TECH SOFTWARE: ROBOFORM recommended for saving most user ids & passwords

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

http://www.roboform.com/

RoboForm is an award-winning automated password manager and web form filler with some serious Artificial Intelligence.

FROM MY EMAIL TO MY LUDDITE FRIEND

***Begin Quote***

Look at roboform2go for your sign up hang up. I use it. One of the few packages I’ve paid money for. I use it to sign up when needed, generate a unique password for the site, and it does all the memorization work. I have a few passwords hat I trust to no one (i.e., banking, my websites, and certain documents) but for the most stuff it handles all the details.

***End Quote***

Passwords have been in use since Julius Caesar. The security principle is a shared secret between you and something else (i.e., website, service, application, platform, whatever). To keep the integrity of that shared secret, you shouldn’t use the same password for different sites. Or, reuse it in any way. Or, generate it by adding a digit to your middle name!

Some “rules of thumb”:

(1) Passwords need to be unguessable.

(2) They need to be long enough prevent someone trying everyone by brute force.

(3) They need to use lots of possibilities (i.e., 26 letters become 52 values if you use upper and lower case).

(4) It can’t be in the dictionary (i.e., or the word in reverse); it’s called a “dictionary attack”.

SO if you have to have a slew of passwords, what do you do?

I suggest using a tool, like ROBOFORM, as your “extended memory”, like I do, for low risk uses. Routine logons are a snap. It will also speed your initial sign up, generate a complex password, and remember the whole thing for you.

For your high risk uses (i.e., financial sites), where a compromise could be a disaster, use your memory. If you have more than 10 high risk uses, then you need to consolidate your uses.

I recommend using a USB THUMB DRIVE with ROBOFORM PASS2GO. It does all the above, but you keep the passwords on it. So the password data is not on the machine that you use! When you’re not using the computer, put the drive in your pocket. So, if your computer gets stolen, then you should have the USB THUMB DRIVE with all the passwords in your pocket.

Losing your notebook is bad. Losing all your passwords is a disaster.

Leave a Comment » | SOFTWARE | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj

LIBERTY: A Small Government self-test for self-diagnosis

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

Thursday, April 26, 2007

The official publication of the Center For Small Government
http://www.CenterForSmallGovernment.com
Publisher: Carla Howell
Editor: Michael Cloud

***Begin Quote***

Will you help us? Will you take these simple steps?

1. Take the survey yourself. Read the brief discussion that follows.

2. Forward the survey link to 4 of your friends who are advocates of freedom and small government. Ask them to take the “What’s Your REAL Opinion of Big Government?” survey and look over the discussion that follows.

3. Forward the survey link to 4 of your NON-POLITICAL friends, family members, or co-workers, and ask them to do the same thing.

4. Ask each of them to let you know their score and their reaction to the survey. If they say anything interesting, please let us know!
(Just reply to this email.)

You’re in for some fun.

“What’s Your REAL Opinion of Big Government?”

http://www.centerforsmallgovernment.com/survey.cfm

***End Quote***

I got a 100%! You?

Leave a Comment » | LIBERTY | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj

JOBSEARCH: “Age proofing” your resume is a waste of time and attention

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

>And would you recommend age-proofing or not age-proofing?

As probably the self-declared dean of the “Sacred College of Scared FOWGs” (fat old white guys), I can say with virtual certainty and absolute confidence, speak ex cathedra, from my belly button, that it ain’t worth the effort!

Why, you ask?

Cause they are gonna find out any way just what an old fa … ahh, fuddy duddy … … ahhh, candidate … … you are.

If they don’t know it from your resume, then the walker you are using to get into the interviewer’s office will certainly give it away.

Seriously, when I counsel turkeys of advanced years … anything over 40, I urge them to put extra effort into their Unique Value Proposition and their Unique Sales Proposition. By working on the sizzle and the “stake”, you can make yourself more attractive then them there young whipper snappers you may be competing with.

And, do you really want to waste time and effort fooling them into considering you?

And, if they are such aaaa… ahhh accomplished executives, ahh … … hunters and employers … … with such poor decision making skills that they allow such a silly prejudice as age to filter their selections, then should you even be bothered interviewing with them? Guess they haven’t heard about the war for talent.

Don’t let anyone kid you, you don’t get the opportunity to unlock value for someone by fraud. You can’t trick them into believing that 60 is the new 40 or 50 is the new 25 unless you have the Jedi mind powers of Yoda.

You can MARKET yourself in such a way that you get the opportunity to SELL the value that you bring to the table. You have DIKW (data, information, knowledge, and WISDOM) that your younger peers can’t come anywhere near matching.

