PicturePassword 1.0 from SOFTAVA
Not everybody wants or needs a password utility but if you do you might as well go for the best. That’s, of course, my not-so-humble opinion. But, in the words of good ‘ol Dr Phil: “Don’t substitute my judgement for yours!” so let me explain why PicturePassword appeals to me.
PicturePassword was actually written for me. Not literally, of course, but for folks like me who want and need password protection but not the hassle of keying in at least four digits every time you turn your PDA on. One click on a “secret” spot in a nice picture will Open Sesame!
You’ve heard of certain terrorist networks sending secret codes that are hidden in digital images. Well, this is NOT the case here but a pretty picture can hide a secret access code to your mobile platform. One tap on that sweet spot of your choice and you’re in!
PicturePassword provides a couple of nice BMW images but you can also create your own pictures. There are plenty of snazzy car pictures to download for free but it would be good to see them catering to a wider public than just for revheads…
However, it’s quite easy to frame up a 160x160 pixel JPG to add to your gallery.
When you first start PicturePassword you can choose between just a simple 4 digit protection or go for the strong alphanumeric one.
Whatever you do you must be able to remember your code as you’ll lose all you precious data should you forget and be forced to hard reset!
Next, you can select the sensitivity of your tap in case you’d rather use your finger or nail than a stylus. Using a stylus covers fewer pixels thus giving better security.
There is a third way of “getting in”: use a hardware button. Select which one(s) and how many presses (up to five presses) to enter. You might think this is probably the least secure method as it doesn't take long to experiment with all buttons to find the right combination. However, just as when you miss the “secret spot” on the image, the protection defaults to the numeric input mode and you have to key in the code manually.
PicturePassword can prompt the user when the device is unused for anything up to 30 minutes.
Like with any password protection schemes you need to confirm your choices before saving the changes.
Setup is finished after performing a soft reset.
Most attractive with PicturePassword is also the fact that Owner info is displayed on the security screen as well as the time in big numbers and also the date and battery level. So there is no need to unlock your device just to check the time. And with the Owner info displayed in a “rolling” fashion there’s no doubt whose machine this is!
An excellent password protection program!
It’s secure, simple and snazzy!
There are a couple of items for improvement, mainly in the area of further personalising.
Audio should be able to be muted independent of the main volume setting and I’d also like to be able to tweak what appears in the Owner/Time bar above the picture, like fonts, other items, etc.
Albert Ogonevski, the creator of PicturePassword, is very responsive to ideas and mentioned that he’s working on further tweaking as well as encryption.
I would also like the ability to switch the security off and on without having to go through the rigmarole of resetting and reconfiguring everything. When I’m at home I don’t need the extra security. But maybe that would be compromising the whole idea of security… so it’s perhaps unrealistic to wish for this feature! However, maybe PicturePassword can remember my last settings? ?
Pricing structure is a bit bewildering: corporate clients can order this utility for between $3 to $6 per license (depending on volume) plus a once-off $70 software rebuild fee, use their own logos and make this password protection free for their staff.
Individual licenses are $14.95 for the full version or you can download the freeware version which is called LogoLogin. There’s also an older version around, called OneTouchPass to make the confusion complete…
(a screenshot from LogoLogin)
Have a look at the SOFTAVA site for more info and, while you’re there, also check out the clever mobile keyboards they’ve invented!
Check here: www.softava.com
Copyright © 2003 - 2004 . All rights reserved. © www.PocketPCReviews.net
Reproduction in any form or medium without written permission of the
site's owners is prohibited.