Telecommuting With and Without Networks Telecommuting was technically feasible before the Internet and home networking became popular. Remote workers could use stand-alone personal computers to write documents and software, relying on the telephone and postal mail to communicate with the office. A single computer with Net access may be temporarily sufficient for telecommuting, but a full-featured home network supports multiple family members. Two adults may both telecommute from the same home, and kids wanting to use the Net for education and games can share the network too, without interfering with telework. One often does not require high-speed Internet access for effective telework.
Many remote workers communicate through small email messages that travel over networks very quickly.
Workers can also write and edit documents and software programs on their local computer, using the network only for sending final results to the office. However, high-speed Net access will be necessary if many family members need simultaneous access or if videoconferencing systems must be used as part of the remote work. Secure Telecommuting Telecommuters often handle a company's proprietary information that must be kept hidden from competitors. With its support for authentication and data encryption, a VPN provides a private connection between home and office on the public Internet. To set up a VPN, a company installs VPN servers at the office and remote workers install VPN clients.