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PC World cites disposable credit card numbers as a terrific product

by Steve Bass
PC World
June 14th 2006

Bad Ideas, Good Ideas
Some real stinkers, plus a few terrific products.

You know how much I hated Comet Cursor? More than you can imagine, because I had to schlep clear across town to remove it from my mom's PC--twice. That was a few years back, but I'm still fuming. I swear I'd bite the Comet Cursor developer on the nose if I could get near him. Luckily, Comet Cursor died a dismal, depressing, deserved death. Read Wired's "Cursor Company's Conduct Cursed" for more on Comet Cursor's demise.

Why have I been thinking about that miserable program? It's number 16 in "The 25 Worst Products of All Time," a terrific article by my buddy Dan Tynan.

I've been subjected to dozens of products and programs that drove me into a foaming-at-the-mouth frenzy. Dan has too--but he was far more fortunate. He got to write an article, vent his overwrought spleen, and get paid for it. And the story's been tremendously popular; our über-editor, Harry McCracken, can't stop kvelling.

Dan's story really is a hoot. It brought me back to a time of dopey bar-code scanners (CueCat), dreadful PCs (IBM Pcjr.), and Looney Tunes IUs (Microsoft Bob).

But not everyone's tickled with Dan's article. Sean Conrad, the guy who says he built Comet Cursor, isn't happy with it being called spyware, as you'll read in his blog (scroll down a little to his charming subhead).

Maybe it wasn't spyware, Sean, and that's fine with me. But when you put together the code, why in the world didn't you make it a little easier to uninstall?

But enough with the negative energy. There is still good in the world, and here are some great products that prove it.

Disposable Credit Cards

Almost four years ago I wrote about MBNA's ShopSafe, a service I've used for over a decade. ShopSafe creates disposable credit card numbers that give me a more secure way of shopping online. I log onto MBNA's site and give ShopSafe two parameters: the spending limit and expiration date for the card. A few seconds later, ShopSafe generates a temporary account number. For more info, go to the MBNA site.

I've heard of a few other services that do the same thing:

- Discover Card has the Deskshop Virtual Credit Card.
- PayPal has a virtual MasterCard number, though it's a little convoluted to set up.
- Citibank offers Virtual Account Numbers to most Citi credit-card holders.

Clever Notebook Accessories

Laptop Stand: If you plan on traveling with your notebook, take a look at the Aviator Laptop Stand. The $20 gadget locks your notebook into a comfortable position while it's resting on an airplane's fold-down tray. [Thanks, Tom!]

Notebook Legs: My cousin Judy came out to California for a visit. I let her--and her Mac notebook--into my office, and I could sense the bristling of the three PCs in the room.

The first thing she asked for was a book to prop up the back end of her notebook. What, I thought, the Mac isn't perfect? Without so much as a hint of a gloat, I gave her a set of legs instead. They're sold by LapWorks--$20 for a set of four. They're designed for Macs, but work perfectly on my ThinkPad.

Heavy-Duty Emergency Power

If you're in a home office and the power company sticks it to you with a rolling blackout--don't laugh; it's 90 degrees here in Pasadena--I have just the device you need. It's the XPower PowerSource 400 from Xantrex (and yes, it does sound like a drug; I almost deleted the PR flak's e-mail).

The PowerSource 400 has five outlets to can power a bunch of electronics. For instance, I plugged in a notebook, a cable modem, a cordless phone, a cell phone power adapter, and a desk lamp. The gadget plugs into a wall outlet. If the power goes out, it switches to backup power so the connected electronics continue to work. The company claims that a fully charged PowerSource 400 gives you up to 8 hours of power. I was able to get a little over 6; your mileage will vary. The PowerSource 400 discounts for about $160 online.

But isn't the PowerSource 400 essentially a souped-up uninterruptible power supply? Yes, with two differences: Unlike a UPS, the PowerSource isn't designed to safely shut down your computer; it just keeps things powered up. And a UPS keeps a system cooking for a short period of time (mine lasts about 30 minutes) while the PowerSource is good for much longer.

If you're interested in other ways to handle emergencies, you might look at Jim Martin's "Emergency Gadgets" column.

http://www.pcworld.com/howto/article/0,aid,125946,00.asp#

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