Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!mgnetp!ihnp4!zehntel!hplabs!sri-unix!buck@NRL-CSS.ARPA From: buck@NRL-CSS.ARPA Newsgroups: net.unix-wizards Subject: Don't force random passwords on people! Message-ID: <12465@sri-arpa.UUCP> Date: Wed, 15-Aug-84 10:44:55 EDT Article-I.D.: sri-arpa.12465 Posted: Wed Aug 15 10:44:55 1984 Date-Received: Sat, 18-Aug-84 01:35:48 EDT Lines: 20 From: Joe BuckRight on, Stephen Wolff! At my college computer center about five years ago, students were forced to accept random passwords. What's worse, the accounts had some 12 digit user number, rather than the user's name. Naturally, everyone carried around little slips of paper with their account number and password, and almost every time I went to the computer center, I found one or two of them. For a good password, try the initials to a song, book, phrase, etc. For a while, my password was "ilamiau" (the initials to a song title). Even if someone looks over my shoulder when I'm typing it in, it's doubtful that s/he'll remember it. Let's not make our computers so secure that legitimate users can't function. ARPA: buck@nrl-css.ARPA UUCP: ...!{decvax,linus,umcp-cs}!nrl-css!buck -Joe