Monday, September 15th, 2008
Let’s take a look at how easy it is to create your own private BitTorrent file sharing network using Remobo. With popular services like AllPeers now gone, we see it as an opportunity for this app to step in and fill the void.
The best thing about this method is that Remobo is actually a platform, leaving you free to use any BT client you prefer. Of course, like any other app that runs on top of this platform, it requires no configuration nor networking knowledge to get up and running. This method below works on both Windows and Mac OS X.
Getting Started
Say you want to share the latest and greatest movie trailer, tv show, music video or whatever else you can imagine, with all your buddies. These media files might not contain anything copyrighted or even questionable, but you value your privacy and freedom and want to make sure not even your ISP can see that you are sharing this file. This is where Remobo’s instant private BT sharing comes in.
Step 1: Login to Remobo and Add Your Buddies
If you don’t already have Remobo installed, you can grab it here.
After that just create a new account instantly or login with your existing one. Then, have your buddies do the same and add them to your buddy list. At its core, this app will create an instant VPN between you and your buddies so everything you send and receive from each other over Remobo is encrypted and secure. This is what keeps everything “private”.
Step 2: Choose the Files and/or Folders to Share
This is where the magic happens. From the Remobo app, you can slick on “My Shared Files” and start adding a bunch of files and folders that you want to share. Its best to add each bundle of files separately, though it is also OK to add just one huge parent folder and let your buddies decide what they want exactly. The choice depends on how many files you have and how easy you want your buddies to be able to find stuff.
After choosing the files and folders, Remobo will automatically create torrent files for these in the background and even start seeding them up via a built-in BT process that is used for seeding and tracker purposes only. Its important to note that only people in your Remobo buddy list can connect and download these torrent files from you, so its not as if you are seeding or tracking these files publicly.
Step 3: Your Buddies can Now Browse, Search and Download Your Shared Files Privately
After that initial setup, your buddies will be able to see all your shared files by clicking on you in their buddy list and selecting “View Shared Files”. This will bring up a familiar web interface listing all the torrent files that have been created for you. Remember, Remobo created these files when you decided to share them and is also seeding them for you… so there’s no extra work or BitTorrent knowledge required on your end.
Your buddies can click on any of these torrent files to launch their preferred BT client. It works like any of the public torrent tracker sites out there, except that all data between you and your buddy is securely encrypted by Remobo and no one besides your own buddies can ever see this list of shared files.
Wrapping Up
Now that you know how to create a private BitTorrent file sharing network… go round up a bunch of your trusted buddies and start sharing those files with each other privately and securely!
In fact, ISPs can’t even throttle your bandwidth because it doesn’t look like BT traffic at all… just a bunch of encrypted data packets… kinda like what it would look like if you were working from home via your corporate VPN 
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
We recently fixed some issues with our DNS servers not resolving certain names correctly, and it reminded me about one of the great features built into Remobo.
Instead of remembering IP addresses, you can connect with any of your buddies by using the domain name: [buddyname].remobo.com
If your buddy is logged in at multiple locations and you need to specify it exactly, just use: [location].[buddyname].remobo.com
For example, if “joe” is logged in at at “homePC”, you can reach him using joe.remobo.com or homePC.joe.remobo.com
This will always resolve to his current virtual IP for easy access no matter what application you are using. It’s also great for mobility sine “joe” can login anywhere and still be reachable with that same domain name. It’s like having a free dynamic DNS service built in whenever you are using Remobo!
We hope you enjoy this feature and let us know if you have any comments or feedback!
Sunday, December 30th, 2007
I just realized that our blogging software version was out of date, so we just upgraded to WordPress 2.3.2… I love the new features and of course the bug fixes and security updates. Just a friendly reminder to upgrade your software often! 
Also, now that we have more distribution partners for Remobo, we are growing at a steady pace. We also appreciate the bug posts in our forum from all you beta users out there… Keep ‘em coming! Also, feel free to let us know what you like and dis-like about Remobo.
New, exciting features are coming after the New Year… until then, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to everyone.
Friday, December 21st, 2007
We have recently partnered with CNET Download.com to increase Remobo’s visibility and download availability. They have one of the most comprehensive free software download services around and hopefully this will help us spread the word about our product. In addition, they also scan all downloads for viruses and trojans so users are guaranteed a safe download.
