It's December, which means you are already late on your Christmas cards. If you'll be writing your end-of-year letter on behalf of yourself, your partner, and maybe your kids, start thinking about your return address.

Maybe I have face blindness. Maybe I'm just a dick. But I frequently run into acquaintances and can't remember their names. If I'm with my wife, she knows what to do: she immediately introduces herself, so they can say their name back. I might look slightly rude for not jumping to it, but at least my secret's safe. And I know I'm not the only one who needs this help.

Does it seem as though your cat is ignoring you? Do they not come when called? Your cat might be a jerk. Or they might just not recognise their own name.

As anyone who works in a school or childcare centre will attest, Australian parents come up with some pretty weird names for their offspring - including Google, Tron and Hippo. While most names are reluctantly approved by the state or territory's Registry of Births, there are a few that you just can't get away with.

So you've come up with a perfect name for your new baby. Great. Now it's time to test-drive it. Here are 12 tests to make sure you don't end up with deep regret.

Life's more fun with nicknames. That's why we name our wireless networks "Julia Louis-Wifus" or "23cm tops come to Apt. 3B". But say you need to name a whole set of things, like software versions, conference rooms, or just placeholders in an example. At that point you can't just make up random names one by one. You need a system.

We know that our names may influence just about every avenue of our lives -- where we live, the school courses we enrol in, the grades we achieve, the jobs we choose, the jobs we get called back for, how far we go in those jobs, who we love and where we donate money. Now there's evidence that our names may also affect the way we look.

Choosing the right name for your baby is tougher than it sounds. You probably don't want an overly weird name lest your child gets teased at school. On the other hand, nobody wants to be saddled with a boringly common name like John or Chris (thanks for nothing, Mum!)

Instead, most parents plump for something that sits between unique and familiar. If you're stumped for ideas, this list of 100 popular baby names - 50 boys' and 50 girls' - is well worth a look.

Naming things is hard, especially if the name needs to be unique. Over the years I've worked for sites named Urlesque (rhymes with burlesque, it's about memes), Slacktory (it's a factory for slacking) and Valleywag (which came scarily close to being called "Boomshank"). I always loved the evocative site names of the Gizmodo network. Sploid connotes splatter, tabloids and explosions; Deadspin promises ESPN with an unexpected angle; Kotaku puts the slightest spin on the Japanese term for obsessive nerdy interest. More famous names like Instagram, Medium and Upworthy also compactly convey multiple meanings. The same approach is popular for fictional character names: Darth Vader, Voldemort and Ebenezer Scrooge read immediately as bad guys.

At time of writing my wife is eight and a half months pregnant with our second child. We still don’t have a baby name. Correction: we have two baby names. It’s taken us almost the entirety of my wife’s pregnancy to round our choices down to two names. Here’s what I’ve learned along the way.

Unconventional names are in vogue right now. Celebrities are naming their offspring after fruit and cardinal directions. Modern day parents are giving their children names based on Instagram filters. It can only be expected the kids will be none too impressed when they grow up and are teased mercilessly at school but what are the legalities around bestowing your child a creative name?

It's always a little embarrassing when you show up to a friend's party or event and can't remember someone's name. Former Lifehacker writer Adam Dachis suggests digging through those party invites a little more thoroughly to remind yourself of people's names and faces.

Most of us have been there: you meet someone, learn their name and then forget it, almost right away. Next time you're introduced to someone, immediately think of a famous person who shares their name.

It's so awkward: you run into someone at a party/work event/shopping centre, and you can't remember whether or not you've met them before (let alone what their name is). What should you say?

Hey Lifehacker, Are there any laws in Australia restricting the use of the title 'Dr.'? Can anyone use the title even if they didn't study medicine or earn a PhD?

Hi Lifehacker, I have recently relocated to Australia and I'm faced with a strange problem with my name. I have a first name which I do not use -- my middle name is my preferred name. My question is how easy is it to change my name, and what are the consequences of having some documents with my full name and some with my preferred name?

According to a large-scale study in the US, people who go by nicknames tend to earn more money than their formally named counterparts. What's more, shaving a single letter off your moniker could land you an extra $US150,000 over the course of your career. No really.

So Wills and Kate have had their baby and the royal watchers have moved on from when the baby will come and the gender to naming the new heir. Personally, we're hoping for Arthur because the world needs another King Arthur. But how do the rest of us choose baby names?

It's hard to remember names. Despite your best efforts, strategies, and even apps, you're going to forget. Gretchen Rubin, writing for Psychology Today, has a good suggestion for avoiding the awkwardness that follows your lack of memory: use a compliment.