Since the dawn of encryption and user accounts, password security has been of the utmost importance. However, It’s an often-neglected measure for keeping things secure, with users still using default passwords, easily guessable personal details, or otherwise insecure passwords. Here are a few quick tips to help new and old users alike keep their secrets safe. Do not use whole words Use a good mix of letters, numbers, and special…

They’re a hallmark of horror movies, sci-fi, the 1950s, and the 1980s. 3D Glasses are a familiar site for anyone that’s ever seen a drive-in, a late-night horror movie marathon, or a b-grade sci-fi movie. The distictive red and blue (or red and teal, realistically) lenses serve to allow you to perceive the depth of an image, by separating it into two color layers that your left eye and right…

In an effort to kick my freelance design work into overdrive, I’ve released a new version of my portfolio separating my business and personal life.  It’s a simpler, less-cluttered portfolio site designed to showcase my past work, along with serving as a demonstration ground for new design techniques. Let me know what you think! It’s currently up at http://www.lostinthetext.com/portfolio/

Google users were treated to an interesting twist on the now-deeply-ingrained google homepage logo yesterday, as google replaced the normal logo with a playable version of 80s video game hit PacMan featuring the google logo within the level. Reactions were mixed, however. For most, the game was either met with brief amusement and a few games played, or a resounding ‘meh’. But for some unlucky souls browsing at work, their…

In my experience working with wordpress and content management system (CMS) sites, I’ve come across

An amusing twist on the old standard for generic filler text, Gangsta lorem ipsum is almost a modern parody of the unrecognizable, almost indecypherably random latin text.Llorem ipsum text that has become a web designer’s best friend for content filling.  The Phrase “Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet” is almost a running joke in the design industry, being used where concerns about plagiarism and wanting the text to look even modestly…

Just for curiosity’s sake,  I came up with a simple but effective grid cipher (or, basically, secret code)  to test out. It’s called AESOP, a reference to both the famous fables, and more truthfully just what the first 5 letters of Set B happened to be in the first grid.  This cipher, also known as a Polybius Square is a simple encryption technique dating back to ancient greece. A grid…

With the last-stage release of Firefox 3.5.9,  many users were surprised to find the archive of “personas” that lets users customize the overall appearance of firefox. While the concept of browser themes is far from new (in fact, it’s almost archaic in web terms), firefox’s personas are streamlined, making installation as simple as clicking a “wear this” button in the personas repository.  You can even preview each persona simply by…