What Happened to the Stay Signed-In Check Box on FamilySearch.org? • FamilySearch
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You've hired a team of web devolvers who will DESTROY this website. Everything changed recently has been for the worse.
I find the tone of this post condescending. You were the ones who couldn't figure out how to correctly implement a simple feature used by every other website for more than 20 years. And yet the tone your post takes makes it sound like your users are somehow the incompetent ones who should take this opportunity to learn about other things that have been around almost as long, like password managers. Really?
Your users are not the ones who need to take a lesson from this.
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I am so frustrated right now and James understands (and described it better than I'm about to)!! Sorry for the rant but I just lost 49 Chrome tabs representing research over months due to this TERRIBLE change simply because I had to relaunch my browser and this one window didn't auto restore. I could deal with logging back in to the site, even having to log back in to each tab, but to log back in and have it redirect to my home page with no tab history is beyond stupid. Really stupid. All my Ancestry tabs are still logged in and to the exact page with the ability to back through the history if needed, EVEN with 2-factor authentication because it has recognized my device. But FS can't figure out such a basic option. This is my home computer and I log in with my FS credentials. The relogging in is so random, sometimes I'm booted out after 1 hour without use but other times I am booted out while I am actively working, but at least it would reload to the page I was on. Even when the old 2 week login existed, and 2 weeks had passed, you could log back in to 1 tab and the rest would refresh and know you are back in the system, AND never lost the history of a tab.
Give a choice and set default to public computer or authenticate the device, AND keep the tab history, anything that works better. I can't go through "Recents" to find the lost pages - does FS not understand workflow? I'm often working on multiple disconnected families at a time, leave profile or source pages open to come back to as I go off on a tangent, work on something more pressing, research elsewhere to validate something I've found, or simply take a break for a couple days. Oh the dread that my browser might need to restart or be restored after an update. I'd get it if the browser broke the tabs, but FS are the only ones that can't reopen themselves. And for goodness sake, why does the login box not tab to the password box, but instead to 'forgot login'? Why make every step harder for your users?
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Whilst I am not experiencing all the problems @T2Montgomery appears to be facing, my major moan remains the issue of no longer being able to get back to separate Family Tree pages on which I had been working the day before. Next day, it appears all those tabs have remained opened, but, when refreshed, they all go to the page I have reopened first! As pointed out, going through Recents is not necessarily the answer, as the pages I have worked on are often pedigree views, so I do not want to restore pages for individuals.
I suppose I will have to continue trying this out - just in case the engineers do make adjustments that will lead to a return of the former behaviours. After all, they are inclined to leave it to us to find out if items have been resolved - like the problem with the "Show" icon on the Sign-in page, which they finally changed to operate like 99% of other websites, but chose (as is the general case) not to confirm their actions with FamilySearch patrons.
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Please bring back a longer sign-in time. I can understand if you've gone a few days without any activity, but having to sign in every day is just a pain. The other options provided, using third party sites, is not a great option.
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Can it at least leave me signed in for 24 hours? Its a hassle to sign in multiple times a day.
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MelanieThomas22 You will remain signed in as long as you are actively using the site.
To provide higher security for your information, once you are not active, you will be automatically logged out. If you prefer not to re-enter your credentials every time you access FamilySearch, for a quick and easy sign-in experience you can try any of these following options:
Third-Party Sign-In
Log in to FamilySearch.org with Facebook, Google, or Apple, a feature added to FamilySearch.org earlier this year. These options appear right at the top of the sign in page.
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can likewise use their Church account username and password to sign in to FamilySearch, by clicking the Sign in with Church account option.
Using a Password Manager
Another option is to configure your browser’s password manager to automatically enter your sign-in credentials whenever you visit FamilySearch.org.
If you’re not sure how to enable a password manager for FamilySearch, just go to your preferred search engine and enter something like, “Get [browser name] to remember my username and password.”
Here are some helpful articles explaining how to do this on a few popular browsers:
No Check Box, No Problem
Whether you have 1, 5, or 100 usernames in your work and personal life, they are hard to remember! At FamilySearch, we understand that. (That’s why we originally had the Stay Signed In check box option.)
Although the Stay Signed In check box is no longer available, we encourage you to try one of the options described above. They can help solve some of the same problems, and learning how to take advantage of them now might help you on other websites that have similar options.
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Bring back the "Stay signed in for two weeks" option. Every time the system logs me out I lose the info on half of the tabs that I have open. Any record that was opened by "open link in new tab" is lost when automatically logged out. When you log back in, you are taken back to the home page. If I have several tabs open because I'm trying to compare information, and determine if the records should be saved to this particular person, I'm screwed if I don't make the decision right away. If I have to go do something else, and can’t get back to working on genealogy until the next day, or even just past midnight, I might as well just close all my tabs, because they will be lost anyway.
I don't know how anyone thought this was a good idea. This is like some military basic training mass punishment bs, "If everyone can't do it, then no one gets to do it." Where is the logic in that?
"You will remain signed in as long as you are actively using the site." That is not completely true. I have been logged out at midnight on some tabs, while I'm working in a different tab. And using a third-party sign-in doesn't make things better. All it does is make it quicker to sign in and see my home page, on a tab that I will now just close, because the info that was on it is now gone. And while I'm on the subject, the "home page" is absolutely useless.
