John Dezember

I recently started working with the Android SDK and plan to start development on two projects.

The first is an advanced shopping list app. This is more for my wife than me. She has used/tested several of these apps that are curently available on the Android Market, but while they all offer necessary functions, they lack features that should be available in a quality app.

The second is an idea that I’ve been kicking around in my head for some time now. We have a home security system that is able to be controlled by a key fob. This is much better than having to race to the keypad to punch in the code to deactivate, but doesn’t offer any features beyond the range of the system. Using a mix of hardware and software, I’d like to have full control over the system from my phone.

I look forward to these projects and will post more details as I get things rolling.

While I try to have most of the tools and resources I use regularly available in the cloud, there are some applications that I do not have control over and they must (sigh) reside only on my desktop. This only becomes an issue when I am not at the office or at home. There are so many different ways to connect to desktops remotely these days, but I prefer Windows RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol). Connecting to my desktop from my old Windows Mobile device was a breeze since a RDP client came with the OS. As a new Android user I did not want to give up this ease of access. A quick search of the Android Market yielded a single free RDP client, Remoid RDP. There are a few paid apps ranging from $7.98-$19.98US, but I’m always looking for a free lunch (or at least a snack).

Remoid RDP, is your basic RDP client. You enter an IP address (and Port if needed) to connect to your server/worstation along with your login information (domain\username if you are on a domain). The client does support sound, but I have not had the need to try this out. The theme of the remote computer is turned off to improve speed, but you can opt to keep the theme. Since your remote computer is displaying a larger resolution than your phone, you have to do a bit of scrolling (sliding your finger across the screen) in order to navigate. The mouse (movement and click) is controlled by the trackball.

Remoid RDP installed for free, but is somewhat limited. Remote sessions are limited to 10 minutes, you are not able to mount your SD card to the remote computer, and information/credentials for more than one sesssion are not saved. The limitations are removed upon registering on the developers website for $10.00US. This app does exactly what I need it to do, no frills. I only use it for quick sessions and am happy to live with the limitations, but may see the need to register in the future.

You can download Remoid RDP from the Android Market. More information can be found on the developer’s website: http://remoid.net