In closing, whenever I coach my turkeys about ageism, I think the model is Ronald Regan. Regardless of your politics, he demonstrated how to address the age issue when he said to the questioner during a 1984 presidential debate with Walter Mondale:

“I want you to know that also I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent’s youth and inexperience.”

That was the line that many say won the election!

So too, if seekers are worried about age-proofing a resume then they have bigger problems. They are focusing on the trivial issues. They need to express their value. If they can do that in their “elevator speech”, then they may not even NEED a resume. It’s happened to me, and some others I know.

IMHO YMMV FAIWWYPFI
fjohn
the big fat old turkey hisself

p.s., Now where did I leave my powered wheel chair. It’s time for the home health aide to change me. I got so excited, I wet myself.

Leave a Comment » | JOBSEARCH | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj

TECH SOFTWARE: BLOGDESK upgrade has problems

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

I LOVE!! BLOGDESK.

It allows me to compose my blog entries off-line and post them at my leisure across seven blogs. (No, you have to find them on your own! Guarantee you can’t!)

When all my posts started to be posted with “comments off”, I took me a week to recognize the fact. (I thought no one cared!) Then, after six rounds back and forth with the WordPress support. Another user discovered that BLOGDESK needed a fix. Hey great!

BUT, when I went to upgrade my stuff burped. A few go arounds and it might be working.

Leave a Comment » | SOFTWARE | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj

TECH SERVICE: MYBLOGLOG has multiple advantages imho

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

http://www.mybloglog.com

My Blog Log

***Begin Quote***

For some, it’s the glory; for others it’s the danger. Still for others it’s the way members of the opposite sex find them a little more appealing.

MyBlogLog enables you to track that last little bit of information about your website. You probably already know where your users are coming from and you probably already know what pages they’re looking at while they’re there. However, if you have a blog or any other site where you frequently post new content on the main page, you don’t have a good way of tracking what people find interesting. One way is to track when people click on the links you provide. Up until now, outbound link tracking has been a pain in the butt, requiring CGIs and managed links. MyBlogLog makes this process easy.

But why do you need to know what people find interesting on your site? You can use it to tune your content to be even more compelling for your readers. You can use it to determine which stories you should follow up on. Hell, it’s just cool to *know* what people find interesting, even if you don’t do anything with it.

***End Quote***

MYBLOGLOG
http://www.mybloglog.com/buzz/members/reinkefj/
http://tinyurl.com/2k37sg

I understand why it’s valuable if you like stats. But, why should an ordinary blog reader care?

It’s has a social networking component that is there but you may not see it as it whizzs by. Bloggers are aligning into “communities”. And, connecting with each other. It’s MySpace without the jerks and spammers. (So far?)

Leave a Comment » | SERVICE | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj

TECH SERVICE: MICROID might ease claims and proof of identity issues

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

 http://microid.org/

MicroID – Small Decentralized Verifiable Identity

*** begin quote ***

MicroID is a lightweight identity layer for the web, invented by Jeremie Miller (creator of Jabber). MicroID enables anyone to claim verifiable ownership over content hosted anywhere on the web (social networking sites, discussion forums, blogs, etc.). MicroID is not an authentication or single-sign-on service, just a straightforward method for identifying content ownership that complements existing technologies such as OpenID and microformats. The technology is radically simple and enables developers to build new and unique meta services with minimal effort. It’s already being used by the likes of ClaimID, Last.fm, Ma.gnolia, Wikitravel, and Yedda. So join in the fun!

*** end quote ***

mailto+http:sha1:095894ad1976a6ee3325aa0e5de745e59e9a67bb

Leave a Comment » | SERVICE, Technology | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj

JOBSEARCH: Does anyone have a job vacancy?

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070430063518AAOYrrm&r=w&
pa=FZptHWf.BGRX3OFMhjNcVBC1clhWONCqtpS.eyBLEGYC4XifGrzOFa3JzBsEGqU
ehxT3UvPUN3DxkEMGVQ–&paid=answered

http://tinyurl.com/2cwefy

FROM A YAHOO ANSWERS QUESTION BY MANDEE_00:

*** begin quote ***

Does anyone have a job vacancy?

I am really desperate for a job. I am 21 years old, I currently do swim teaching but im getting bored of the job. Does any1 have a business where they would like to employ me to work for them? Im very reliable. Or does anyone know of anywhere that is employing staff? Preferably Admin/Secreterial work

Thanks

***Begin Quote***

Dearest Mandee,

>Does anyone have a job vacancy?

Sure, depending upon where you are, depending upon what value you can create, depending upon what you are motivated to do, and depending upon how hungry or headstrong you are, I looking in my crystal ball, can state unequivocally, that there is a perfect “job” for you nearby!

