Tell us your unique or creative 1Password Stories!

David Chartier

Over the years we've seen 1Password used in all sorts of creative and unexpected ways. Instead of keeping those stories all to ourselves, I want to share some of them on our [url="http://blog.agilebits.com"]Agile Blog[/url]!



If you have a story to tell about the unique way you use 1Password, how you discovered it, or someone you showed it to, I would love to hear about it here or on our Facebook Page and feature you on our company blog. Of course, I can anonymize any details you prefer, like not mentioning your name, where you live, or any other sensitive information you request.



I'll pick a handful of stories to share on our Agile Blog and we'll even give away AgileBits t-shirts to our favorite storytellers. So, if you'd like to share the unique or creative way you use 1Password, how you discovered it, or who you've shared it with, the rest of the world and I are all ears!

brittspace

I've always found it useful to store "Forgot Your Password" answers in the notes of each site.



One day I'll actually name my pet "79txtA%zmJP~ee."

rKunda

I purchase from a lot of different vendors at work. I have many logins that I no longer have to remember. The best combination has been using 1P w/ Alfred app's integration.



Trigger Alfred. Type "1P [part of vendor name]" & hit enter. Logged in and ready to go! Saves so much time and clicking. Use 1P all day, every day.

Japestar

Used other password apps and found 1Password to be the closest match to how I use the web and other applications.



Storing all the extra questions some sites insist on in the space place as the passwords makes life so much easier. The software licenses, the wallet and stuff like that is just superb. Keeping my daughters and my passport details in one place has made filling out the Visa requirements so much easier.

fathermojo

Probably my biggest time saver is using 1Password in conjunction with Alfred on the Mac to launch and sign-in to the many systems that I use at work. With just a few keystrokes and my master password I can get access my favorite online tools.

Wes Mason

I do a lot of work with third party APIs, twitter, Facebook, AWS, rackspace, and collect various authentication tokens along the way - I store them all in 1password in an API tokens group.

I do the same with the test auth details for our own apps and APIs and I can usually just use the browser shortcut to fill them in while at test consoles.



Super handy and makes my work go a lot smoother.



Another handy feature that has an unexpected use is the password generator. I find it is very handy to fill in passwords and auth tokens in our own apps to verify out backend will deal with them and store them correctly.

phase1geo

I purchase a lot of sheet music in password protected PDF form. I store the passwords as secure notes with the tag "pdf password" and then create a smart folder so that I can quickly access the information when I need to refer to the PDF files. Super handy and secure!

dmkash

Like everyone else, I love using 1Password for logging into secure sites without having to remember my login information all the time. I also have found 1Password very helpful when developing web forms. I can fill the form with test data once, tell 1Password to save it, and now testing the form during the development cycle is very quick!

crumbgrabber

I got tired of my family losing the combinations to combo locks, so I now mark each lock with a letter and record the combination in a 1Password note.

raygan

I work in a business where I have to constantly change Macs; I usually have user accounts set up on up to 10 computers at a time.

I keep all my software licenses in my 1Password, along with links to their download pages, so that I can quickly and easily install whichever apps I need on each system. With 1Password and Dropbox syncing, I can sit down in front of a brand new Mac and be ready to work in literally about 10 minutes. Since I have to do this nearly every day, 1Password is completely indispensable.

njentzsch

My husband is seriously ill and, now, often needs my help to log into his various accounts and make payments. Trust me when I tell you that I'm enormously relieved that I got him 1Password 18 months ago and convinced him to use it. Without 1Password, he would have to remember his username, password, and the particular web address for each account. 1Password has given both him and me a peace of mind that is almost unfathomable.



Thank you,

Nancy

cpfusion

I just could not function without 1Password any more. I have been a 1Password user since January 2008 and I have been using syncing via Dropbox since it was introduced to keep everything up to date on all my devices, iMac, MacBook, iPod touch, iPhone and iPad. It has saved my skin on more than one occasion due to being able to retrieve login information for obscure sites and also for accessing FTP sites which I would never have managed to access had it not been for 1Password.

Aled Evans

My friends sometimes give me a weird look when I tell them I only remember one password - the one I need to access 1Password. 1P randomly generates and stores the rest for me. I always choose the maximum length and complexity that a service will allow and I change all my passwords around twice a year. Some may think that's weird or overkill, but guess who's never had their Facebook, Twitter or email accounts hacked? <img src='http://forum.agilebits.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=';)' />

thightower

Not like I am in the winner selection process or anything, but I have to say a few good ideas for me to implement on my own. Thanks guys.



I think I get the idgit award, one night I created a password protected PDF placed it in 1P. Guess who forgot to record that password in 1P. I choose something easy from what I recall as I intended to make it just hard enough for protection from the occasional onlooker etc. Guess that included me to <img src='http://forum.agilebits.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/tongue.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':P' />



Now I keep a secure note called temp/low security passwords. I record all PDF passwords on it. I could use the password generator I suppose and use tags but those are for more secure items. But since I use these for super low security I am not concerned about it.



