Save Time on the Internet with RoboForm

RoboForm is a helpful application which stores your passwords and form information. We decided to give RoboForm a trial run to determine just how helpful the program can be.

When you install RoboForm, you are prompted to enter a Master Password. The password is not recoverable, so make sure it is one you can easily remember. You can also set it the minutes of inactivity necessary before it asks for a Master Password for additional security.

RoboForm works with almost every internet browser, including Firefox and Internet Explorer. We used RoboForm with FireFox version 3.0.11. RoboForm has its own toolbar that conveniently appears below other toolbars on your page, but like other toolbars you can hide or show it depending on your needs.

RoboForm allows you to store items you need to complete forms into locations called passcards. For example, you can store a username and password. For people in the job market, RoboForm can also store items you use to narrow your list of jobs such as zip code and how recently the job was posted. Once you select a passcard from the “Logins” menu, RoboForm will navigate to the internet site for you, enter your information, and submit the page for you.

Some websites ask you to type phrases you see inside boxes or provide other information that will change every time you enter the site. These phrases are called “Turing” fields and are primarily used to prevent software hackers from causing harm to a site through an automated system. Companies which include Turing fields in their forms are primarily interested in making sure that a human is completing the form.

You can handle Turing fields by using the “Edit” option from the “passcards” menu. Select the field and select “Edit -> Ignore Field.” The only problem with trying to edit a passcard is that the names of the fields come from the form itself and so are not always intuitive. Hopefully, you won’t have much need to go into this option of RoboForm, but at least the option is there if you need it.

Anytime you go into any website, supply a username and password and submit your form, you will be asked if you want to save the information as a passcard. You can also save information you type into a form as a passcard simply by selecting the “save” option from the RoboForm toolbar. This feature only comes in handy if you have a form you fill out exactly the same way every time you access a certain site.

To quickly complete forms that require information such as name and phone number, select the “Edit” option from the “Identities” menu. You can then provide information and save it to an identity. Your Identity appears on the RoboForm toolbar next to the icon of a person. When you are on a form that requires the information, simply click on the Identity option. While RoboForm will not be able to complete every field, it will save you some time.