Getting a grip on passwords

I've watched computers, mobile devices, and the internet evolve and grow with inspiration and amazement. But with all the incredible tools and services made available to us internet users, I am still surprised that there hasn't been a fundamental overhaul of the username/password 'problem'.

Remembering unique passwords for every website is mentally taxing, and using the same password is risky. Now there may already be a solution out there somewhere, or a fundamental overhaul just around the corner. So, until that time, here's my proven method I've used to keep ALL my passwords organized for many years now. I don't need to write any of them down, and no two are the same.

My simple and powerful method is actually built on the flaws when using either a unique password or the same password. What I do is combine them such that I'm using the same password AND a unique password, with a twist. Here's what I've been doing over the years...

My passwords are built on two parts, the never-changing 'root' password, and the ever-changing 'prefix' password. For every website I have an account with, the 'prefix' password is nothing more than a snippet of the website domain name's first two characters. For this website (steemit.com), for example, my 'prefix' password is 'St'. I've also capitalized the first character because some websites require a capital letter. But to help my brain be a little lazy, I capitalize the first letter for all of my passwords.

Next, I append my 'root' password to the 'prefix' password. This is where you are encouraged to create a random string of letters and/or numbers of at least five characters. But it doesn't need to be too long either, since this is the part of the password that will be the same for all of your passwords, so you'll memorize it in no time.

In a nutshell: 'St' + 'root' = THIS website's password. For Amazon it would be 'Am' + 'root'.

Some websites will require a symbol too. So you can add that to either your 'root' or 'prefix' passwords. Best you put one in for good measure.

Now you have a password system. You no longer have to memorize more and more passwords, or continuously increase your risk by using a single password. This system has really helped me make my online experience much smoother and more enjoyable, because I can log in on any computer, and I don't have to keep my passwords written down anywhere.

It's the perfect combination of ease-of-use and security.