Purchasing Tickets: Multiple Browser Windows

[fmattyh]

According to Ticketmaster, only one browser window at a time is allowed when searching for tickets.

Please use only one browser window at a time (on the same computer) to hold tickets. If you open a new browser and order a different set of tickets, the tickets held in the previous browser will be released for sale to other customers.

My question - is this just a bluff, or does this actually happen? With the general sale almost upon us, I think we all are curious about whether or not using multiple browser windows will backfire. In your experience, have you ever seemed to be penialized for using more than one? Could this explain why so many people had trouble getting tickets for the presale? When you bought your tickets, did you have one or more browser windows open?

And how would they know whether you're using multiple windows anyway? IP address wouldn't help - there might be multiple computers on one LAN buying tickets, so you can't block out multiple IP address instances. Do they plant a cookie that can check for this? Can you block this cookie and still buy tickets?

Thanks for your help. 16 hours to go...

 

[neutral]

When you bought your tickets, did you have one or more browser windows open?

Well when I got online on presale day I heard from several people that they'd had problems buying tickets that weren't resolved until they closed all the multiple windows. Don't know if that was really the problem but I just used one window when I bought my tickets just to be safe.

 

[keithbeech]

It's a bluff

Trouble is, they "hold" tickets for a specified amount of time, usually 5 mins. So if you've got loads of windows open, picking between the best, they're losing out on time to sell these tickets.

Today was just overload, theres no reason you can't open a few windows & refresh in each.

Having bought via TM for other events, I know they don't cancel out the other browsers tickets.

Hope you all have an easier time tomorrow.

xx

 

[btdavis]

Yes, this is DOES actually happen. I already knew about the multiple browser window issue. You can only have 1 window open at a time actively searching for tickets.

During the presale, I thought I'd be crafty and try to fool the system since I now have Firefox on my PC in addition to Internet Explorer. I thought... There's no way Ticketbastard can detect that I have 2 browsers actively looking for tix using 2 different sets of cookies. WRONG! They nailed me again. I don't know how they did it... must be an IP address thing, but I'm not super-technical, so I dunno.

 

[isabelle_guns]

multiple browsers will fuck you up in the end, it isn't worth the trouble, just set up different accounts with different CC and get your friends who have nothing better to do to help you out.

 

[matt_tx00]

Yes, this is DOES actually happen. I already knew about the multiple browser window issue. You can only have 1 window open at a time actively searching for tickets.

During the presale, I thought I'd be crafty and try to fool the system since I now have Firefox on my PC in addition to Internet Explorer. I thought... There's no way Ticketbastard can detect that I have 2 browsers actively looking for tix using 2 different sets of cookies. WRONG! They nailed me again. I don't know how they did it... must be an IP address thing, but I'm not super-technical, so I dunno.

btdavis is right -

multiple browsers won't work with Ticketmaster. If you try to hold one pair of tickets on one browser, then "keep looking" for a better pair on another browser, you will void the original set of tickets.

 

[cmb737]

multiple browsers will fuck you up in the end, it isn't worth the trouble, just set up different accounts with different CC and get your friends who have nothing better to do to help you out.

Truley the best idea. Helps those in Europe get around the one show rule.

 

[mattgerth]

I had a browser open for the Rutherford show on Tues and a browser open for the Rutherford show on wednesday. Came up with tickets for both shows. I took the Tues GA tickets and the sale went through without a problem.

 

[cmb737]

I am not a browser expert, but I expect by having multiple browsers open you are clogging your own bandwidth alotment.

What the hell do I know?

 

[fmattyh]

Thanks for the responses so far, everyone. I will probably go with just one window per computer to be safe. I'll be in a computer lab, so I can get as many computers as I want - no need to risk it.

(Just picture me tomorrow at 9:59am, scrambling to hit refresh on an entire row of 8 computers as fast as possible. Then refresh again. On all 8. And again. Ah well. Such is life.

 

[mads]

i had 4 or 5 windows open during the presale, but only the first one actually came up with any tickets. for all of the others i kept getting that "internal server error" message. so i don't know, it didn't seem to mess anything up in the window that actually worked, but it didn't help me either...

 

[gorman]

You can't use just one browser because they set a cookie with your session, which affects all browser windows. Using two different browsers (i.e. IE and Firefox) might not work if they check for IPs (as someone mentioned above).

Ticketbastard indeed.

 

[stonethrowerj]

With my luck...I'm playing it safe and using only 1 browser.

 

[njelevation06]

I had several Netscape browers open ... i got the internal service error .... quickly switched to a single Internet Explorer browser and I was able to get a single GA to NJ 5/18 ... I'd go with one browser ... that's easy for me to say though, I'll be in a computer lab having the pledges of my fraternity each operating on a machine!!

 

[elevashn_hj]

There is a good solution to the IP addy issue. Download the trial version of VMWare. With it you can set up Virtual Machines. Each with an independant IP address. Then run one browser in each.

Enjoy.

HJ

 

[Sicy]

During the presale I had the u2.com window open and the ticketmaster window open at one point at the same time. As soon as I logged into one window, the other window deleted my information and code so I got scared and just stuck to one window.

 

[bridonohue]

during the presale i had 2 windows open trying to get msg and philly tickets. i got a message 3 times telling me ticketmaster had detected another browser open and that i would be unable to get tickets until it was closed. i then had to start over. i was able to get seats, but probably would have gotten better ones if i had just one browser open.

 

[hef4u2]

I had two windows open for two different dates may 7 and may 9 in chicago and was able to find premium tickets on both at the same time, but they were lousy seats.

It never gave me GA all the times I tried, but that's because I don't believe there were more than 10 available to begin with.