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I never did choose the option to stay signed in for two weeks. However, up to a few months ago, I thought I had found the perfect workaround for getting back to all those pages I had been working on the night before. I would use the browser (Chrome) which I have set not to delete cookies / clear cache after I close down for the night. Instead of logging out, I would then "crash out" of the browser (click on the cross top right of the screen). Next day I would go to "History" and "Restore previous session". True, I still had to sign in (to Family Tree pages) multiple times, but at least I was back exactly where I had been working the night before.
To coincide with the "signed in for two weeks" removal (too much coincidence, otherwise), I find when I sign in on the first tab it still takes me to one of the pages I had been working on during my previous session. But signing in subsequently (against the other tabs) takes me the that same page I have just opened - i.e., I have (say) six identical pages opened, instead of the six different ones that would I could open before the change!
The point I am trying to make is the "signed in for two weeks" factor doesn't seem to be directly involved with the problem (since, personally, I never used it). Regardless of what factor is involved here, I really agree that it is extremely annoying not being able to return to the individual pages I'd left open the night before - however longwinded the process was (multiple sign-ins) to get back to where I was…. at least I could!
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Sorry if this is a duplicate post, but my text disappeared when I clicked the post button.
Please restore the "stay signed in" option! It never lasted for 2 weeks, but did stick for 2 or 3 days, which was much better than the current experience of getting booted every day. The puzzles I'm trying to solve take more than a day, and I can't work on the site every day. I want to have my work in progress easily available.
Each time I open my browser, all of the tabs are logged out, and that's typically 8 to 30 tabs. When I do log in, the tab goes to a default page, not the one I was working on, so I have to copy the URL for each of those tabs before I log in and then paste it in after, which is super annoying.
If you can't increase the sign in time, PLEASE set up SINGLE SIGNON, so all tabs are logged in simultaneously. That will save a lot of frustration.
Yes, I use a password manager, and yes, I can sign in using a third party, and neither reduces the number of signins, so not helpful. This is not about remembering my password, but about site functionality.
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@Invictah This suggestion has been forwarded to be reviewed.
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I agree with everyone on this thread. The new log-in is frustrating beyond belief. My computer stays at home and I'm the only one who uses it. I'd like the option to stay logged in for as long as I want. I am 100% not interested in pursuing the suggested alternative log-in methods. Don't drive your users away with frustrating changes — if it ain't broke, no need to fix it.
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Yes, the login just took my typed comment. I am done, not re-typing.
VERY DISAPPOINTED in a bad decision to punish the site users who are responsible and use stay-at-home computers for the research. I would not want to sign in with anything else. I WANT TO AVOID Apple, Google and Facebook to learn about something that is not their business.
Bad decision to take away the 'stay signed in' option. Please bring it back!
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KatesMom Krisztina Wahl While it's true that the system wasn't broken, today is a different world and with this rapidly changing world and the craftiness of computer hackers on websites that remain logged in and sit idle has grown at an increasing rate recently. We are fortunate to have an IT Dept. that is on top of the most recent threats and constantly monitoring our system for all our safety. For this reason, it is imperative that an idle site be logged out if, not in use.
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For a private computer in a private house, where I have to login to Windows to open anything, it is ridiculous that I should have to also individually sign in to FamilySearch every time. If I had several browser tabs open trying to narrow down a difficult source, and sleep my computer until the next day, I then have to sign in to each and every tab. It is even more frustrating when using a browser on my private phone. Please don't suggest the app which is only good for viewing trees.
It really feels a throwback to the old days, doesn't add anything to my security, and makes me frustrated whenever I try to find something in FS.
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You say:
If I had several browser tabs open trying to narrow down a difficult source, and sleep my computer until the next day, I then have to sign in to each and every tab
My experience is that it is no longer of use to leave different tabs open when I close down at night. The next morning, after signing in on one tab, I find opening the others takes me to just that one page. Are you saying you are still able to get back to multiple pages, albeit this requires multiple sign-ins, because I lost that ability several months ago.
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Paul, that could be a difference in browser settings. If I leave multiple tabs open, I only have to sign in on one, and the rest will open without another sign-in. Sometimes I need to refresh that tab but not always. Windows 10 and Firefox.
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I'll try on Firefox, then! Currently, my browser settings allow for Chrome to retain cookies / cache, so I can restore my previous session after closing down. With Firefox, everything is cleared on closing - don't ask me why, I doubt if they are default settings. I'll change the Firefox settings to confirm this is a browser issue, though I don't know why the problem has arisen on Chrome. Thanks for the suggestion.
Update - well, that seemed to work with regards to restoring "as was" after closing Firefox. However, as I closed/opened so quickly I was still signed in to FamilySearch. Will see how things work tomorrow morning, when fresh sign in will be required.
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I can't thank you enough for your advice! After changing my Firefox settings I've just had to sign in once this morning to restore the individual Family Tree tabs I had been working on when I closed down last night.
That's how it had always worked for me with Chrome until some months back - I'm sure I haven't changed the browser settings, but better check to see if I can get this behaviour back to Chrome, too.
As you and others realise, the browser can make a difference in how FamilySearch / Family Tree behaves. I haven't used Edge for a while, but found that to be the best browser to use for scrolling through my "Following" list, which I find a painfully slow process when using either Firefox or Chrome.
Perhaps Áine's advice on switching browser, and/or checking settings, will work in solving your problem, too.
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Good news Paul! Glad it helped.
I've been a devout Firefox user for many years, but in recent months, I've used Chrome more and more for FamilySearch, especially when working with restricted images. The newer image viewers are painfully slow in Firefox, but they work much faster in Chrome.
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