Faq-O-Matic Faq-O-Matic: Identification and Authentication

	Faq-O-Matic Faq-O-Matic : Users' Guide : Identification and Authentication
	Depending on how the administrator has configured the Faq-O-Matic you're using, certain operations may ask you to offer identification and possibly proof thereof (authentication). In this case, an authentication page will appear asking for either an email address or an email address and a password. Fill in the form, click Login, and you will advance to the page which required authentication.
	Getting a password. If a section requires authentication and you don't have a password for it yet, Faq-O-Matic asks you for your email address (identification), and it mails you a URL. When you access that URL, you've proven that you can read mail at that address, and your password is enabled. Your administrator may have replaced the authentication system with a local one.
	Cookies. When you authenticate yourself, you are given a cookie, which provides authentication for you for an hour, so that you don't have to repeatedly enter your password. It expires after an hour so that others can't pretend to be you by stealing your cookie. So, if you've logged in and have been happily editing things and you're asked for authentication again, it may be that your cookie has expired and your password is needed to get a new one. ______________ For the curious, a cookie is simply a random string like "auth=ck46cc00" stored in the URL. It's not an HTTP cookie.
	If you click on the validation URL more than once, the second click will bring up a message saying "The secret you entered is not correct." (This can easily happen if for example your browser crashes the first time, or the transfer is interrupted, or you lose that window.) This is harmless, though a little confusing. Just go ahead and log in using your password. If you've forgotten your password, use the "Set a new password" link. (This is the behaviour in 2.711. Perhaps it will be improved in future versions.)
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