-deep in things, you may feel that Crossloop lacks a bit in the bells & whistles area, but I feel confident that you’ll like it anyway.

Pros:

Small, easy, stable, free.

Cons:

Veterans may yearn for more options.

Bill’s Software Review: Crossloop is a post from: winextra
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