OK folks, before I move to Alaska… As a result of multiple requests from my How I’d Hack Your Weak Passwords article, I’ve put together the following 15 minute RoboForm tutorial that demonstrates how I use RoboForm to securely and easily manage my passwords. This is my first video tutorial ever, so please be gentle…
But before we go any further I want to share some full disclosure. I am personally a customer of Roboform. I purchased the full version as well as the add ons for Palm Pilot and Pocket PC. As of a couple of days ago, they are now paying me a small commission when people buy the software (yeah!). But this has zero bearing on the contents of this post.
If you haven’t done so already, please download and install Roboform so you can follow along with the Roboform tutorial. Here we go…
KeePass is free and easy to use
I highly recommend it for passwords, you can store the db on a usb drive, so you can physically disconnect from the computer when not using
http://keepass.info/
Peter,
Will KeePass recognise form fields in Web pages and autopopulate the info into them for you?
Or for that matter, does anyone know if any other free password managers will?
John
John,
Yes… to some degree, but I don’t use it. It’s a functin called auto-type, and you can fill in your SN and PW in one key stroke (and probably more stuff like address etc.). I don’t use it becasue it is not key logger resistant.
http://keepass.info/help/base/faq_tech.html#autotypelog
John,
thanks very much for the video – it sure made things clearer for me. I really appreciate that you went to all this trouble. You truly are a very nice person! Also, you did a terrific job on your first video!
Question: If I tried to log on to my gmail account from work, which password would I need to know? The Roboform master or the gmail account password?
Also, what is the Generate button about? Can Roboform generate a random password for sites. If so, can you see them somewhere if you needed to?
I guess I’m not really understanding the program because if you have to think up a password for each site, wouldn’t you have to make sure that it is a very secure one and then have it written down somewhere if you weren’t at your home computer?
Does Roboform only work on your own personal computer but you have to remember passwords when you are somewhere else?
I hope I’m making sense and not sounding too ditzy here. If I went to visit my sister in florida and used her computer, would I be able to get into my mail if I only remembered my roboform master password?
Thanks! You’re the Man!
Elaine
p.s. I’ve sold all my worldly possessions and am moving to Alaska with you.
@Elaine,
As long as you carry your roboform with you, all you need to know is your Roboform master password.
Maybe you don’t want to or can’t install roboform at work, then you can always use Roboform2Go which is a portable version of Roboform, and use it from your USB Memory Stick. This way, you would never have to enter your password anywhere and you don’t have to know your passwords. (Well of course, unless you have to use Linux or Mac somewhere!)
The generate button on Roboform allows you to generate passwords. It’s a useful tool. It can generate any lenght of passwords with characters from A-Z, a-z, 0-9 and any additional characters you want on the fly. Also, once generated you can click “Fill” and let it fill the password section on whatever website you’re in. (Just do not forget to click Copy and save afterwards :D)
Oh, BTW.. Do not forget to backup your Roboform data; which is stored in your “My Documents” folder by default.
@TheMan;
About Keepass, it’s not as compatible with browsers as Roboform is. It has an autofill function to fill in the password and usernames on a page. But it doesn’t work at all times and is slower in that than Roboform. But it’s normal because Keepass is different than Roboform, it’s created to store any passwords at any platforms and it is free!
But, you can use Keepass as your master password manager, since it can store any type of password you want and encrypt them as you wish.
Keepass also is compatible with Linux, Mac, Palm and Pocket PC’s. Which makes it better than Roboform in some ways, since Roboform only works at Windows.
Roboform is the most used piece of software on my pc. I use keepass for storing information also but i love the way roboform integrates into the browser so well.
John,
I was wondering what you used to make this video. Specifically, the computer screen video.
thanks,
Elaine
Elaine,
First of all, I used my Webcam to record the video and the audio. It is a Logitech Quickcam Ultra. For the portion where I was speaking I just used the free Logitech software to make a little video.
For the screen capture part, there are many options including:
I was experimenting with Camtasia Studio on this video and it worked OK. But the output options seem weak to me. It didn’t seem to have any output that was specifically optimized for uploading to a video sharing site like YouTube, and this caused me all manner of headaches.
I’ll likely try some others for my next project to see if I can’t make the process easier.
John
You are an idiot propaganda bullshit spreader! You are promoting your site and RoboForm, you claim you can crack my passwords? I welcome you moron and say GOOD LUCK!
Here you go all setup for you!
http://www.marmoramasons.com/admin
Go for it, and I will prove you are an idiot, and just to help you, it is only 9 characters, set it up easy for you. After you fail, I want you to post that you are not as smart as you state, and you are only pusghing bullshit products.