SharedAppVnc 1.0

SharedAppVnc is a remote collaboration tool. SharedAppVnc project allows sharing of applications between remote participants. In a typical usage scenario, two or more remote collaborators would run SharedAppVnc on their desktop computers while participating in a phone or conference call.

After establishing SharedAppVnc connections, possibly through ssh-tunnels, they would be able to share (replicate) windows between the remote desktops. The shared windows could optionally be controlled by the remote viewers, or they could be set to view-only.

SharedAppVNC is based on VNC (Virtual Network Computer), but with a modified VNC protocol that allows for window sharing. The main advantage of SharedAppVnc over traditional VNC is its ability to share individual windows rather than the entire desktop. Users typically have some applications which should remain private, such as email, and some applications they would like to share. Normal VNC is only able to share a users entire desktop and thus does not lend itself well to a combination of shared and private data.

SharedAppVnc has two components: a server for sharing windows and a client for viewing windows. The SharedAppVnc Server runs on a collaborators desktop computer and allows them to select which windows from the desktop to share. Only windows they select will be visible to the other collaborators.

The SharedAppVnc Viewer runs on the other collaborators computers and allows them to receive the shared windows. Typically collaborators will run both the Server and Viewer so that they can share and receive windows. One nice feature of the SharedAppVnc Viewer is that it puts each received window in its own frame which can be resized or positioned independently of the size or position of windows on the server or the other clients. Both the Server and Viewer can listen for or initiate connections.

SharedAppVnc versions are currently available for Linux and Mac OS X platforms. We are in the process of adding support for Windows OS.

Usage:

The Linux version of SharedAppVnc requires running three pieces of software: the server, viewer and control applet. The server, which allows windows to be shared, will be started automatically when the X11 server starts (X11 must first be configured to use SharedAppVnc).

The viewer is a java application that is started from the command line. It receives and displays shared windows. The control applet is a GUI that lets the user control the server. It lets the user select which windows to share or hide, or which viewers to connect to.