Nearly two decades ago I wrote about a mechanism to have different passwords for every web site, without a central password manager storing your passwords. All you needed is an algorithm and a master password.
I am still using the mechanism1). But the original Firefox extension is abandoned, the Chrome extension that replaced it no longer works with recent Chrome changes and the Android App I was using is no longer working either.
I felt unwell today and spent the day in bed. Time enough to get coding (or rather [vibe engineering](https://simonwillison.net/2025/Oct/7/vibe-engineering/ “https://simonwillison.net/2025/Oct/7/vibe-e…
Nearly two decades ago I wrote about a mechanism to have different passwords for every web site, without a central password manager storing your passwords. All you needed is an algorithm and a master password.
I am still using the mechanism1). But the original Firefox extension is abandoned, the Chrome extension that replaced it no longer works with recent Chrome changes and the Android App I was using is no longer working either.
I felt unwell today and spent the day in bed. Time enough to get coding (or rather vibe engineering). Based on the original algorithm, I built a PWA (Progressive Web App), of course updated to modern JavaScript (using the SubtleCrypto API, a web component, the clipboard API, modern nested CSS, etc.) - not even a build system was needed for this.
The app can be installed on Android and will show up in the share menu. When I need a password, I can simply share the current URL with the app and it will prefill the site tag. I enter the master pass, press enter and the password is in my clipboard, ready to use. On desktop I can use a simple bookmarklet that does the same.
This makes the system independent from any mobile apps or browser extensions. Good for another 20 years 