Passwords
27/06/08 22:27 Filed in: Tech
I have
an app here on my Mac called Yojimbo, which is a
repsoitory for various bits ‘n’ bobs. I use it a
lot for things
like licence keys of
purchased software, PDFs of online receipts, etc. But
it also stores all the username and password
combinations I use. If ever I find myself looking
blankly at a login page, I just consult Yojimbo and
find the relevant username and password, having first
unlocked it with a password I keep in my brain.
Mac OS X has a utility that addresses this need and more, called Keychain.
Whenever you visit a
site and enter a username and password, you get the
option to save for future use. This is handy if you
only ever have one user, but if you have two or more
users, it doesn’t work so well. My wife and I both
have Gmail accounts (I have at least four), so
relying on Keychain doesn’t work so well in this
case. Keychain also keeps a record of usernames and
passwords for system functions like wireless
networks, etc.
I have another utility installed called 1Password, which gets over this. This installs a
button on your
browsers, which when you click it, lists all the user
accounts available for the relevant service. If you
think that sounds a bit too risky, it can be locked
off so that it can’t be accessed by unauthorised
users.
Setting effective and memorable passwords can be tricky. We are always told to use letters and numbers and mix lower case and upper case. For some reason that I cannot explain, I have an unnatural memory for car registrations. I can remember the reg numbers of my parents’ cars back to the early 1970s, so combinations of two or more can make a good strong password. Also, and again for reasons unexplained, I have ingrained on my memory postcodes of addresses I lived at in London. Add in the house number and capitalise the first lot of letters, and there’s another one.
One of the big temptations is to use the same username and password combination across everything. This is a serious no-no, because if your cover gets blown, you could be in serious trouble.
Mac OS X has a utility that addresses this need and more, called Keychain.
I have another utility installed called 1Password, which gets over this. This installs a
Setting effective and memorable passwords can be tricky. We are always told to use letters and numbers and mix lower case and upper case. For some reason that I cannot explain, I have an unnatural memory for car registrations. I can remember the reg numbers of my parents’ cars back to the early 1970s, so combinations of two or more can make a good strong password. Also, and again for reasons unexplained, I have ingrained on my memory postcodes of addresses I lived at in London. Add in the house number and capitalise the first lot of letters, and there’s another one.
One of the big temptations is to use the same username and password combination across everything. This is a serious no-no, because if your cover gets blown, you could be in serious trouble.