Entries Tagged as “General”
What A Bad User Experience
I spend better than 60 percent of my day online. I shop, I do research, I work, and I play. Bad user experiences are not all that uncommon for users. We encounter them almost daily with the various websites we use. But this one site has really pissed me off today. So bad that I could not let it slide off my back like the others. Maybe I'm just in a bad mood, but really, I think it was just a bad experience that left a significant impression on me.
CAUTION: RANT AHEAD!
→ Respond NowTags: General · Opinions & Rants
Snow Leopard Firefox Fonts Fix
I had a strange problem today when I upgraded my office computer to the new Snow Leopard OS. Upon launching Firefox I noticed that all the fonts in the user interface got really fat and bold looking. I immediately started checking the preferences for a default font selection thinking the font choice had been changed. Tried resetting the preferences, tried checking the about:congig for FF thinking there might be something there. I was turning up empty handed. I had already updated my home machine without incident, so I knew it had to be localized.Here is a screen shot below of the offending UI:
After turning up empty handed in my search for a changed or damaged preference, I turned to Suitcase. I noticed that I had a lot of duplicate fonts that were not there before. I keep a tight library and instantly recognized the issue. After turning off and removing duplicate MS Office fonts both from Suitcase and from Apples Font Book — I was able to determine that the missing font was LucidaSans and/or Lucida Sans Unicode. After reactivating these two fonts the problem was fixed.
Also worth noting: On my home system I used Suitcase Fusion, and at the office I am using Suitcase Fusion 2 Other than that the systems are the same. I know Suitcase Fusion 2 has a different way of handling fonts. So this might be the root problem, but I am not really sure.
I hope this will help someone else just upgrading to Snow Leopard.
Update
I was alerted by Jason Reed that there is another possible fix for this issue. Interestingly enough also involving the font "Lucida". Design blog Stucel, has this alternate fix posted on his site: Firefox bold font UI problem in Snow Leopard So there are at least two possible fixes for this issue. If you find another solution to this issue that works for you, feel free to comment or shoot me an email.
→ Respond NowTags: General · Software
Tips For Better Password Security
In the last few months I have had a few people tell me that their web based email accounts or other web based services had been hacked into. Their accounts taken over by crooks or criminals and in one case (my aunt) her H&R Block credit account liquidated. When I asked about their passwords they admitted that it was an easy password to guess. Often times we don't think about security until it's too late. With web based systems, cloud computing, and other mash ups I think it's about time we revisit the idea of a strong password.
How do hackers get my password?
More often than not, hackers gain access to your accounts because the password you selected was far to easy to guess. By "guess" I mean it's probably a dictionary word or a variation of a dictionary word. Hackers don't just sit behind a keyboard and type random words from a dictionary into your login page. No, they use complex tools that run automated attacks against a websites login function until they get lucky. Having an easy to guess password, one that can be found in a dictionary is like handing the hacker keys to your accounts.
Another method of cracking a password is through "social engineering". This is where the hacker attempts to use or manipulate data that put out for public display. Like social websites, instant messengers and email. They may try to manipulate people into divulging confidential information or use the information to guess passwords, or security questions. In a time where many people use social sites to stay connected, we need to be cautious that the person on our friends list is really our friend.
What's Makes A Password Bad?
Unfortunately the list of things that make a password bad is pretty long. I wont create a long list here. If your interested GeodSoft has a pretty comprehensive list and I am sure there are plenty other sites out there with their own lists. Here are a few of my basic rules.
- Don't use personal info, account names, or any information that could be found on a social site, or address book. No phone numbers, names of spouse, children, or pets. Streets you lived on as a child, birth dates, or social security numbers.
- Don't use a word that is in the dictionary. This includes other languages. Not even words that have letters replaced with symbols or digits. For example: P@s5w0rd is way to easy to guess.
- Don't use a word in reverse or swap the first and last letters.
- Don't append or prepend a number to the dictionary word.
- Don't think your slick by doubling up on letters in a word too. "wwoorrdd" is still an easy guess.
- Lastly, a bad password is one that you will forget. So if it's not memorable, then it's all pointless.
Creating Memorable Passwords
Creating a memorable password is easy, creating one that is difficult to guess but still memorable take a bit more work but it's still pretty easy if you use some techniques to help you remember.
The best passwords are at least eight characters in length, contain upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and a special character. With this in mind lets construct a password that is both memorable and difficult to guess.
One method I use is to think of a phrase or a quote that is memorable to me. For example my football coach used to always say to us defensive players. "You have to stick it to them and drive, drive, drive!" I can still hear his voice ringing in my ear. Using this phrase I might construct a password like "Uh2stic&D,D,D!"