BTW, Just to be on the fair side, David make sure you exclude me as I would anticipate you would from this little contest.



Now that file is forever locked in 1P for safe keeping should I happen to remember it. As each day goes by I personally use 1P to keep more data for safe keeping in it, and make sure to keep good records of passwords.

bbinder

I've used 1P to replace so many of my bookmarks. Since I can use 1P with all of my browsers and have it sync effortlessly, it's the perfect way to access my websites instantly.



I use this combination with 2 apps, depending on if I have a browser window open. [list=1]

[*]Launchbar is my app of choice. With its 1P integration, I hit the shortcut to open LB, then type in [b]1p[/b]>space bar>and start typing away to get to the 1,000+ sites I have, condensed to what I am looking for.

[*]Since Chrome is my default browser on my Mac, I get the site opened (via step 1) and get to work after 1P fills in the site credentials and I'm on my way. If there are other sites I need to get to in a hurry, It's a quick Command+T to open a new tab, type in [b]1p[/b] and hit the tab key and start typing in the site name and 1P automatically shows the relevant sites I'm looking to access. Select the site and it directs me there and logs me in.

[/list]

I love using keyboard shortcuts and these tips save me a ton of time. I have to work in websites constantly for front-end GUIs, firewall access, online management systems, etc. When you aren't looking to hunt and peck for where you put that shortcut/bookmark, 1P has got me covered.



Note: I didn't want to confuse anyone, so I bolded where I physically type in the letters [b]1p[/b] - not that people would think I'm typing it inside of the app or something.

The_BORG

1Password is great! I store all of my logons for the many websites & services I use, computer & network info & passwords for relatives, and work passwords to the numerous systems that I deal with. I can't live without 1Password! On my Mac or on my iPhone the info is always with me! I love 1Password!

Nick Peelman

I don't know how unique or creative it is, but I keep a secure note in 1Password containing the hardware serial numbers of more or less all of my hardware. I used to keep the note stored in plain text in Dropbox, but using 1Password makes it a little easier to access, and as expected, more secure.



Its handy to have a running list of serials for your hardware should anything ever go missing or get stolen. Storing that list securely in a cloud-based system makes it that much handier. Its also a good way to identify your stuff among other people's, should similar items ever get jumbled together.



Its a minor thing, but one more reason I'm happy to be a 1Password user.



Oh, and I will say that I did make a feature request to the 1Password twitter account asking for this to become a defined feature in a future 1Password version, much like software licenses and the wallet. I could see this being incredibly valuable if there ever becomes a way to easily share a 1Password library among multiple users.

Penelope Pitstop

I don't know about unique or creative but here are a few things I do to make life with 1PW simpler.



1. Most of my financial accounts require me to provide a few random selected characters from a password rather than the entire password string e.g. third, fifth and fifteenth characters. I use 1PW to generate theses passwords and then split them up into groups of five characters separated by spaces. This format makes it easier to locate a character in a particular position and it pays off several times a day.



2. I store wireless network passwords for semi-public networks I join to make it easy to share them with friends via text message from my iPhone. They can easily copy and paste them from the text message into the prompt when they try to join the network. It also makes it easier for me to share across my devices (via dropbox sync) and more easily cope with a device replacement/upgrade.



3. I often help technically challenged friends to set their devices and on-line accounts up. I always record every password we use in my own 1PW. No matter how many times I ask people to "keep this piece of paper in a safe, private place", they still seem to lose them. Before you ask, yes I do try to get them to use 1PW but for many, it is just too complex.



4. I use 1PW pronounceable random passwords for my security questions on any account that requires them and store them in the notes field along with the original questions — something Jeff already advocated in a blog post. Easier to provide them verbally if required and mitigates against social engineering attacks.

David Chartier

These are great everyone, thank you so much! I'm going to start rounding these up soon and get in touch with some of you. If you know anyone else who might have a good story, feel free to share this thread and maybe we can include them as well.

Mackell

This is maybe a way to trepass a lot of "terms of use" (!) but my sister and I have a special 1Password account for things we share. Both of us have this installed on our administration account (mac) to be able to log in to things we both are responsible for especially our summerhouse. It is handy when you want to check or pay the electricity bill, landlord rent... Also a good place to store other importan things we don't want to have in emails. We have this special account as non of us want the other to be able to access our private 1Password account

RodD

I use the generate password option to create user IDs as well as passwords. It adds one more obstacle to someone guessing your userID and since 1Password remembers both ID and password, the user ID can be random for sites where that is appropriate (e.g., banking sites). I specify a shorter length (like 12 characters) and make it pronounceable. You have to either do this first, or use a temporary login account to generate it, then paste it into the user ID field. (It would be a nice addition if 1Password would add the ability to autogenerate a user ID here as well.)

Chris100

I scanned a copy of my passport to a PDF.

It is saved as an attachment to my Passport entry in my 1PW database.

I have never needed it, and hope I never will, but it could well come in handy one day.