The ads should all be gone as of about fifteen minutes ago.
On a side note, I need a password manager. Dashlane is causing crippling slowdowns in my browser. Need something compatible with mac and PC devices.
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Mousebumples
I use Dashlane but only have the app on my phone. I just login and check the password and type it in on my computer when I need it. More time consuming but it doesn’t kill Brave. ?♀️
Icedfire
I’ve used Norton Password Manager and been fully satisfied with it, but I only use android devices so I can’t speak to how well it works on iOS.
Fiona
We moved from LastPass to Bitwarden and are pretty happy with it.
joey5slice
Thanks for taking the plunge, Cole! We’ve got your back!
I have been happy with 1password. It integrates well with the iPhone and has a browser extension I use on my PC.
Xantar
@joey5slice: I will also endorse 1Password with the caveat that I’ve only ever used one other password manager so I don’t exactly have comprehensive knowledge of what’s out there.
worn
Most folks I know use lastpass, but for some reason the one I chose years ago is keepass. Never had an issue with it (other than not getting it to run on an ancient MacBook I use sporadically). Haven’t set it up for browser integration (cut n paste the credentials), so I can’t comment on that aspect of the app, but otherwise quite happy with it.
YellowDog
@joey5slice: I have used 1Password for years, on my Mac, iPhone, and iPad. I finally convinced my wife to use it on her PC, replacing that piece of paper in her desk drawer.
WaterGirl
I had to change the URL for this post because content-blocking ad blocker blocked the entire post!
So if you were one of the 5-7 people who were in this post BEFORE I changed the URL, then this page won’t open anymore. You can go back to the previous post, refresh the page, and click the fly-out. Or you can go to the front page, refresh the page, and click on the post from there.
The post title didn’t change, just the URL.
schrodingers_cat
Congratulations Diwali is after all a time for new beginnings.
Weekend Editor
I use BitWarden, and like it a lot: open source, they publish the results of their security audits, works cross-platform, etc
You do have to know a few things about how to install software.
sab
@YellowDog: Ha. I have a tiny spiral notebook in my drawer. It works fine.
Tommy D
SplashID. WEb or local storage, or even physical flash drive. All platforms. Not expensive.
Feathers
I’ve used LastPass at work and 1Password for personal and truly preferred 1Password. However, the work account allowed for me to access some shared passwords with my boss and that was so clunky that it may have turned me off the program. It may be OK for one person. 1Password is just a simpler program to use.
Ken
I use the PostIt(TM) password manager.
JustRuss
I use Lastpass. The free version gives you a choice of integrating with computer or mobile, if you want both you have to pay. I use the computer version, Chrome’s password manager is good enough for my phone.
We use Keepass at work, it’s fine but a bit clunky.
Redshift
Since I just missed the last thread and this one is kinda open, I wanted to mention one thing from a tweet in the last post:
I’m immediately suspicious of anyone who describes this attitude as “scared,” partly because of the wingnut braying about not “living in fear,” and partly general wtf.
No one I know who’s still masking and not comfortable being in enclosed spaces with possibly unvaccinated people is “scared.” We don’t want to catch a nasty disease that can kill or debilitate you and we’re willing to do some fairly easy things to prevent that.
But more important, we want the pandemic to actually end, not to just decide we’re going to live with it and let people we don’t know die because we can’t be bothered to take those simple measures. And that requires government not just giving up.
It’s infuriating to hear this not described as “it’s a big problem if Democrats carry out competent pandemic response and Republicans can win by demonizing the inconvenience.”
PT&S
I have long experience with KeePass on Windows and Android and it’s been good. There appears to be a modernized version KeePassXC that will do all the things, only more so. (If the browser integration in the new tool works as well as the Android integration in the legacy version, I’ll be quite pleased.)
Feathers
Be sure to do the free trials, because different managers work in different ways. You’ll probably find one fits your usage patterns better.
Mousebumples
@WaterGirl: refreshing worked fine for me. Idk. My brave browser is special maybe?
The Moar You Know
Last Pass works fine for me.
Elizabelle
Great to hear about the ad free experience. I am a definite yes on that!
Once jackals have started setting up their donations to fund the site, please let me know if you are still looking for extra cash. I am already making a small monthly donation, but could increase it if you need.
Thank you, WaterGirl, for opening up this whole discussion, and getting this accomplished. I truly think BJ can be self-supporting by those who wish to fund the site, and remain free for anyone who checks us out.
Matt Smith
I propose we all donate enough to make John Cole cry. Who’s with me?
toine
Lastpass. Browser integration is simple and works well. Have a family account so have multiple profiles set up for my kids. Easy to share the Netflix password this way…
WaterGirl
@Mousebumples: Interesting!
