Compiled by JOHN COLLINS

Secure Memorable Password generator

Let’s be honest, despite the advice of the security experts we all tend to use the same or similar passwords for a range of different websites.

XKPasswd claims to generate secure memorable passwords. Simply fill in a few parameters – how many words you want your password to be, if you want a mix of upper and lowercase letters and whether you require numbers and the website does the rest.

Security made easy.

xkpasswd.net

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Facebook Messenger on your phone

Although available in the US for a while, Facebook Messenger, the latest weapon in the social network’s plans for world domination, has now quietly made it into the Apple and Android app stores on this side of the pond.

More than just a simple instant messaging client, it allows you to chat with your Facebook friends who are online, get notified of incoming messages, set up group chats and invite your friends to conversations that are already under way.

You can also send photos and privately share your location.

facebook.com/mobile/messenger

The false iPhone 5 expectations

Much of the fun of reading technology news blogs is the fondness for having a pop at the competition or even their co-workers (see the recent public implosion at Techcrunch).

Case in hand – this Gawker article which lists the stories sites such as Mashable, The Next Web and Read Write Web, and mainstream news sources like the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg, published in advance of the expected iPhone 5 launch and got it badly wrong.

http://is.gd/aTqEUb

USB guard to never forget your key

If you have ever found yourself at home ready to do some work when you realised that USB key with the all important document is still stuck in the PC at work or college, USB guard is for you. Run it on your PC and if you try and shut down with a storage device connected to your computer the process will be stopped. It’s free to download and doesn’t actually need to be installed on your PC just run in the background – which means you can use it on a machine even if it has security restrictions. is.gd/DBTxYK