September 12, 2011 at 18:53Microsoft has implemented an analogue of Synergy (managing multiple PCs with one mouse)
As part of the Microsoft Garage initiative, the Mouse without Borders (MWB) utility was developed , which allows you to control four computers with a single mouse and keyboard. The concept reminds the well-known open-source program Synergy , which was already discussed on Habré.
Unlike Synergy, Microsoft development is easier to install and configure, and also has a number of additional features: for example, dragging files with the mouse from one desktop to another, simultaneous authorization on all computers or PrtScreen from any screen. The disadvantage compared to Synergy is obvious: MWB runs on only one Windows platform, while Synergy supports Linux and Mac.
It should be added that Microsoft Garage is a kind of copy of the famous Google initiative, in which employees can spend 20% of their time developing their own projects. So the Mouse without Borders program was created by Microsoft employees in their free time from the main work 1 and primarily for internal corporate use - almost all Microsoft employees have more than one computer in their office, at least a desktop and laptop.
This program has been used by Microsoft employees for quite some time (the previous version was called Magic Mouse), but now they decided to open it to the general public.
Download Mouse Without Borders (1.1 MB)
Mouse without Borders demo:
PS A similar program for "poppies" with a simple interface: teleport .
Analog for Windows with a simple interface: Input Director .
1 In some American companies, employees sign a contract under which even programs created outside working hours at home are formally the intellectual property of the employer . Thus, employees automatically (again, formally) do not have the right to participate in Open Source projects, because when they commit the code, they alienate the intellectual property of the company. However, this paragraph was actually invented to protect the company from fraud on the part of the employee, and it is almost never used in cases where the employee has done some completely extraneous project and did not use the resources of the employer.
Unlike Synergy, Microsoft development is easier to install and configure, and also has a number of additional features: for example, dragging files with the mouse from one desktop to another, simultaneous authorization on all computers or PrtScreen from any screen. The disadvantage compared to Synergy is obvious: MWB runs on only one Windows platform, while Synergy supports Linux and Mac.
It should be added that Microsoft Garage is a kind of copy of the famous Google initiative, in which employees can spend 20% of their time developing their own projects. So the Mouse without Borders program was created by Microsoft employees in their free time from the main work 1 and primarily for internal corporate use - almost all Microsoft employees have more than one computer in their office, at least a desktop and laptop.
This program has been used by Microsoft employees for quite some time (the previous version was called Magic Mouse), but now they decided to open it to the general public.
Download Mouse Without Borders (1.1 MB)
Mouse without Borders demo:
PS A similar program for "poppies" with a simple interface: teleport .
Analog for Windows with a simple interface: Input Director .
1 In some American companies, employees sign a contract under which even programs created outside working hours at home are formally the intellectual property of the employer . Thus, employees automatically (again, formally) do not have the right to participate in Open Source projects, because when they commit the code, they alienate the intellectual property of the company. However, this paragraph was actually invented to protect the company from fraud on the part of the employee, and it is almost never used in cases where the employee has done some completely extraneous project and did not use the resources of the employer.