[Mopey]

Do you find yourself constantly logging in, then logging out, then logging in, then.... well you get the picture. Because that's what I do all day long. So I'm wondering -- is it better just to log on once and stay there all day, then log off at night?

[unaluna]

I never log off.

[DocJohn]

Depends on how you use your computer, your living situation, your comfort level about privacy, and maybe a few other things...

I'm not the norm, but I stay logged in pretty much all the time. To all the community sites I participate in. I don't care if someone sees it on my computer...

[piggy momma]

I stay logged in on my phone, but when I access from work I make sure it never saves me log in credentials.

[Mopey]

That makes sense, Piggy Momma. There is the privacy issue to be considered. I guess I was just wondering if it made any difference from a technical point of view.

[CepheidVariable]

I'll often stay logged in with the browser window open in the background if I want to do something else on the computer for a bit. But I always log out of everything when I walk away from the computer. That's just years of safe/secure computing practice that's become a habit. It's easier that way; I don't have to worry about "Did I do it or not?", because I always do wherever and whenever.

But as DocJohn said, it depends entirely on your situation.

[Mopey]

I'd like to do what you've described above, CV, but I'm not sure how. Can you tell me? (I have a MAC desktop computer).

[CepheidVariable]

Originally Posted by Mopey

That makes sense, Piggy Momma. There is the privacy issue to be considered. I guess I was just wondering if it made any difference from a technical point of view.

On your own device, it doesn't make any technical difference. It's just a small hassle to keep logging in and out.

I don't believe -- admins correct me if I'm wrong -- it would significantly affect the load and performance of the site itself. Even with the occasional automatic page refreshes. Maybe if *everyone* started doing it, it might be an issue?

Originally Posted by Mopey

I'd like to do what you've described above, CV, but I'm not sure how. Can you tell me? (I have a MAC desktop computer).

Do you mean browsing somewhere else on the web while keeping PsychCentral open? Or using another app/program entirely?

If using another app/program, just go ahead and launch it. You just need to go back to your web browser (almost certainly "Safari") when you want to. Do you know how to switch between programs on your desktop?

If you want to web browse somewhere else, you need to open a new "tab" or a new "window" in your web browser. Again, you can ask me if you need to know how to do that.

[Mopey]

Do you mean browsing somewhere else on the web while keeping PsychCentral open? Or using another app/program entirely?

If using another app/program, just go ahead and launch it. You just need to go back to your web browser (almost certainly "Safari") when you want to. Do you know how to switch between programs on your desktop?

If you want to web browse somewhere else, you need to open a new "tab" or a new "window" in your web browser. Again, you can ask me if you need to know how to do that.

I'd like to be able to do both, but can't. I only know how to look at one website at a time. If I go to one, the other disappears. Yes I have Safari. Any help you can give me would be very much appreciated. Thx!!!

[unaluna]

Most sites are pseudo-conversational. That is, it APPEARS they are waiting for you to respond, but they arent, really. Its like you go back to the end of the Dept of Motor Vehicles line every time you hit the Enter key. They just keep track of what you were doing. Like they know whats in your cart, etc. You "are" your screen, but the site can hide a lot of data on your screen. Some of the data is hilited, some of the data is invisible, but its all there.

[CepheidVariable]

Originally Posted by Mopey

I'd like to be able to do both, but can't. I only know how to look at one website at a time. If I go to one, the other disappears. Yes I have Safari. Any help you can give me would be very much appreciated. Thx!!!

Yes, normally when you go to a new website, it replaces the one you are current viewing on the screen. To have more than one around at a time, you need to use what are called "tabs". You can also use a new window, but let's start with tabs.

Software designers like to use physical office symbolism, because people are familiar with that. So think of file folders in a file cabinet. You can't see the pages in each folder, but you know they are there because each folder has a little tab that sticks up and has the title written on it. Your web browser, Safari, can have little tabs near the top which are just like this. Each one has a different webpage in it, with a title on the tab.

Here's a tutorial online, which shows you how to use tabs (and windows).

https://edu.gcfglobal.org/en/safari/...g-in-safari/1/

Scroll down to the section entitled "Windows and Tabs". There are nice, clear pictures with the important bits highlighted.

There's also a video there if you prefer.

(There's a whole lot of other technology tutorials at that site too: https://edu.gcfglobal.org/en/topics/ )

I hope this helps.

[CepheidVariable]

Originally Posted by unaluna

Most sites are pseudo-conversational. That is, it APPEARS they are waiting for you to respond, but they arent, really. Its like you go back to the end of the Dept of Motor Vehicles line every time you hit the Enter key. They just keep track of what you were doing. Like they know whats in your cart, etc. You "are" your screen, but the site can hide a lot of data on your screen. Some of the data is hilited, some of the data is invisible, but its all there.

Yeah. Being "logged in" is really a kind of agreed upon state between the user's computer and the PsychCentral machine. There isn't actually a permanently open connection. However, PsychCentral does cause your web-browser to auto-refresh every few minutes, which does generate some additional traffic and site load that wouldn't be there if you were logged out. As I said, I really don't think it would amount to much. But I wouldn't presume to speak for the site's operators.

And let's hope the process is not as slow as the DMV for goodness sake!

[Mopey]

Originally Posted by CepheidVariable

Yes, normally when you go to a new website, it replaces the one you are current viewing on the screen. To have more than one around at a time, you need to use what are called "tabs". You can also use a new window, but let's start with tabs.

Software designers like to use physical office symbolism, because people are familiar with that. So think of file folders in a file cabinet. You can't see the pages in each folder, but you know they are there because each folder has a little tab that sticks up and has the title written on it. Your web browser, Safari, can have little tabs near the top which are just like this. Each one has a different webpage in it, with a title on the tab.

Here's a tutorial online, which shows you how to use tabs (and windows).

https://edu.gcfglobal.org/en/safari/...g-in-safari/1/

Scroll down to the section entitled "Windows and Tabs". There are nice, clear pictures with the important bits highlighted.

There's also a video there if you prefer.

(There's a whole lot of other technology tutorials at that site too: https://edu.gcfglobal.org/en/topics/ )

I hope this helps.

Thanks, Cepheid. As soon as I have a block of time I will attempt this. Thank you for your time.

Originally Posted by Mopey

Do you find yourself constantly logging in, then logging out, then logging in, then.... well you get the picture. Because that's what I do all day long. So I'm wondering -- is it better just to log on once and stay there all day, then log off at night?

I find myself doing this all the time lately

especially because of the new settings they put on here causing me extreme grief at my end

they need to fix that

but... hmm, usually I only stay logged in if I'm actually posting