Xmarks acquired by LastPass

According to this Xmarks blog post, LastPass has acquired Xmarks.  This is great news for fans of either service.


You may recall that I've mentioned both services in previous posts.  I use them on a daily basis.


Xmarks allows you to synchronize your browser bookmarks/favorites between different browsers, different operating systems and different computers.


LastPass does the same thing for your passwords.


If you haven't checked them out yet, you should do so.  It's way better than trying to remember all of those passwords and maintaining separate lists of bookmarks/favorites in each browser you use.

Xmarks is going away

Previously, I wrote about a service called Xmarks that I use to synchronize my bookmarks across browsers and computers.  It has come to my attention that Xmarks is shutting down effective January 10, 2011.  You can read more about it here.


If you are using Xmarks, like me, you'll want to switch to an alternative before the shutdown date.  My primary browser now is Chrome, which has a built-in bookmark sync tied to your Google account.  I'll be transitioning from Xmarks to Chrome Sync in the next few months.  I haven't yet decided whether I will sync my Firefox and Internet Explorer bookmarks, as I don't use those browsers as much.


It's too bad that Xmarks wasn't able to turn a profit and has to close their doors, but life goes on.

Set an external time source on a Windows PDC

To keep the time on all of your domain computers synchronized with an accurate external time source, the PDC needs to be configured to synchronize with that time source.  Here's how to do it:


http://support.microsoft.com/kb/816042

Xmarks

Xmarks is another browser add-on/plug-in/extension for IE, Firefox and Chrome.  It does for your bookmarks what LastPass does for your passwords.


No longer do you have to update your bookmarks on each computer or in each browser that you use.  Now they are all synchronized with a couple of clicks.


To me, Dropbox, LastPass and Xmarks is the holy trinity of data portability and cloud computing.  Your bookmarks/favorites, passwords and files are all the same on any computer you use.  What could be better than that?!


http://www.xmarks.com/

LastPass

LastPass is a password manager.  But, it's not just any old password manager.  It encrypts your passwords locally on your computer and then uploads the encrypted data to a secure site online.  That means that you can access your passwords from any computer with an Internet connection.


What I love about LastPass is that I can easily install the browser add-on/plug-in/extension into IE, Firefox and Chrome on all of my computers and have my passwords available in any browser on any of my computers.  How convenient!


http://lastpass.com/

Dropbox

Welcome to my tech tips blog!

Occasionally, I come across some handy website or plug-in. I've created this blog as a way to share them with others who are interested in such time-saving, frustration-reducing tips.

It's only fitting that my first post is about a tool that has become ubiquitous in my digital life: Dropbox.

Dropbox is a website and application that work in tandem to synchronize files/folders in the Dropbox folder on your computer(s) to the website. It also allows you to share folders with other people. It's secure, fast and easy.

The best part is that you get 2GB of storage absolutely free. Plus, it works on PC, Mac and Linux.

Get Dropbox and you'll find uses for it you might never have imagined.

If you don't already have a Dropbox account, click here to sign up and get an additional 250MB (total of 2.25GB) of storage space free!

http://tinyurl.com/yezb8ne