Have you ever wanted to get something from a web site but been unwilling to go through all their hassles with registration. Then this site's for you:

http://www.bugmenot.com

It has access names and passwords for over 18000 websites. When you want an article from the NY Times (Jackie, are you listening? At least I think it was Jackie) all you have to do is go to bugmenot, get the userid and password, and you own the site.

The other one is a bit more subtle. but also potentially as useful. There are times when someone wants your email to send you something but you are uncomfortable passing out the one you use all the time lest it end up on a spam list.

Make up an email address with the extension @mailinator.com and give it to the person asking. To get your mail just go to http://www.mailinator.com and type in the userid you made up. Mailinator automatically opens an account when it receives mail if it doesn't have an account there already with that name. And you just go retreive your mail!

I haven't tried mailinator, though I will when I get finished posting this, but I did try bugmenot.com and it works.

Thanks, TEd.

This is great stuff! But what do they get out of it?

<go to bugmenot,get the userid, and you own the site.>

Hey Ted,
bugmenot is buggin' me. Maybe I'm denser than most. I create my account, with name and password. Next I enter the URL of a site I want to reach. Then the only place to click is Show Logins. How do I get to the site I want?
slithy

they purposely make the sites non-clickable, to foil referral detection of their own site I imagine. you prolly captured the url you wanted to access in the first place, so just note the id and password (always identical??) and plug the url back in to your browser and GO.

and what do they gain? well, it could be a scam; or they could be after Fame and Fortune (Google started in a dorm room, you'll recall).

p.s. - you should check out their FAQ.

TEd, Bugmenot and Mailinator both sit next to each other on my Links toolbar, and are often used. Mailinator works great, especially for signing up for those sites that require a valid email, as they send a confirmation message to that address before you are signed up.

Slithy, the easiest way to use Bugmenot is to use the "bookmarklet" they have created. Drag it to your Bookmarks menu, and when you are on the registration page for a site, click on the "bookmarklet" and it will open up a new window with (at least) one ID and password for the site you are currently on.

I've been an evangelist for these two ingenious sites for months now, and it is good to hear word is starting to spread.