A tiny rant about passwords
As part of my job I have to sign up for a lot of websites. Websites where you can create slide shows, edit photos, upload stuff, download stuff.
In fact, it’s one of my pet peeves in general – the account thing. I would say that, when I’m vetting a website for student use, having to create an account is not a plus. In fact, in some cases, it’s a deal breaker. If I can find a website that will allow my students to do something and they don’t have to create an account, I’m far more likely to use that one. Thank you Vocaroo.
But sometimes you have to just suck it up and create that account.
Which requires a password.
Now, because I have so many websites for which I have user names and passwords, I use the same one. No, it’s not the same one that I use for the bank or important stuff, but, let’s face it, I’m over fifty and I can only remember so many things. So I use the same password.
I’m reasonably certain that nobody will try hacking my “create a presentation” account or the “great animations from your desktop” account. There’s no financial information. Honestly, in many cases, there’s no real information period.
So, Mr. Website-creator…can I just say? Keep your nose out of my passwords. What is the point of making me choose one that’s at least 8 characters, uses a combination of letters and numbers, with a mix of upper case and lower case? Other than to annoy me and possibly convince me that using your service is just not worth my time, and, more importantly, my students’ or colleagues’ time.
Just sayin’
Ah stop belly-aching and get a password manager. I’ve been using Roboform since it first came out. I’ve had some “unimportant” accounts hacked over the years, so the security is worth it. No pain, no gain…