ShowMyPC allows you to access a PC's desktop from another machine, allowing you to perform fixes for another user, check your home PC from work or handle dozens of other remote tasks safely and easily. The open-source program is completely free and contains a number of flexible, powerful features.

To use the program, you need to install it on the computer that you want to access remotely. After a quick installation, you can hit "Show My PC Now" to open up access to the host computer. The other user will hit a similar button reading "View Remote PC" and follow the onscreen instructions to obtain access.

ShowMyPC is a secure program and generates safe passwords to prevent unauthorized computer users from accessing the host PC. Hosts can also choose to share a certain application without giving the remote user access to the computer's entire desktop. This is a great feature if you're looking for a remote desktop client for tech support. There's also a chat whiteboard, which allows you to communicate with another computer user.

ShowMyPC has a very simple interface. This is certainly an advantage in some respects, but advanced users will need to do a little digging to configure proxies and carry out other complex functions. Still, those features are there, even if they aren't particularly user friendly.

The program doesn't look great from an aesthetic standpoint, but it certainly works. A lot of remote desktop programs are hard to set up, and ShowMyPC is remarkably easy for first-time users. It's also free, which is certainly a significant advantage over similar programs. If you need to quickly access another machine, ShowMyPC is a great option. There are better-looking programs out there, but overall this is a great example of an open source option that gets the job done as well as paid programs.