In my work as a freelance web developer, I sometimes get hired to do pair programming or coaching calls with clients.
Of course this happens remotely and we use tools that allow me to be on a call with the client, view his screen and ideally take control of the keyboard/mouse.
After trying various solutions over the past 2 years, including Tuple and Zoom, I recently discovered a setup with a client that has worked better than anything else so far:
- Google Meet for calling and chat
- Chrome Remote Desktop for screen sharing
They are both free tools (and actually Google Meet could probably be easily swapped out with another tool like Microsoft Teams, Slack or Discord).
But Chrome Remote Desktop really blew me away.
The resolution is great, the lag is the lowest I've ever experienced in this kind of a setting and it doesn't bring my system down when using it (unlike most other video calling tools – I miss you, Skype).
For the person sharing his screen, the initial setup is a little annoying but it's a one-time thing and after that the experience is super smooth.
Try it out when you're trying to pair program remotely the next time!