TweetMyPC, a free utility that lets you control a Windows computer from anywhere has just been ported to Mac. The new app is called TweetMyMac and, like its elder Windows cousin, you can use TweetMyMac to send commands to your Macbook over the web from any other computer or even a mobile phone (via a text message).
The Mac-Twitter Workflow
It works like this. You install the app on your Mac and associate it with your Twitter account*. Now you can send a regular tweet with the command wrapped in (for example, shutdown or sleep). The utility running on the Mac will check for your tweets at frequent intervals and will perform the required action on the remote Mac computer as soon as it finds some command in the twitter stream.
*It is recommended that you create a separate Twitter id (with “protected” updates) for sending remote commands to your Mac.
Send Remote Commands to your Mac
Here are some useful commands that you may send to your Mac via TweetMyMac:
1. Shutdown (to shutdown your Mac immediately without saving any files) or Sleep (for putting your Mac in sleep mode).
2. iSight – This is great if you want to know what’s happening in the surroundings. Send the iSight command and the app will take a picture with the built-in iSight web camera and will upload it to Twitpic.
3. Screenshot – If you want to know what applications are open on your Mac desktop, send the “screenshot” command – the picture of your desktop will again be uploaded to twitpic.
The app is in beta (so expect some bugs) and obviously it should always be running on your Mac computer for receiving commands.
Find this article at: http://www.labnol.org/internet/remotely-control-your-mac/9569/
Tags: Archives, Email, mac, remote desktop, sms, twitter, webcam, Internet
Reader Comments
This is a super cool tool! Thanks for the mac update.
Written by Judith on 08.30.09
Is TweetMyPC or TweetMyMac safe? I’m afraid some hacker can use this tool to do something bad to our PC or Mac.
Written by mancing gembira on 08.30.09
“You install the app on your Mac and associate it with your Twitter account” it does not work this way.
here is how it works – you make a new twitter account (ex: akmal-mac-control), then connect it to TweetMyMac and from this account you only follow your normal twitter account (ex:akmalwardak),i can send a dm to akmal-mac-control from my akmalwardak account containing a command such as “shutdown”, TweetMyMac will scan akmal-mac-control and read any dm’s and then follow up with executing the command.
Written by Akmal Wardak on 08.30.09