inter-machine tools

[Bret Comstock Waldow <bwaldow@alum.mit.edu>]

I'm learning about networking stuff in GNU/Linux.  Windows isn't built
for it, so I don't have the basic understanding I need yet.

I support and communicate with my folks over the net, and I was using
Netmeeting in Windows.  That gave me chat, voip, video, filesharing, and
remote control (they have to share the errant app, but then I can show
them what's up).

I'm looking into how to do these things in GNU/Linux.  I know about
Gnomemeeting.  I need to get the other aspects going, and I've been
pointed at ssh, which appears to handle the other aspects.

But I've run into this:

Currently, the systems I'm going to be doing this between are all
attached to the "inside" of the same hardware gateway/router, all on the
192.168.2.0 network.  In the next month or so, his will remain "there"
and mine will be on the road, probably using PPP.  In the longer term,
I'm hoping mine will be settled behind it's own hardware gateway/router,
attached to some broandband connection Down Under.

Starting with the current setup, which is my practical lab and
classroom, how does one system find the other?  All the machines are
getting their IP via DHCP, so it's not guaranteed to be the same.  The
system names aren't available in any DNS scheme I know of (I'd love to
hear about a facility for this).  I can put entries into /etc/hosts if
the IPs were static, but they aren't, and certainly won't be when I'm
connecting by PPP.

We are already connecting through IM protocols, using gaim.  Conceivably
I can simply tell him my IP when I connect, but I'm wondering what is
the canonical way to handle this?  How do I handle it now, when the IP
is dynamic (even though it's unlikely to change I want to work on the
general solution while it's easy to do it - while I have my hands on all
the systems).  The power fails here periodically, and the cable modem
he's on renegotiates it's IP each time - even that's not static.

Thanks for info,
Bret
-- 
bwaldow at alum dot mit dot edu