Repurpose With Layers
Because creating a good password takes a bit of thought, I like to repurpose the same password on several sites. Normally this is not a good idea, but let me explain.
I think of the sites I use in terms of layers. There are some sites that I don't use often or sign up for and then forget about. Then there are sites that I use often, they may contain personal information, but not connected to any sensitive info. Then there are sites like banks, email, and other services that store or use my sensitive information as part of the service like paypal, or a credit reporting site.
Because creating a strong password is only good if you can remember it. I create three levels of passwords. One for the fly by night sites that I visit and sign up for. This one might be easy to remember and type quickly It may not be the safest password, but I probably don't care if someone wants to hack into IconBuffet account. It's also not uncomon for these outer layer sites to restrict passwords to only letters and numbers, as special characters might create programming challenges that the creators don't feel is important enough to fix. For these Outer layer sites I might use "yh2st1ck" as my password. It's easy enough to remember but unique enough to challenge a would be hacker.
A second layer password that is more difficult yet. I might use this for social sites, or sites that may contain personal information or access to my friends and contacts that could be used in a social engineering attack. For a second layer password I might use "UH2s&dDD!"
And lastly, the highest layer needs a really strong password for banks, email accounts, or other systems that use sensitive information. This might be the strong password I mentioned earlier like "Uh2stic&D,D,D!"
To reiterate my point. My reasons for recommending this technique are to make all your passwords memorable so that you don't write them down on a scrap piece of paper or put them into a password file on your computer. It's also better to have three passwords that are safer and more secure than one to ten passwords that are easy to guess.
Tools For Generating & Testing Memorable Passwords
If your finding it difficult to create a memorable password or not sure the password you picked is as safe as you think it is, there are tools out there to help you.
Password Assistant – Macintosh utility built into the OS
The memorable random password generator
Password Security Meter
Microsoft Password Checker
Macintosh Password Assistant
My personal favorite utility is the password assistant. It's built into the OS, and thanks to the gurus at Code Poetry, they have created a simple utility to call the password assistant without having to access the accounts preference pane. Here is a screenshot of the utility and a sample of the suggested password. It also gives you a visual meter of your passwords quality.
What I really like about this utility is it's ability to can give you useful feedback when your password is too weak. For example here is the word "rocking" with the typical number replacement on the letters "o" and "i" As you can see the Password Assistant instantly recognizes this as a dictionary word and alerts you in the Tips field allowing you to modify your password to something a bit more secure.
→ Respond NowTags: General · Inspiration · usability
New Years Resolutions 2009
I heard from someone that you're not serious about your new years resolutions until you write them down. Apparently this is some form of accountability program designed to make you stick to them. Truth or fiction? I don't know but here are my resolutions for 2009.
- Stop drinking soda
- Make more time for myself and my family
- Take more photos for fun
- Try more foods that I didn't like before
- Redesign my personal site
- Work on my sofware idea
- Exercise
- Learn to use After Effects better
- Go camping at the Lost Coast
Okay it's written in my blog. Like being written in stone. Not capable of being edited or altered. :) The betting begins now! Place your bets in the comments area.
→ Respond NowTags: General · Inspiration
Donating to Homeless Women and Children
I'm not one to volunteer all to often. There are however a few times when I set some time aside for a worthwhile cause. Like helping homeless woman and children get back on their feet and turn their lives around.
I recently offered up my web design services to help Women's Empowerment, a local not for profit organization that does just that. Help Homeless women and their children get back on track.
Many who know me well, know that I am fairly critical of the homeless. So it may at first appear odd why I decided to volunteer my time to help them. The whole answer can be a long one, however the short and possibly surprising answer is that I spent most of my childhood and teen years being homeless or forced into a less than normal living arrangement. My brother's and I were casualties of a lifestyle that we had no control over. Like I said, it could be a long story. One that I will spare you from here.
My motivations to help were based largely on helping the children. In this case, to help the children you have to help the mother's too. So it just made sense to me to support the group.
Project Background
When approaching a project like this, I wanted to make sure the members at Women's Empowerment could update the site without knowing HTML or have additional software like Dreamweaver or Contribute. Instead I opted to use the free open source web software called Mango Blog. It's a great blogging tool that I have been involved with for the last few months. Using software like Mango Blog, I was able to quickly develop a simple website and push the limits of what I know about the software to do more than it was intended.
It was a fun challenge to undertake. Especially doing the design and code in just over a week. A true testament to the speed and flexibility of a great application like Mango Blog. I think the end result turned out quite well despite having to cut a few corners in order to make the launch deadline.
Have you donated your services to a group you feel is worthwile? If so please leave a comment below, and If you donated a website please leave a link. I would like to see what others are donating to.
→ Respond NowTags: Design · General · Mango Blog
