Many developers face the issue of having two computers and monitors, but only one keyboard. If your Mac computer desktop is split across a dual screen and you have another screen for another Mac computer, using two sets of keyboard is cumbersome. However there are open source solutions which easily solve this problem for Mac computer owners.
You will need
- Two or more Mac computers running MacOS X
- Mac compatible keyboard
- Teleport Utility Software
Instructions
- Download and install Teleport on both Mac computers .
- You should now have the teleport System Preference Pane on both Macs. Click Teleport to select the software.
- Ensure that both Macs are on the same network and check the Activate Teleport check box in the Teleport System Preference.
- Both Macs need permission to communicate with each other. How this is achieved depends on the version of MacOS X.
- On tiger, open your System Preferences > Sharing preference pane > Firewall. Click the New button and select Other from the Port Name pull down Menu. In the TCP Port Number(s) text field type 44176-44177. Type Teleport in the description text field and then click OK.
- Once the above is completed, ensure the Teleport entry is checked in the menu below where Personal File Sharing appears.
- On leopard, after Activate Teleport is checked, you will be prompted by a window that asks: “Do you want the application teleprtd.app to accept incoming network connections?”
- Answer with Always Allow so that you can control the machine form another Mac.
- On the second Mac, click the Share this Mac check box to make it available to the Teleport software on the first Mac.
- Wait a few moments before the Macs see each other on the network.
- On the first Mac, with the Teleport Preference Pane selected, click the Layout tab. The window below the tabs should be divided into two halves. You should see a small icon that represents the monitor of the second Mac at the top of the window. The box in the bottom half represents the monitor on the first Mac.
- There will be multiple icons if you have more that one monitor. Click and grad the monitor icon of Mac number 2 down to the left of monitor icon for the first Mac.
- There should be monitor icons for both Macs side by side in the bottom half of the screen. Close system preferences.
- To Teleport between Macs, move your mouse to the left of your first Mac screen. Mouse and keyboard control should switch to the second Mac. You should now have control of the second Mac using the first Mac’s keyboard and mouse. You may return to the first Mac by moving the mouse to the right of the screen on the second Mac.
Do
- Check the firewall settings of each computer to ensure they’re both on the same network if they will not connect to each other through Teleport.
- Check the read me file that comes with the Teleport download for additional configuration options and removal instructions.
- Ensure you only access your own computers.
