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Windows XP Professional - Work Smarter From Home

Intro

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Whether you work at home by choice or out of necessity, you want to be as productive as you are at your office or school, right? Microsoft Windows XP Professional makes it a snap. With Windows XP Professional, you can access and use your work computer from home, protect important work files and data on your home computer and easily get computer assistance at home from colleagues or friends. If we're speaking your language, take a closer look at Windows XP Professional's new features and tools that will help you work smarter from home in no time. To learn more, select one of the topics listed on the left hand side of the screen.

Access and Use Your Computer from Anywhere

Have you ever been working at home when you realize you urgently need a file that's on your computer at work or you need to an application that's installed only on that system? No problem with Windows XP Professional. Thanks to Windows XP Professional's breakthrough technology called "Remote Desktop", you can connect to your work computer from anywhere and work directly with files, e-mail and applications. There are only three basic requirements:
1. Your computer at work must have Windows XP Professional installed.
2. Your home computer must be running Windows 95 or higher and have the Remote Desktop Connection software installed.
And 3. You need an internet connection.
You don't even need a broadband connection to work productively, while broadband does improve performance, it's not essential, because Remote Desktop transfers only the minimal amount of data required to control the office computer. But wait you say, I don't have Remote Desktop Connection installed on my home computer! Relax! There's an easy remedy! In fact, there are two ways to get Remote Desktop Connection software. You can install the software from a Windows XP Professional or Windows XP Home Edition CD. After you insert the CD and the welcome page appears, click to perform additional tasks, click "Setup Remote Desktop Connection" and follow the step-by-step directions that appear on your screen. If you don't have a Windows XP Professional or Windows XP Home Edition CD handy, you can download and install the software using the Remote Desktop Connection software hyperlink in the additional resources section. If your home computer is running Windows XP Professional or Windows XP Home Edition, you already have the remote desktop connection software installed, so you're set! To use Remote Desktop, you need to enable Remote Desktop on your computer at work and leave that computer running and connected to the network and the internet. For security, you should lock your computer before leaving the office. Now you're all set to start a Remote Desktop session from your home computer! Once you enter the log on information for your work computer and click "Connect". Your home computer screen becomes a window into all your office computer's applications, files and resources. And because your work computer remains password-protected, no one can see the work you're doing, plus, you enjoy the satisfaction of getting your work done on time without having to rush into the office. When you need to access your work files and applications, Windows XP Professional and Remote Desktop technology makes it simple, fast and secure.

Keep Personal Files and Data Safe

Security is a serious concern, and when you work from home, guess who's responsible for insuring this security? Don't sweat it. Windows XP Professional is your best buddy when it comes to protecting your files at home! For example, you can keep your private data private whether you're on the internet, a network or using a laptop. This is capably handled by Windows XP Professional's advanced encrypting file system. Sound impressive? It is. Difficult? Hardly. Just select the data you want to encrypt by right-clicking on it, click "Properties", on the general tab click "Advanced", select the "Encrypt contents to secure data" and click "OK". That's it! Multiple layers of encryption prevent anyone without your log on and password from seeing your data even if you share your computer with other users. Unless you enjoy redoing work you've already done, you also want to protect your files from system hardware failure. Windows XP Professional's backup tool makes it easy to save backup copies to removable discs, CDs or network shares. Found in the system tools folder, the backup or restore wizard walks you through the process of saving your work, it's easy too! All you need to do is answer a few questions and your backup is complete, this means you can restore your work from the backup copies when necessary. Another feature that keeps your home computer working smoothly and securely is Windows Update services. When the latest Windows software updates become available, you can set up Windows Update services to deliver them to your desktop the next time you turn on your computer. Windows Update takes care of the rest. With powerful tools such as encrypting file system, backup and Windows Update. Windows XP Professional enables you to work at home with total peace of mind.

Get Assistance When You Need It

When you need technical assistance at work, you might get the personal assistance of a colleague or your company's help desk. But where can you get help when you're working at home? Remote Assistance in Windows XP Professional puts those very same resources close at hand. Let's say you have a friend who usually helps you work through computer problems, looking over your shoulder at your computer screen and sometimes taking over control to resolve certain problems. From within Windows Messenger, you can get the same over-the-shoulder hands-on help from your friend using the internet and Remote Assistance. You can either right-click on your friend's name and choose "Ask for Remote Assistance" or go to the actions menu and choose "Ask for Remote Assistance". After accepting your invitation, your friend can see your screen, and with you're okay, take control of your computer while you continue explaining the problem using text chat. And don't worry, at any time you can click the stop button or hit the escape key to quit the session and regain full control of your computer. You can also get Remote Assistance through Windows XP Professional's Help and Support center. Using e-mail to invite help, you have the option to set a time limit and a password. Once your invitation is accepted, you can work out the problem by giving your friend hands-on control of your computer and using text chat to explain the details. Your favorite help resources are never far away when you use Windows XP Professional's Remote Assistance!

