[SBE] do a remote via phone line without the need for someone to run the board at the station.

[Alan Peterson]

I'm joining the discussion a little late, but do the commands to get in and out of the remote necessarily have to be carried on the same line as the audio?

I would think using TightVNC on a laptop connected to wi-fi or DSL at the remote site - separate from the audio line - and bringing up the actual studio control GUI on said laptop is a method to consider. Complete control of the on-air rig can be handled right from the laptop. 

It works, too. From his studio in Florida, syndicated talk host Greg Knapp uses VNC to fire off show-related audio events on a Rivendell system located in Washington DC. 

TightVNC is a free program. As long as you are securely passworded, the firewall allows the remote computer inside, and your audio management system and [digital] console can talk to the outside world, it'll fly.

Al P.