Today, using your last name followed by your favorite year just doesn’t always cut it.  So how does one stay safe?

Firstly, don’t use words out of the dictionary to form a password.  Rather, make your password seem like a bunch of gibberish.  Create an acronym instead, or write out complete gibberish as a password (of course, make sure you wrote down this gibberish BEFORE you attempt typing it.  THEN, take that piece of paper you wrote your new password on and HIDE IT!) If you create a password with words, it’ll be easier for any hacker or hacking program to figure out your password.

If the above is too difficult, then try making your password complex.  Use upper AND lower case letters, numbers, and if applicable, use symbols like !, #, $, or %.  The longer and more random the password, the better.

Do not use your first, middle, and/or last name as your password.  If a hacker knows your name, it’d be no sweat to get to your account.

If the website you are subscribing/signing up to requires a security question just in case you forget your password and need to “reset” it, don’t use answers and questions that everyone might know.  Also, I find that if your answers are longer, your password will be that much harder to be obtained by a hacker.

Try changing your password from time to time.  I’m not saying to do it every day, but maybe every few months or so.  I try to change my passwords every 4 to 6 months.

Don’t use the “AutoComplete” features.  When you do this, your password is stored on your computer and will leave you more vulnerable to having your information stolen.

Lastly, do NOT use the same password for every single thing.  Using the same password for everything is an easy habit to get into.  Yes, it is a lot easier to remember, but it’s much more dangerous.  If a hacker gained your password from one website, what would stop them from using the same information on another?

“I think I get it, but how can I tell my password is safe?”

If you followed the suggestions above, you should be fine – but if you would like a second opinion, check out http://www.passwordmeter.com/ aka “Password Strength Checker.”  This website offers a simple, free service that allows one to check the strength of his password.

Just visit the website, type your password in, and the webpage automatically checks the strength of your password.  Your password is never stored or saved, so not only is it a FREE service, more importantly, it is a SAFE service.

So, be sure and check out http://www.passwordmeter.com/

Stay safe!

What Do You Think?

How do you stay safe on the internet?  What methods do you use to make your password strong and safe?  Whatever you have to say, I want to hear about it!  Leave your thoughts below in the “Comments” section, or send me an e-mail at david@funkytower.com

Take it easy,
David

So now that we’ve covered templating in our last tutorial, here are some other tips for making your webpage move faster.

1. Use External CSS Documents:  Rahter than implamenting your CSS into the HEAD of your local document,  link your webpage to an external CSS document.  Do this by templating your CSS in the header like normal, making sure you have the webpage looking like it should.  Then copy all the CSS code into a new notepad document and save it as “styles.css” After that, erase the CSS from the HEAD of your webpage and replace it with “<link rel=’stylesheet’ href=’styles.css’ type=’text/css’ media=’all’ />Doing this keeps browsers from having to load the same stylesheet over and over by allowing it to store one stylesheet file to reuse.
2. Validate your CSS:  Go to http://jigsaw.w3.org/css-validator/ and have your stylesheet(s)/webpage(s) validated.  If you have ANY errors in your CSS, fix them.  Browsers like IExplorer fix some CSS issues to make the webpage look like it’s supposed to, which can cause your website to move slower for alot of users.  Also it can keep your website from looking right in 3rd party browsers, like FireFox (of course, FireFox is so huge right now I don’t think I should be calling it 3rd party )
3. Validate your HTML:  Go to http://validator.w3.org/ and have your webpage(s) validated.  If there are any errors, FIX THEM.  This will help users from all different browsers to see the website as it is meant to be, giving them a pleasant and enjoyable experience.
4. Adding to other browsers, test your website in multiple browsers like IExplorer, Firefox, etc.  Different browsers decode websites differently, therefor they display them differently.  To improve your websites performance, fine-tune your code so that it is compatible with major browsers so that it looks and feels beautiful
5. Finally, make sure your content’s filesizes aren’t too big.  For example, if you have alot of pictures in your web page, lower the quality just a little bit, and (if possible) make them smaller in dimension.  The less a web browser has to load, the quicker your website will move.

If you have followed all these steps, you should have a smooth, sleek, multi-browser compatible, user-friendly website. 

What Do You Think?
Did these tips help you to build a smooth running website?  Do you have questions about web design?  Do you have any other ways to boost a website’s performance?  I want to know what you have to say – I would love to share your information with the world here at FunkyTower!  Send me an e-mail at david@funkytower.com   I hope to hear from you soon!

Take it easy,
David Crandall