Have my own eccentric opinion as usual. No matter how hard your nail is, a pick gives a different tone. Alaskas are better because they are more like an extension of the nail rather than the counter-intuitive thing of the usual finger pick, where you have to train yourself to pick with the soft part of your finger.

To solve the prob of looseness, get one size too small to start with. Cut the center one of the three 'straps' out with nail clippers so it seats better. My main guitar guy, who never switches off on instruments, tapes his on at the beginning of the set.

Obviously they aren't going to work well on clawhammer banjo, but then screwdrivers aren't too handy to pound nails with, either.

PS. My favorite aspect of Alaska pix is the mental image I had of Eskimo/Inuit women making them from the ivory of some endangered species or other. I was disappointed when I found that isn't true. Any more.

CC, aka Abdul the Perverse