Easily Connect to Work or School

With Windows XP Professional, you can join an existing windows-based network in practically no time! Whether the network is one that involves a couple of computers in your home or one that connects thousands of users. The network identification wizard makes the process a simple matter of answering a few questions about connecting to the network and how you want to work. Once connected, all the resources available to you at work or school are now available to you at home. You can read and respond to e-mail messages, access network shares, work with your network-based files or browse the web pages you typically access on your work or school internet. In fact, you might discover that you're more productive working at home without the distractions and interruptions of the office. And when a co-worker does contact you at home on your day off, of course, because he desperately needs a printed copy of a report in 5 minutes, do you grab the car keys and rush out the door in your pajamas? Not with Windows XP Professional! Through your connection to the company network you simply find the printer closest to him and print! Meanwhile, you don't need to worry about intruders hacking into your home computer through your internet connection. The internet connection firewall built into Windows XP Professional blocks out unwanted visitors and protects your privacy whether you use a dial-up connection, cable, modem or DSL. Windows XP Professional's easy connectivity and firewall protection enables you to work productively and securely from anywhere at any time.

Get The Most From Your Laptop

Laptops are more popular and powerful than ever. When you combine that power with the new features of Windows XP Professional, you'll experience your laptop performing at its maximum potential. But most laptops still have one shortcoming "limited battery life", and face it, you didn't buy a laptop only to be tethered to a power cord. Using power options, Windows XP Professional helps by managing the way your laptop uses power, so you can work longer without being plugged in. Using standby and hibernate helps conserve battery power and ensures your work is saved should the battery fail. Windows XP professional also provides more accurate information about the amount of charge remaining in your batteries, so you know exactly how much time you have to work. Want to go wireless and still have access to your files? More and more wireless networks are being installed in businesses, schools and other public places, but can you imagine having to reconfigure your laptop every time you need to connect to a different network? The good news, Windows XP Professional lets you quickly connect with zero configuration support, which means your laptop automatically detects and connects to wireless access points within range, no reconfiguring your computer every time you need to connect to a different wireless network! Moreover, when you can't connect to your office or school network or the internet, you can use offline files and folders to work with data and documents just as though you're online. When you are connected, just select the network-based files and folders you want to work with offline, Windows XP Professional will copy the information to your laptop before you disconnect. Using offline files and folders you can even select entire websites you want to browse offline. Now your information is as mobile as your laptop! When you reconnect to the network, the work you've done with these files is automatically synchronized with the original files on your network server, you no longer have to save multiple copies of the same file and figure out which one is most up to date. But what can you do to keep your private information secure if your laptop is lost or stolen? Just use Windows XP Professional's new encrypting file system! Encrypting a file or an entire folder is a simple matter, right-click on the item and click "Properties", on the general tab click "Advanced", select "Encrypt contents to secure data" and click "OK". Done! Multiple encryption layers make your files unreadable to everyone except you when you're logged onto your laptop with your personal user account. Windows XP Professional maximizes the power and potential of your laptop while keeping your critical information safe and secure.

Stay in Close Contact

When you want to send a message to your colleagues and friends, e-mail works great! There are times however when you need a faster response or want a more personal interaction. Windows XP Professional's Windows Messenger makes it easy for you to initiate real-time text, voice and video communication, whichever you prefer. Windows Messenger also enables you to share files, applications and whiteboards, get Remote Assistance or after work, of course, join multiplayer games. It's the next best thing to being there in person! Naturally, Windows Messenger is easy to use. Windows Messenger is presence enabled, so you can tell at a glance the online status of your contacts as well as set your own status to busy, on the phone or away. You're also notified when someone on your contact list signs into or out of Windows Messenger. Such instant communication can improve your day-to-day contact with co-workers, perhaps even your social life. Because Windows Messenger makes it not only possible, but simple to communicate in many different ways, you can choose what's best for each situation, including improved voice and video quality to enhance your experience. For example, you can send colleagues quick messages using text and insert emoticons to lighten up the message. Or you can communicate by voice or video with anyone in the world who has Windows Messenger running, you'll feel like you're in the same room with colleagues and friends at meetings, presentations or in one-on-one conversations. After establishing a connection, you can share an application or file, or initiate a whiteboard session. With so many high-quality ways to communicate instantly, Windows Messenger is an invaluable tool that helps you stay in touch when working from home.