Portable computers were invented because trying to lug around a desktop model isn't a pretty picture. Of course our need for portability has been around long before computers came on the scene. It's been around since the dawn of time. Trying to carry around the village bonfire probably resulted in many a toasted finger. So we discovered how to carry around flint and invented fire-making devices to make fires someplace else. Look at telephones. Can you remember what it was like before cell phones? Now I couldn't get along without one. And while there are valiant efforts being made in the area of portable computing, you still have to lug some kind of laptop or notebook model around to do everything your desktop PC can do. Yes I know that there are some very tiny palm top computers and PDAs out there but they still don't have the kind of power you get with a basic laptop.

But there may be another alternative. How about just using another computer when you get to wherever you're going?

I know what you're thinking. You can't use another computer because all of your stuff would be missing. By stuff I mean your emails, documents, browser bookmarks, passwords, cookies, data files, even the way your desktop looks and feels with your customized wallpaper and icons. But consider this. What if you could actually bring all of that stuff along with you, but without the computer? And what if you could instantly put all of that stuff into any other computer in just seconds? If you could, then that other computer would for all intent and purposes actually BECOME your computer!

Think about that. Other than the actual hardware, what makes a computer "your" computer? It's all of your stuff that's on it, right? So if you could somehow instantly deposit all of your stuff and put it exactly the same way it's on your original computer, then you could use it as if it were your own.

But what happens when you're finished? Well what if you could make all of your stuff instantly vanish without a trace of it on the computer you were just using? Then it would not be "your" computer anymore and it would once again be just another computer. It's like you're taking the "soul" of your computer to possess someone else's machine, then exorcising your machine's essence back out when you're done. Well this is exactly what you can do with something called Migo and it's truly an amazing product.

Migo Software is a small program which you install on your computer. Migo comes with a default configuration but you can tell it exactly what parts of your computer's data to copy and how far back in days you want that copying process to go. Once you make that determination, Migo will copy everything onto most any kind of portable memory device such as a USB flash memory drive, an iPod, even a PlayStation Portable. Migo works with a wide variety of Migo-authorized removable media devices that will let you pull this off.

Let's use one of those tiny USB flash drives that fit on a keychain as an example. A typical 14 day envelope can easily fit in a one gigabyte stick.

The initial transfer will probably only take a few minutes. Once done, any updating will be incremental and takes only a few moments to do.

Now that you have everything on your Migo drive, you're free to roam the planet. Just go to a library, an internet cafe or someplace where you can use any computer. Just plug in your Migo drive into any USB port and watch the possession begin. In seconds, you'll see your computer appear on the screen. Your desktop will look the same, any files or windows you had opened will appear and be in the exact same location. Then just continue your work as normal. When you're finished, just remove the drive and the computer goes back to being what it was before you got there. All of your new work will be in the flash drive. When you do get back to your computer, just plug in the flash drive and Migo will update your computer so it looks exactly like the computer you last exorcized.

So there you have it. Migo Software is a practical and novel way for you to go anywhere without having to lug around a portable computer anymore. Just find some unsuspecting PC, possess it with your computer's spirit, use it and then exorcise it back into the portable device when you're finished.

Finally go back to your original machine, plug in the flash drive to update it and you¹re done.

Now wherever you go, the spirit of your personal computer goes with you.

Migo software offers Personal ($29.99) and Professional versions ($49.99) of Migo. Check their website for more details. They even offer a free 30 day trial. Windows only. Linda Blair, eat your heart out.

www.migosoftware.com