Wordlock
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wordlock is a brand of combination lock (there is also a version for notebooks) marketed by Wordlock,llc and STAPLES that differs from traditional combination locks in that it has letters on its dials instead of numbers.[1] This allows the combination to be a four—or five—letter word or name, similar to a password, and therefore potentially easier to remember than a series of digits.[2] Wordlock was invented by Todd Basche, and won the first ever Staples Invention Quest in 2004.[3] An important factual Update to this article: The merit of this possibility (letters v. numbers) these days may be simply the fact that it was finally commercialized. And that is a substantive merit. The concept is not infringing on any other patent, as it is in the public domain. 19th century lock patents indicate that 'letters, instead of numbers may be used, but numbers are preferred'. Also, the concept is described in very old editions of Webster's Dictionary.
See: http://www.geocities.com/whatsthebiginvention
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[edit] Possible combinations
The five rings on the Wordlock each contain ten letters as follows:
| Ring 1 | Ring 2 | Ring 3 | Ring 4 | Ring 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B | R | E | A | K |
| E | N | S | L | L |
| T | T | D | I | D |
| M | A | L | T | Y |
| J | O | A | O | N |
| L | E | C | R | A |
| S | L | N | S | E |
| A | I | T | N | H |
| C | H | C | E | S |
| D | U | I | Y |
Each ring can be rotated independently of the others, leading to a possible 105, or 100000, different combinations. However, since not every combination will yield a valid (or even pronounceable) word, Wordlock is estimated to be able to use only 1000 real 'dictionary' words as combinations,[4] rendering it insecure compared to numerical combination locks. However, the quoted 1000 words don't include the possibilities such as combinations which are pseudo-words (for example BLATS and JADA), certain names (BUNTY or MOSES), and swear words like BITCH and ARSE. The fourth ring is troublesome, in the fact that it is missing a K, D and an R and makes many four letter words impossible to spell (correctly). Some of the many possible combinations are as follows:
Brain Sleek Match Alien Chat Drink Duty Break Bunny Suit Suits Chick This Today Melt Melts Bored
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ About Wordlock - URL accessed 2006-08-25.
- ^ iVillage review of Wordlock - URL accessed 2006-08-25.
- ^ Staples Invention Quest previous winners - URL accessed 2006-08-25.
- ^ Cool Tool review of Wordlock - URL accessed 2006-08-25.