Rich Webb
Another endorsement for Keepass. Been using it for years. I do not integrate it with browsers, rather copy/pasting from Keepass to the password fields. It’s FOSS and, while primarily for Windows, there are forks for Macs and phones.
Raven
@Redshift: In the open thread spirit I’m at a sawmill up in the Georgia mountains picking out lumber for a countertop. The place is owned by friends of our builder/friend and he assured us this was a great thing to do. It took us 30 minutes of driving around to find it, the combo on the first gate wouldn’t work so we unscrewed the ibolt and horsed the gate so we could drive through. These folks have longhorn steer as pets so we had to make sure to lock the second and third gates. The combo on the 4th gate didn’t work but we were able to pick it up from the hinges and drive through. Then we got to the place and looked at the steep, wet road and decided we couldn’t drive it even with a 4 wheel drive truck. Our friend and my wife decided we could hike it so we lit out down and then up a huge hill and across a meadow. We got to the mill and it has amazing lumber cut and stacked. While the princess was picking the pieces she wanted the owner called and told us “oh, the road to the mill is OUTSIDE of the first gate!!! I’m waiting here while the others go get the truck so we can load up. Our buddy was going to carry and 8 ft 2 inch piece of white oak back and I thought that was nuts!! And adventure for sure.
https://flic.kr/p/2mGARkX
Middlelee
I remember passwords for the 20-30 most used sites and have a Rolodex (quite full) for all the others. I also keep my calendar in a paper book, open on my desk or traveling with me in my purse. My address book is a 3-ring binder which also contains a log of letters and notecards mailed to friends, companies, etc. The idea of keeping everything in my phone or computer feels a little too dependent on technology, and ultimately more work. Yes, if the house burns down I’m screwed.
BretH
Used Keepass for years, no browser integration though. I let Safari handle that and keepass for copy/paste when needed. Works well in MacOS and PC. For work since we get a free account I use 1Password in the same way and it also works fine.
The price is definitely right with keepass.
MattF
I use the native Apple keychain on my iDevices and that works well enough for me. If there was a password manager that worked with my financial software (Banktivity), which needs to log in to a half-dozen different accounts, I’d use it, but there doesn’t seem to be one.
Anon in NC
I like LastPass!
frosty
@Middlelee:
If the house burns down my computer goes up with it too so I’d be screwed either way. My passwords (hints only) are on a printout from an Excel sheet that I keep in my Day-Timer … yes, a paper calendar that I’ve been using for (counts on fingers) holy shit, half my life!!
Baud
@BretH:
Same.
wombat probability cloud
Been using 1Password for years and am delighted with it. Nice to have 20-to-40-character, complex passwords that I can paste in from it. Canadian company, good and fast customer support. Easy two-way synching with my phone so if I lose my phone or my house burns down I still have a digital copy (hopefully not both, simultaneously…). I also make a hard copy of passwords every year and stick them in a safety deposit box. just in case.
2liberal
I use Roboform and it works well for my needs.
zhena gogolia
@Elizabelle: I hope this model works. I hate the whole subscription thing, it feels excluding. And you usually get some stupid newsletter in your e-mail.
I did subscribe to Aaron Rupar, and his are the only newsletters I really feel like reading
ETA: But wouldn’t it be hilarious to get newsletters from John Cole about the willow and such?
zhena gogolia
@Redshift:
Yes! I second your whole comment.
Roger Moore
I use the password manager that’s built into my web browser (Firefox) and use their synchronization scheme to keep it up to date between machines. I have it installed on my phone, so I can always look up passwords on the go. It seems to work reasonably well, and the system is well designed so even the people at Mozilla can’t see my passwords. They only ever see an encrypted blob that contains all my browser information, and I’m the only one with the password to decrypt it. That means I’m SOL if I ever forget my master password, but that’s the price of security.
am
@Roger Moore: I do the same, but with Chrome. I prefer having Google security team behind me. I’d do the same with Safari, FF, or Edge. I have used LastPass and it was fine, too.
Burnspbesq
I use Keeper on my iPhone. Never gives me any problems. Annual fee in the $20-30 range.
No way I trust iCloud with anything.
PaulWartenberg
I use a notebook as my password manager.
As long as the pencil works, I’m fine.
stinger
@Raven: Looking at that pic, my heart both speeded up and slowed down. That must be possible!
dnfree
@sab:
I too have a little notebook, but I don’t keep it in a drawer. I keep it in an undisclosed and hopefully non-obvious location. But I should probably tell our children what that location is.
CAM-WA
I’m a big 1Password fan. It’s completely cross platform and will work on iDevices, Windows PC, Mac, Unix, etc.