> I am really desperate for a job. I am 21 years old,

Doesn’t sound “desparate” to me. Not even deperate! Ahh to be twenty one again, sigh. What “job” would make you jump out of bed in the morning and run to get to work? (OK, maybe not jump and run, but arise with joy; walking briskly in with a skip in your step. To quote Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act 2 “if u wake up in the morning and all u can think about is singing first then girl u suppose to be a singer.” Great advice!

> I currently do swim teaching but im getting bored of the job.

Well, I’d say that being bored is the Universe signaling you that you are not where you are supposed to be.

>Does any1 have a business where they would like to employ me to work for them?

Wrong question, imho. What do you propose to do for someone that they should pay you for? What is your Unique Value Proposition? What are those things that are unique to you that others value enough to strike a deal? Answer that and you are more than half-way to your “dream job”. So you have to do some “heavy lifting” now. Sit down in a quiet place and write out every single thing that you can do, want to do, have been asked to do, dreamt of doing, or your parents wished you’d do. What is your uniqueness.

>Im very reliable. Or does anyone know of anywhere that is employing staff?
>Preferably Admin/Secreterial work

Every major enterprise, probably except the car industry and the airlines, is looking for people willing to solve problems and exploit opportunities for them. To ask here on Yahoo Answers for “a job” is akin to “the drunk looking for his keys under the lamp post, even though that’s not where he lost them, because that’s where the light is.”

You haven’t mentioned geography (i.e., where do you want to work), compensation (i.e., of the value you generate how much do you want to retain), or form (i.e., employee, consultant, or contractor).

>

OK time for more “heavy lifting”.

Make a list of everyone you know. A real paper list. Name, address, phone number.

Then, GO and talk to each one about (1) what they did at your age; (2) any opportunities that they know; (3) ask their advice; (4) get — don’t leave until you do — the names of two people that they think you should talk to adding that to the bottom of your list.

Take detailed notes. Write a real USMAIL thank you note. (No joke; get in the habit early.)

Continue until the list is exhausted. (Yeah, I know it never ends. Now you are getting the picture. The search never ends especially when you get a job.)

You can stop when you have gathered enough information to answer all the questions above. ;-)

See your first real job is figuring out how the whole “job” process works and how you fit into it. You’re the CEO, CFO, and janitor for “You Incorporated — the Me, myself, and I division”. Now how are you going to make your payroll? Think like an owner of your own services business. That’s what we all really are.

Let us know how you make out.

***End Quote***

Easy after my last best answer.

Leave a Comment » | JOBSEARCH | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj

PRODUCTIVITY: What is the one small step you can take within 24 hours?

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

http://www.legalandrew.com/2007/04/24/
get-your-motivation-moving-with-small-steps/

http://tinyurl.com/ytar45

Get Your Motivation Moving with Small Steps
productivity ideas, blog consulting – focused on the legal world
by Leagal Andrew aka andrew flusche

***Begin Quote***

Now think back to that nagging goal or project you’ve put off. Come up with one small step you can take within 24 hours. Don’t just put it on your trusty GTD action list. Go do it!

***End Quote***

Interesting productivity tip.

BTW in one of my projects at work a while ago, which wasn’t going well, the exasperated honcho directed me to assume the role of devil’s advocate. I was to, for every problem itemized, record who reported it (hurting) and who was to solve it (stuckee). Every day, I was to talk to every stuckee and get a status. BUT, not just any old status. The stuckee had to three choices:

* {#1} solved (which was to be immediately verified with the “hurter”;

* {#2} what was done in the last 24 hours to solve the problem and what would be done in the next 24 hours to solve the problem; OR

* {#3} a project plan to get to the solution.

Anything else, was to be escalated to him in real-time while the stuckee was on the phone.

Needless to say, stuff started being solved with AMAZING hustle.

For my part, every time one of these was “declared”, I just went to outlook and set up a five minute meeting at 730AM Eastern (I like to get an early start!) and sent it. People could propose a new time, which was fine with me.

He also added one more rule at the following week’s project meeting. When some problems didn’t “belong” to the stuckee, they could be relieved if the proposed replacement accepted the assignment. And, no throwing it over the transom. He officiated at the “wedding” (i.e., do you joe give this problem to sam? And, sam do you accept this problem from joe to have and to hold from this day forth?). If he was unavailable, I was allowed to sub in but I had to prepare a “wedding announcement” copying everyone involved. Needless to say, replacements were hard to find. The stuckee had to PROVE that it was the replacement’s problem.

Now those were some fun problems. Capacity, intermittent, bugs, blunders, suppliers mistakes, anything, and everything. As I recollect that when we shut the implementation down as completed, we had about 800 items all total led. MTTR was all over the place. But, there was a trail of “notes” about actions. The maintenance team used that as “as built” documentation.

I’ve never forgot that lesson. Attention and a 24 hour clock.

1 Comment | Productivity | Permalink
Posted by reinkefj