The future of Internet passwords.

I think passwords should only be in Navajo. From Tech News Daily:

As more of life happens online, from banking to socializing, the usernames and complex passwords we must keep track of has multiplied to staggering proportions. Is there an end in sight for having to create so many different logins?

Looking ahead, experts predict that we will further embrace "universal logins" that let us sign in once to gain access to our Web services. Before long, cell phones may serve as personal keys to our own online kingdom. Secure logins might be based more on physical characteristics, such as iris patterns and voices, which cannot be forgotten or misplaced. And further down the road, we may transcend the need for passwords online as we become truly integrated into the electronic realm.

To be effective, today's usernames and passwords often require a complex mix of capital letters, numerals and special characters, such as a pound symbol, with requirements varying by Web site. Although onerous, these requirements have been widely adopted and successful in discouraging registrants from picking easy passwords, such as the name of their pet or a common dictionary word, explained Matt Bishop, a computer scientist at UC Davis.

From a security point of view at least, that's a good thing. But remembering several complex and hopeful effective passwords can be a bad thing.

For many people, the pain of logging in has been eased via "password managers." These programs, usually part of Web browsers such as Mozilla Firefox, remember usernames and passwords and automatically populate these fields onscreen.

While sparing some keystrokes and aggravation, this setup poses an obvious security threat if a computer is stolen. It can also leave one in a lurch when trying to sign into Web sites from another computer.