iGet review

Built into the Mac OS X set of Unix tools is a little known command-based protocol called secure shell (SSH).

Its sole purpose is to allow access to one networked computer from another for file transfer and remote command execution. Commands in the protocol are encrypted, as are user passwords, and both client and server are authenticated using digital certificates with the result that SSH is very secure.

iGet uses the SSH protocol, but gives it an intuitive graphical front end. In use, it's a question of either locating the remote computer in a listing of locally networked Macs, or typing in the remote Mac's IP address for an Internet connection. Entering user name and password then gives access to that user's home folder.

The only precursors to successful connection are that the remote computer's Remote Login checkbox must be checked (in the Sharing System Preference), and SSH port 22 is forwarded for Internet connections when the remote Mac is on a network behind a firewall or a router.

Once it's connected, the remote computer becomes visible as a Finder-like window with home files and folders listed. File listing is very fast compared with other file transfer protocols such as FTP and even AppleShare, with one exception - when files transfers are simultaneously taking place over a dial-up modem. iGet's developers hope to improve this in future releases.

You can navigate around the remote Mac from this window, and files or folders can be dragged into and out of the window to and from the local Mac. Other iGet commands allow new folders to be created, items to be renamed, copied or moved (including moving to the Trash), and detailed information about an item can be displayed in a Get Info dialog.

iGet is a neat, simple, and powerful file transfer method. It offers several advantages over other protocols, not the least being fast, resumable and encrypted file transfers with full resource fork inclusion - even over dial-up Internet connections.

For the home-worker or mobile computer user needing access to the office Mac, iGet could prove to be indispensable, although even users on a local network will find uses for it.