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Issue #50 | June 23, 2010
| office: 817.210.6177
Password Security | eFax | Lost Manuals
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Password Security, Why can't I use "123456"?
You know those geek-cave dwelling IT guys at work? The ones that make you constantly change those impossible to remember passwords? It turns out they have a good reason for doing so. Recently, a fairly major website was hacked into and the users’ passwords were spread to the far corners of the web. Several security consultants analyzed these password lists and were surprised at how simple most of the passwords would have been to simply guess. The majority of end users, if left to their own choices, will use something as simple as 123456 or abc123. Other common passwords included variations of names, birthdates, anniversaries, children, pets and cities. Passwords this simple can be hacked in mere minutes. What can you do? Design a more complicated password. There are several ways of doing this but most methods boil down to the simple rule of avoiding real words. This can be easily accomplished by swapping out numbers for letters, either by ones that look similar or their position in the alphabet. This practice renders "password" as "p455w0rd" or even "pass23or4". That alone isn't quite enough, adding a "special character" makes it near impossible to guess. Special characters include any of the characters about the numbers at the top of the keyboard. Pair this with changing your passwords often and you should be safe from most internet dangers.
eFax, Email is today's version of yesterday's technology. [www.faxcompare.com]
It seems that the humble fax machine is a technology that just won't die. The convenience of the fax machine seems to outweigh the resulting lack of quality. Email and PDF files do make for a better copy but not everyone has mastered the art of scanner-to-email. If you find you are stuck communicating with someone who prefers a fax machine, you can still get by without owning one yourself. eFax, or electronic fax, fills the gap between fax machine and email. You are issued a fax number that, when used, converts the archaic fax into a nice email and sends it to your inbox. You can even send an email to your eFax account which can then be delivered to a traditional fax machine via the automated service. Monthly costs can be as low as $9.95 which is considerably cheaper than maintaining your own phone line and fax machine. Faxcompare.com has a great comparison of the major eFax services to allow you to find the package that best fits your needs.
Lost Manuals, I know that book is here somewhere... [www.manualsonline.com]
It never fails, despite your best efforts user's manuals seem to disappear as easily as socks in the dryer. They are far too large and ugly to keep sitting on the coffee table and seem to get thrown out every time you empty that junk drawer in the kitchen. Next time you're trying to remember how to program your all-in-one remote without the manual, check out manualsonline.com. They have scanned over 300,000 manuals from over 5,000 different manufacturers. They don't have everything but they do cover the most common appliances. If your device isn't listed look for a comparable model of the same brand; most devices from the same manufacturer operate in very similar ways. If even that doesn't work you can always try a Google search of your device's model number as many manufacturers make their documentation available on their website.
Final Byte...
Give a man a fish, and you'll feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he'll buy a funny hat. Talk to a hungry man about fish, and you're a consultant.
~Scott Adams
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