Thought for iLife 07 - iRemote?
I'm inclined to agree with the comments made by some of our forum users that Apple should provide some sort of basic small networking management software, but I don't think it should just come with the Mac. Instead, I'd recommend building it into iLife '07.
Apple Remote Desktop is an incredibly useful and very powerful application that Apple sells to net admins who need to manage small workgroups of Macs -- it costs $299 for 10 management systems or $499 for an unlimited number of managed systems. Even the 10 user edition is priced well out of reach for a cost-conscious consumer.
In addition to providing administrators with the ability to observe and control other users' screens, Remote Desktop provides file installation, client management and software and hardware auditing capabilities. That probably goes a bit overboard for what the average home user or small business owner really needs.
Some of that can be duplicated with VNC and other free utilities, but getting them to work can be a bit wonky, and there's nothing really under one roof for Mac users as there is with Remote Desktop. There's Timbuktu, of course, but its pricing is similarly out of reach for normal humans.
Cutting Remote Desktop down just so an administrator can view and control the screen, adjust remote settings, lock out users and handle some basic reporting, I'd imagine, would do fine, and would be a huge bonus for harried parents who want to keep an eye on their kids' Web surfing habits or small business owners who want to make sure that the iMac in their inventory room isn't being used rip DVD's illegally. Seems like it'd be a huge value-add for new Mac users who get iLife with their systems and Mac users looking to upgrade alike.
Just a thought.