The purpose of this help file is to explain the procedure of logging in to Honesty, and to outline different examples of how you might want to login differently than the next guy. So here we go:
Since Honesty is customizable from user to user, and since we provide personalized services, the first step to using Honesty is to identify yourself to us. Take a look at the dark green stripe that runs just below the Honesty.com logo at the top of the page. All the way to the right is a button that either says "Login" or "Logout". This button is an indicator of whether or not you are logged in to Honesty or not. If you see "Login", then logging in is necessary, so therefore you are not currently logged in. If you see "Logout", it's just the opposite; you are logged in and your option is to log out.
Single Account Management
For this section, we are assuming that you are the sole user of Honesty in your household, and that you only have one account on any given auction site that you manage through Honesty. If there are multiple people in your home using Honesty, or if you manage multiple accounts, please refer to the Multiple Account Management section.
You've probably noticed that when you try to access a program, you are presented with a Login box. All of the services that we offer require that you identify yourself using your email address and Honesty password. Entering this information every time you want to use one of our services can often be tedious, and at the very least, annoying. Just below the email address field, there is a checkbox that says "Remember Me". By checking this checkbox, when you login, a "cookie" will be set on your computer. A cookie is a tiny file that contains information that only our servers can access. When you login with the "Remember Me" option checked, a cookie will be placed on your computer with your email address and Honesty password. Then, the next time you go to one of our services, you won't need to login because your cookie does it for you!
Multiple Account Management
Ok, so what happens if you use a few different accounts on various auction sites? Maybe you're not the only one in your home who uses Honesty. Well, there's a few different things that you could do.
- If you (and everyone else who uses your computer) don't spend much time on Honesty, you'll probably want to follow this first scenario. When you go to your View Counters page (or any page), and you're prompted with the login box, enter your email address and Honesty password, but do not check "Remember Me". By leaving "Remember Me" unchecked, your email address and Honesty password will still be passed along to whatever program you're accessing, but no cookie is set on your computer. Of course, not having the cookie means that the when you go to any other service on Honesty, you'll need to re-enter your email address and Honesty password.
- If you spend quite a bit of time on Honesty, adding and checking statistics on different auctions under one account, and then switching to another account, then you'll probably want to follow this second scenario. Just as above, when you try to access on of our services, you'll be asked to login. This time, check the "Remember Me" option. Now, wherever you go on Honesty, the cookie that has been set on your computer will identify you to us. So once your work is done with one account and you want to switch to another account, click the Logout button (in the green stripe at the top of our page). Doing so will expire the cookie on your computer so that our servers no longer recognize you. Now when you try to access an Honesty service, you'll be asked to login again. Type in your account information and once again select "Remember Me". Now we remember you again! You can go about adding and viewing your counters under this second account without having to type in your email address and Honesty password again (until you decide to logout again).
- If you're not the only person who uses Honesty from your computer, you'll probably want to follow this third scenario. Ok, your wife is at work, or your husband is sleeping, whatever the case... it's your turn! Let's say for instance that you come to Honesty and you click on View Counters. You are taken to a counters page, but they're not your counters! Just look at the top of the page, just below our top banner and you'll see the email address that is currently logged in to Honesty. If that's not your email address, just click "Logout" (in the green stripe at the top of the screen), and you'll be able to return to View Counters and login as yourself. Then you'll be able to choose "Remember Me" to set a cookie in your name. Then when someone else wants to use your computer, they'll just have to log you out before they can use it
WebTV Note
Since the "Remember Me" option sets a cookie on your computer's hard drive, what happens with WebTV units that do not have hard drives? WebTV has set up a system where the cookies are stored in a database on one of WebTV's servers. Then, when a user connects to the WebTV network, the cookies are called up from that database. We have 2 WebTV units here at Honesty, and there's a slightly tricky method that must be used in order to get the "Remember Me" option to work. Here's what we do:
- Connect to the WebTV network as usual, and come to Honesty.com
- Click the "Login" button at the top of your screen (in the green stripe just below our logo)
- Enter your email address and Honesty password and click "login"
- Once you recieve confirmation that you are logged in to Honesty, turn your WebTV off.
- Turn your WebTV unit on and reconnect to the WebTV network.
- Upon returning to Honesty.com, you should be logged in, and you should have to enter your email address again (unless you decide to logout).
Hopefully this help file has helped to manage your single or multiple accounts with Honesty's Login/Logout feature. If you have any questions, feel free to email support@honesty.com any time, 24 hours a day. We're always here to help.
