Most of us have really crappy, insecure passwords. Sure, we tack a couple of numbers or punctuation characters at the end of our cat's name, but that's a far cry from secure -- especially since we also have the equally nasty habit of using the same password on every single site/service/machine/device with which we have regular contact. We're not just asking for trouble, we're offering it a delectable stolen identity sandwich.

As most of us Mac folks know, a solution exists and it's called 1Password. If you've owned your Mac for more than an hour or so, chances are pretty good that you've been admonished to acquire this lovely app (maybe even by more than one person). Several of us at TUAW are big fans of 1Password, and today our pointy party hats are standing taller than ever thanks to the opening of the public beta for 1Password 3.

This new version brings with it a massive list of changes, improvements and new features -- a couple of which have helped me to realize the dream of being able to utilize 1Password data on OSes other than OS X. You see, like many other Mac enthusiasts, I use Windows at work. Obviously, this precludes me from fully embracing Mac-only software like 1Password, but thanks to a brand new feature called 1Password Anywhere, my pain is dulled.

1Password Anywhere allows you to take your 1Password data and open it using any modern web browser. I've tested this with Chrome, Firefox and IE under Windows XP and they all work wonderfully. Your data is still absolutely secure and stored behind the same master password that protects the data in 1Password proper. They didn't spare any detail, either -- 1Password Anywhere looks and feels remarkably similar to the native OSX application. The data is read-only in your browser, but being able to easily the strong passwords and paste them is worth the admission price. The truly enlightened will see the application of a service like Dropbox here -- just move your keychain file into your Dropbox and your passwords are now with you whenever you go.

Gallery: 1Password 3 Beta

As Christina mentioned a while ago, 1Password version 3 is on the horizon, and we've got some sneak peeks to show you. There are some great improvements to the core, but more immediately noticeable are the visual tweaks to the interface. The entire UI has been overhauled, and I'm impressed. Take a look at the gallery to see for yourself. Oh, and check the end of the post if you missed out on the private beta but want to play with version 3 on your machine!

Haven't heard of 1Password? It's a form-filling, password-storing, iPhone-syncing, highly-secure information storage system. It handles software licenses, secure notes, credit cards and, of course, passwords. It can generate impossible-to-crack passwords on-the-fly, and then remember them for you. All you have to remember is, that's right, one password. Get it?

Read on for a quick walkthrough of new 1Password features, and a little trick to get your hands on it early ...

We, of course, had lunch with our favorite Canadian developers at WWDC. Talking with Dave, Roustem and the rest of the crew from Agile Web Solutions is something I look forward to anytime we're all in San Francisco. I didn't film the whole lunch; being filmed eating is almost as awkward as eating alone in the cafeteria, I think. So here's a quick -- but very interesting -- clip of Dave Teare explaining how cut-and-paste in iPhone OS 3.0 is going to be used in 1Password. If you're a 1Password user, you'll probably want to check it out!

It's always a pleasure to see the guys from Agile Web Solutions. I spoke to them about three upcoming features for 1Password, their secure, password-collecting, form-filling application. I won't go into a lot of detail on 1Password, we've mentioned it a few times before.

First, we talked a little about the new Agile Keychain format; being a package format, it opens up quite a few possibilities, including the (upcoming) ability to add encrypted notes in rich text format, complete with links and attachments. We also talked about what happened to my1Password, the web-based version of 1Password: it's evolving into a portable version which can be carried around on a USB stick or accessed through something like drop.io. Lastly, they're incorporating fingerprint scanning (0Password?), which will work with both wired and portable USB versions of the fingerprint scanner.

Thanks to Dave and Roustem for their time! Note that I made it through this post without making a single reference to your Canadian colloquialisms, eh? Also note that it's Roustem on the left and Dave on the right at the beginning of the clip, even though I introduced them the other way around.

Read on for the video.

Agile Web Solutions today offered its customers a Thanksgiving present: a free copy of 1Password. Existing customers are encouraged to give up to three extra licenses to their friends by visiting Agile's website and providing their information.

New customers can also benefit: If you purchase 1Password today, you get two licenses for the price of one. Agile is also offering a discount to new orders, taking 15 percent off your final total.

The promotion ends Sunday.

We may have mentioned it one or two (dozen) times, but 1Password is a great solution for securely managing passwords, credit cards and notes on a Mac (and recently the iPhone). If you're a 1Password fan, be sure to check out the 2.9 release from last weekend; it has a pretty huge new feature. For quite a while now there have been grumblings about the OS X Keychain being a bit of a beast, especially when handling large amounts of data. Rather than waiting out Apple for new improvements to the Keychain system, the stalwart coders at Agile Web Solutions decided to write their own.

If you dig into the Keychain section of the preferences in 1Password 2.9, you'll find an option to "Switch to Agile Keychain Format." What's the difference? First, it allows easy file-based synchronization, making possible non-MobileMe solutions for syncing up multiple Macs. Further, it maintains speedy access even when it contains gigs of data, as well as supporting much higher levels of encryption. Sounds good to me.

If you're ready to switch your keychain format, head over to the developer's blog for detailed instructions, and read up on the various options for automatic sync between Macs. 1Password 2.9 is a free upgrade for existing users, and new users can grab a free trial. A single license runs $39.95USD with a family pack available for $59.95USD. For the full changelog for this release, check the version history page.

Dave and Roustem from Agile Web Solutions, authors of the form-filling powerhouse known as 1Password, were happy to talk about WWDC, Mac development and the future of 1Password and its upcoming iPhone counterpart. We've taken quite a few notes as 1Password has developed, and while I love the iPhone bookmarklet, I'm excited to see work being done on a native app!

There were laughs, tears and some pronounced (and lovable) Canadian colloquialisms. And that's just in the 10 minutes that survived the editing. Video after the jump.

[Viddler Link | QuickTime Version]

Password concierge and form-filler extraordinaire 1Password was upped to version 2.5.12 today with more features, changes and fixes than we could possibly list. Of course, current bleeding-edge users probably noticed that 2.6 Beta 6 also came out today with its own improvements and fixes, including the missing Fluid extension from Beta 5. Did we mention it supports Fluid these days?

OS X 10.5.2 threw a few curve balls at developers, and many of them are doing an admirable job of catching them with updates so timely you might think they were prescient. 1Password developer Dave Teare ranks high on that list, having put out an update yesterday that rapidly fixed the Safari problem that 10.5.2 introduced.

1Password is a favorite at TUAW, and it's possibly been mentioned previously for its time-saving, form-filling, credit card-remembering abilities. In addition to the Safari fix, there are several other enhancements to the application, such as user-assignable "restore form" shortcut keys in Firefox that should help keep my Services menu happy by avoiding conflicts, and an improved credit card fill should ease some frustrations with not-quite-filled forms and help speed up the draining of my available cash during the occasional online shopping spree.

So that bleeding-edge surfers aren't left out, the release also adds support for the latest Firefox nightly builds, as well as Camino 1.6b2. And improvements to the new iPhone Logins bookmark should also be welcome for those surfing on the small but oh-so-touchable screen.

1Password runs $29.95 for new users and the update is free for current users. You can download the new version (free demo) at the 1Password site.