Important Note: 1Password has moved to a subscription model, so you have to pay for it each year. I don’t remember the current cost.
eclare
@sab: I have post-its!
kjazz
When I worked at a financial services start-up, we vetted and used PasswordSafe on our windows machines. It had a Mac port (which I used at home), but that got buggy so I switched to KeePassXC, which has worked fine for the past 5 years.
Ruckus
@CAM-WA:
1Password is $3 monthly paid annually. So $36/yr
LastPass is free for one machine, $3 monthly paid annually for multiples, so the same $36/yr.
Bill in Section 147
I just patreoned or whatever you call it. Yay no adds.
sab
@dnfree: You should. I had a friend whose father died of a heart attack and she was the executor and couldn’t get into his quickbooks, so settling the estate and doing his final tax return was a real mess, when she was already tramatized by his sudden death.
WaterGirl
@Bill in Section 147: Thank you! I share your joy from no ads.
Middlelee
@frosty: It just seems so much easier and available. ;-)
jsled
I just switched from LastPass to Bitwarden.
Bitwarden is very good, I recommend it highly.
Martin
1Password is the best of class. Works on iOS/Android as well. Yes, it’s the most expensive, but do you buy the cheapest front door lock you can find? No. This is important – don’t fuck it up. Pay a few bucks.
1Pass wins for me because of the encryption on local devices, and flexibility. I have my dad use it. He has all of his emergency plans in there, and his vault is shared with me, so if something happens to him, I can go in, figure out what bills need to be paid and so on. His travel itinerary is in there, his vaccination record when he goes overseas, etc. We have photos of important documents encrypted in there, etc.
mvr
I’ve been happy with lastpass. Several years ago they handled a security breach well, but they have since been bought by another password managing company so that may not say anything about how they would do it if it happened again. They don’t store your master password for you which on the one hand makes it more secure, but on the other hand means you had better keep track of it yourself. (They do let you revert it to an older password if you lose your new one.) The in-browser plug-in works fine in Firefox (and likely all other browsers) but you can also log into their website directly. And I really like their random password generator since I now have random passwords for everything except one or two I have to memorize and one long but memorizable lastpass master password.
They downgraded their free version but I long ago went to the paid version for added functionality and it doesn’t cost all that much.
FWIW . . .
Martin
Adding to my above comment. I have ~400 passwords currently, plus other bits and bobs between work and personal. These are divided up into personal and work vaults, so I can share the personal ones with my wife without handing her the keys to half the university.
I not only have passwords but software license information, private keys to manage, some certificates that are used in lieu of passwords on some systems, and so on. I store the configuration setup for my router, our credit card and other identity, insurance, and payment information.
I have 5 memorized passwords and all others are unique randomly generated 30 character alphanumeric. The 5 memorized are necessary to rebuild the system in the case of disaster. In our case that would entail us being out of the house, and the house burns down along with all of our electronic devices. The 5 passwords would let me borrow or acquire a brand new device and restore everything. (I only need 3 to do that, the other two are work related for things I do with such frequency that I don’t want to constantly turn to the password manager).
The personal stuff is also split into separate vaults for personal and family stuff. For instance, our Netflix account information is in the family one so my daughter doesn’t need to bug us to put Netflix on her phone. It’s the vault we share most widely. If my wife signs up for something for the family she puts it in the family vault so everyone can see it. I have similar shared spaces with both of my parents for emergency/end of life stuff. Dad goes on a new medication, he needs to put that information in the shared vault.
mvr
White oak is cool, especially quartersawn. And heavy. You will want to be careful with wet metal and white oak as the tannins in the wood will turn wet rust black and dye the wood. It can be used as an ebonizing technique, but you don’t want to do it by accident.
M. Ellis
I use 1Password for personal and family stuff, and LastPass at work (company account). We have a family account for 1Password, so I use it to share common logins with my wife and daughter (Streaming services, parental accounts for daughter’s school, etc.) in mutual vaults, while keeping all my private logins in a personal vault.
1Password works much better for me for everything except for the command line interface, where I prefer LastPass. Unless OGH does a lot in a Unix terminal, I’d recommend 1Password.
My main issue with LastPass is that it is a lot more ‘intrusive’ when using a web page in Chrome or Firefox than 1Password is. I also dislike its interface for entering and keeping passwords. 1Password is much more intuitive. 1Password’s shared vaults feature is also great, letting me share certain accounts (streaming services, parent account logins at daughter’s school) in a shared vault with my wife. Cole might find it useful for sharing certain site passwords with the support folks.
Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant)
KeePass is the one you want.
Embra
My opinion is Bitwarden if you don’t want to pay anything, and 1Password if you’re willing to pay. I used LastPass for many years; Roboform before that. I decided to switch from LastPass because of some minor frustration that I can’t recall now. When I was checking out the online comparison reviews, 1Password was usually at the top of their lists.