PassPack for the Desktop!
by
on June 30, 2008,
I've made no secret of my unabashed enthusiasm for password manager PassPack. Of all the apps I've tried and reviewed, PassPack is probably the one that gets used most throughout the day, simply because of the enormous number of accounts I need to wrangle as part of this job.
One problem that I've had frequently, however, is the lack of either an offline or mobile version. There's been many a time when I'm sitting at a soccer game or at a dance rehearsal trying to access some application on my tiny little RAZR, and can't remember a password. When PassPack's Tara Kelly told me that they were in the process of building out a desktop version, I jumped at the chance to give it a try.
Like all the cool kids in Web 2.0, PassPack Desktop is now on Adobe Air. A Google Gears beta version has been out for a while now, but Air makes it possible for those of us with incompatible systems to enjoy the benefits as well. The Air version takes advantage of all the nifty cool UI changes that PassPack has implemented over the past several months, and as long as you can run Air Apps, you can use it. The Offline version features an MD5 Checksum feature to verify the copy you've downloaded, and all the same security features, including double log-in, hidden password text, and strong password generation.
I've already submitted my feedback to the PassPack team (mainly that a compact version would be even better, since it does take up a lot of screen real estate), but mainly, this is the most welcome development to one of my most heavily used apps. A Linux version is coming soon (currently works on both Mac and PC), and some features of the online version don't work in an offline version (for example, auto-login, because you'd have to be online to do that).
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major
raj
CopyrightLawSucks 
kwarren84 
Michael Fidler 
Jaime A. Restrepo 
Yolanda
how do you compare it with KeePassX or 1Password? (strength and ease of use?)
@felix thnx i’ll read. @Cyndy.. i’ll wait
(and i spared 6 lines of how i’m tired of using “fractions” of apps. to get something done:))
Naor, for you, I’ll do a separate post, because that’s going to be longer than three FF comments, and three is my absolute limit.
i posted some thoughts on PassPack a little while ago - I think I had a diff’t use case than Cyndy did - I was looking for more of an all purpose secure text db. If you’re curious - http://is.gd/J9s
Felix, I reviewed them both as well, and went with PassPack, obviously. I don’t WANT my whole life online, and I sure don’t want my CC numbers stored anywhere but my wallet. As for secure passwords, it’s not as hard as you think to create a shorter complex password. I have to only rememberthose two, and I have a unique way of using easy-to-remember data. Then again, most things in l33t usually pass these types of checks.
I have been looking for a password manager for the past week since I switched to vista and my previous program is not compatible with Vista. I believe PassPack has everything I need…thanks for such a great review of a great product!
Chadwick
Cyndy - Thanks, I really love your enthusiasm… and I think it’s the first time we’ve been called a cool kid. The compact version is coming shortly, promise.
Chadwick - Great to hear it! If you need a hand with anything, let me know.
Cheers,
Tara Kelly
Passpack Founding Partner
One quick thing: Gears is supported on Linux (Firefox), Windows (Internet Explorer and Firefox), Mac OS X (Firefox), and Windows Mobile. A Safari port for Mac OS X is coming soon. Were there some platforms you wanted to use the Passpack + Gears version on that you couldn’t? I’d love to know so we can grow Gears support on more platforms.
Best,
Brad Neuberg
Gears
I still wish they’d port Roboform over to the Mac. I’ve played with 1Pass and I like what PassPack is doing but the single platform solutions are annoying if you use both Mac and Windows and the browser solutions aren’t as nice as a toolbar.
@A Stange Web
Browsers plugins are comfy, no doubt. We’re working on it. Online password management is a new field, so we’re building everything from the ground up…. baby steps.
Tara