So, if our own hosted download is slow or unavailable for any reason, you can always search for Remobo on Download.com - We will also be integrating their download button directly into our downloads page in the near future
Saturday, August 11th, 2007
Remobo is a great tool IMHO… and here’s my top 10 uses, in no particular order:
Share Bulk Digital Photos with Friends/Family - I still love using flickr for browsing, but after a night out or a vacation… I always get people asking me to send them all the pictures I took during the trip in their original format. What a nightmare that used to be! Now, I just share the folder on my computer and they can browse that folder directly over Remobo and copy everything over without me lifting a finger
Access My Home Computer from Work - I love having access to my home computer wherever I am… especially at work when I need some files from home, or want to check on a download, or just wanna browse the web from my home computer instead of having everything logged when I browse from work The best thing is, I can use any client I like… such as the built-in one (VNC) or my favorite, which is Windows Remote Desktop since it runs quite a bit faster.
Have a LAN-Party over the Internet - This applies to all LAN-party type games in general… but more specifically, there’s no way to play 1v1 Counter-Strike Source against my buddy unless we are on the same LAN or have an actual CS server of our own. With Remobo, its like we are on the same LAN all the time, even though we are miles away… problem solved. Why 1v1? Well, that’s the only way for me to prove that I’m better, LOL! Of course you can run full LAN parties with multiple players as well…
Secure File Transfer - I hate how file transfers using clients like AIM, YM and MSN never seem to work for me because of firewall and router settings. It seems that everytime I try the seemingly simple task of sending a file to a friend over AIM, it gets rejected with a “could not connect” error. Remobo uses some peer-to-peer technology to make sure you can connect no matter what kind of router or firewall settings you have, so its now my tool of choice for those simple file transfers that never used to be so simple. An added benefit… everything is secure and encrypted so no one except the intended recipient will be able to see that embarassing bachelor party picture you just sent over
Stream Videos/Media from my Friends’ Computers - Some of my friends have tons of videos, tv shows, and other media on their computers… So, rather than burning them onto DVD’s or copying them over for me, they just share the folder containing the media. With Remobo installed, I can then browse the contents of the shared folder (which can be password protected of course) and open video files or music as if it were local, so I can watch it instantly on my own computer.
Printing over the Internet - You may be asking why I would need this?… but it’s actually come in handy more than a few times. Once I wanted to print some flyers on my brother’s expensive color printer while I was at home, and I also print stuff to my work printer while I’m pulling overtime at home. Again, with Remobo installed on both sides, all you have to do is share your printer, and the other side can print as if you were right next to each other or on the same LAN.
Syncing and Backing-Up Files - This one is ultra-useful. No matter where I am… I can sync or back-up files from my laptop to my desktop and vice versa. There are many options for how to do this. The easiest is to simply use a shared folder on both sides, but if you want instant syncing or backup, just use any available third party software. With Remobo installed, you don’t need to be on the same LAN, so I can backup files from my laptop to my home computer even when I’m on business trips to Asia. (I’m very paranoid about losing or people stealing my laptop as you can see.)
Secure Messaging - Sometimes I just want to make sure that nobody (like the office IT department) can log or see what I’m typing to a friend… so I fire up Remobo’s built-in instant messaging client. Since most of my friends also have Remobo installed (after telling them how cool it is, haha), I can send them messages securely and know that anything we chat about will be encrypted and virtually impossible to decipher. Most recently I used it to ask my buddy if there were any job openings at his office while I was still at work Note: It’s pretty basic at the moment, with no smilies etc, but hopefully that will change in the near future.
Instant VPN - If you don’t know what a VPN is, its essentially a private, secure network that businesses use to allow employees to connect back into work no matter where they are. In general, they are difficult and costly to setup and maintain. With Remobo, you can have a VPN up and running instantly (and for free of course). We use it as our VPN within my small startup venture that only has a few people at the moment… however it seems like it can scale up to companies with lots of people just as easily.
Video Conferencing - One of the coolest features of Remobo is the ability to use it with virtually any third-party application. One of favorite applications is NetMeeting… its not the latest and greatest, but it gets the job done, its built right in to Windows and its free! We use it to set up secure video conferences between several people.
Wednesday, December 6th, 2006
Most people think of remote desktop or VNC as something you use while away from your home or office. I used it all the time at work and at school to connect back to my home PC… to get access to some files, check on some e-mail, or even check the progress of a download. Nowadays, I also use it while travelling or at a friend’s house, when I need access to my PC (through Remobo of course).
Recently, I’ve discovered a new way to use this kind of remote desktop functionality while at home. Its pretty simple really… most of my work resides on my PC, but I enjoy roaming around the house wirelessly on my laptop. The solution: I leave my PC on and connect to it from my laptop using Windows Remote Desktop. This way I have full access to all of my work files and applications without replicating them on my laptop and worrying about syncing up later on. Plus, the connection is so fast, you hardly ever realize that everything is running on a different computer. Pretty neat
Of course, with Remobo installed, its even better. I have instant access to my computers even while sitting at a coffee shop with my laptop. And it all works instantly… no network or router configuration required
