Two months ago,  I started my “Top-Ten list of Apps I Can’t Live Without with Seamonkey”, you can read the article here, or read all of “The 10 Computer Apps Murray Can’t Live Without” here.

This month, since I missed a month I’m going to tell you about two apps that when used together allow you to manage and store passwords and user names securely and access them no matter where you are (as long as you have an internet or mobile connection).  Here’s how I do it.

#2 – Keepass and KeePassX (a computer and mobile app)

I don’t know about you, but I have at least 100 different sites, apps, accounts or whatever that I need to have user names and passwords for. I started out years ago with a post-it note on my bulletin board, and soon it was on to an Excel spreadsheet. Problem was, if for any reason some bad person got into my computer, they could easily open the spreadsheet and get and get all my passwords.

I used a Mac only app for years, but recently I found KeePass (KeePassX for Mac). Keepass is a highly encrypted open source app that allows you to store your user names, passwords, site URL’s, notes and more in an easy to use and SAFE database.

It’s Free, But….

KeePass once again is Open Source – that means it’s free! But, if you want to use it without being at your computer there’s a catch. It is not a “cloud” app. That means that the app resides on the hard drive of a computer somewhere and that means if you are on your smart phone, you can’t get to your KeePass on your computer to retrieve your passwords, right?

Not exactly….

Here’s How You Can Use KeePass Anywhere!

Well, how do you access KeePass if it’s not a cloud app and it is on my computer hard drive (you ask)? Not only is KeePass a computer app, it’s available for mobile devices like iPhones, Android phones, etc. (download links below). If you have KeePass on your computer, and you have KeePass on your mobile, you can access it anywhere, here’s how.

DropBox To The Rescue!

DropBox is a free (up to 2 gigabytes of storage free, more for $$) cloud application that allows you put ANYTHING into your DropBox on your computer, and then share it with ANYONE that you give access to! You can share photos, documents and in this case your KeePass database when you put the KeePass database into the DropBox folder on your computer. Another great benefit to DropBox is that it securely stores the documents in your DropBox on their servers, so you can to access the stuff in your DropBox from any computer anywhere as long as there is an internet connection.

Simply go to the link below, download DropBox onto your hard drive, then create a DropBox account online. Now, when you

Wrap It All Up – Passwords and User Names Anywhere – Anytime.

1. Put your KeePass database in your DropBox.

2. Download the DropBox and KeePass mobile apps for your mobile device.

3. Open DropBox on your mobile device and voila – your KeePass database is there for you to access and even edit if you like.

This works great for me, it’s all free, it’s secure, it takes minimum set-up, and it is easy to use once it is set up. Hope you like it!

More Information and To Download

KeePass

KeePass Info: http://keepass.info/

KeePass PC & Mac Download (look for the correct version for your OS):
http://keepass.info/download.html

KeePass Mobile Download (look for the correct version for your device):
Go to the app store for your mobile device

DropBox

DropBox is free. However, if you decide to get DropBox, email us here. We will send you an invitation to get DropBox and by doing it this way we can get additional space above the 20gb free limit for free. Just thinking…..

DropBox Info: http://www.dropbox.com/features

DropBox PC & Mac Download (look for the correct version for your OS):
http://www.dropbox.com/features

DropBox Mobile Download (look for the correct version for your device):
Go to the app store for your mobile device